page_title: Ottoman military band
section_title: Origins and early years of the bands
hierarchical_section_title: Ottoman military band / The Mehteran identity / Origins and early years of the bands
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Detail einer Illustration zu Nüshet el-esra el-ahbar der seref-i Szigetvár, Chronik von Ahmed Feridun. Der Ausschnitt zeigt die mehterhâne, die den Rückzug aus der Schlacht um Szegetvár begleiten. Sultan Süleymans I. Tod wird verheimlicht und die Rückreise der Leiche wird als Triumphzug des lebenden Sultans ausgegeben. Entsprechend spielt die mehterhâne triumphale Märsche.
context_page_description: Ottoman military bands are thought to be the oldest variety of military marching bands in the world. Though they are often known by the word mahtar in West Europe, that word, properly speaking, refers only to a single musician in the band. In Ottoman, the band was generally known as mehterân, though those bands used in the retinue of a vizier or prince were generally known as mehterhane
context_section_description: Mehter tunes are found as far back as the 16th century. Nevertheless, it is known that Abdülkadir Meragi, the great Turkish music master, came to the Ottoman lands during the era of Yıldırım Beyazıd Han and composed some mehter melodies for the Turkish military. In that period, Nefiri Behram Ağa and Emir-i Hac also wrote some mehter tunes. Mehter bands played some compositions of Hasan Can and Gazi Giray Han of Kırım, as well. There was great development of Turkish music in the 17th century. In the meantime, mehter conductors and bandmasters such as Zurnazenbaşı (head of the zurna players) İbrahim Ağa, Zurnazen Daği, Ahmed Çelebi from Edirne, Mehter Ahmed from Edirne also composed mehter tunes.
  Evliya Çelebi provided important data about the mehterhane and mehter musicians in the middle of the 17th century. "There are 300 artists in mehterhane-i Hümayun (the mehterhane of the palace) in Istanbul. These are quite precious and well paid people. There is additionally a mehter takımı of 40 people in Yedikule since there is a citadel. They are on duty three times a day, in other words they give three concerts, so that public listens to Turkish military music. This is a law of Fatih. Moreover, there are 1,000 mehter artists in addition to them in Istanbul. Their bands are in Eyüp Sultan, Kasımpaşa (kapdan-ı Deryalık, the center of [the] Turkish Naval Forces), Galata, Tophane, Rumelihisarı, Beykoz, Anadolu Hisarı, Üsküdar and Kız Kulesi. These mehter bands are on duty (i.e. give concerts) twice a day, in the daybreak and sunset hour."
  Mehterhane preserved its existence, changing continuously, until the Janissary corps was abolished. According to its final form, each one was composed of nine davuls, nine zurnas, nine nakkares, nine cymbals and nine horns/trumpets. This band was called Dokuz katlı mehterhane (mehterhane composed of instruments, each instrument's number is nine). Mehter had many improvements in its music and performance parallel to its organization and establishment. Furthermore, renovations in the areas of art and culture influenced the music also. The studies and compositions of the music teachers of the palace in the 17th century such as Hanende Recep Çelebi, Zurnazenbaşı İbrahim Ağa, Eyyubi Mehmet Çelebi, Solakzade Mehmed Hendemi (who was also a very famous historian) and Selim III, the sultan and one of the great music masters of the 17th century, had influence on the renovation of the mehter musikisi and the growth of the repertoire.
caption: Mehterhâne, miniature from 1568
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