okay, so my saz has arrived, and i love it, and it's everything i dreamed it would be.
so i'm moving into the process of learning how to play it.
i'm eyeballing these two books from the lark in the morning -
larkinthemorning.com/product.asp
and
larkinthemorning.com/product.asp
has anyone used these books or seen them in person? are they any good?
p.s. i understand that the one book is actually written in turkish - do you think it will be usable because of the western notation?
so i'm moving into the process of learning how to play it.
i'm eyeballing these two books from the lark in the morning -
larkinthemorning.com/product.asp
and
larkinthemorning.com/product.asp
has anyone used these books or seen them in person? are they any good?
p.s. i understand that the one book is actually written in turkish - do you think it will be usable because of the western notation?
posted by:
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Columbus
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Re: opinion on books
Tue, April 22, 2008 - 3:11 PMi know the first one.
it is basically.....crap.
english is horrible, there are some nice diagrams but even there there are mistakes.
it is tiny. only a few pages.
do you already play other instruments?
if so even 3-4 lessons can really open your eyes (if you can find a tutor)
much more than this book for sure.....
it really helped me - i already play greek bouzouki.
on the web there is not much info but go through this tribe and you will see some good sources. At least you can learn some things about the makams, the commas etc, the thumb technique, the tunings etc -
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Re: opinion on books
Wed, April 23, 2008 - 7:16 AMi don't know these but i do know it is best to find a teacher, even if you must travel. Saz is such a different kind of instrument and the playing styles and tunings are unique. books don't really cut it but for some basic info on tunings, types, etc. if you absolutely cannot find a teacher. listen, listen and then listen some more - then watch all the youtube vids you can! you will start to get it slowly. if you wish to play it "authentically" resist the temptation to tune or strum it like a guitar or other western instruments, it will take you way off course.
congrats on taking the plunge. enjoy!
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Re: opinion on books
Wed, April 23, 2008 - 10:04 AMHi Angie,
If you are looking for songs, you don't need the book. Go here instead:
www.turkuler.com/
and look at the items under "Notalari"
Also, go to the Duzeni section under Baglama for tunings.
maqamworld.org is a good site too to learn and understand maqam,
but this is Arabic maqam, not Turkish.
I've got a couple of books and don't find any of them to be of much value. I also have
some VCDs that were of no value to me either.
David and Andreas's advice is spot-on. Find a teacher if you can, watch videos,
listen etc.
Please post some pictures of your instrument if you can!
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Re: opinion on books
Wed, April 23, 2008 - 10:28 AMHeck, I work for Lark in the Morning and the books for bag"lama are not really very good to learn to play from; they do list tunings and such, and have various songs, but they are full of misprints, and will not really teach you. They will help if you already have some experience, but I highly recommend finding a teacher.
The Turkish website in question is excellent - I like it a lot, wish it was there years ago!
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Re: opinion on books
Wed, April 23, 2008 - 11:58 AMthese responses have been really helpful.
i'm happy not to have spent $50 on books that are kind of junky.
that turkuler site is amazing! i think i could probably spend the rest of my life trying to play just the songs on there. thanks! -
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Re: opinion on books
Wed, April 23, 2008 - 2:30 PMHere's another site with streaming audio of Turkish music.
Sound quality is not great but it's still worth a listen:
www.turkishmusic.org/index1.html
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Re: opinion on books
Wed, April 23, 2008 - 12:31 PMhave you seen this? it has been posted here before and i think it is a great resource.
www.khafif.com/rhy/saz/
