Atatürk's Understanding of Music and Comment
ATATÜRK'S UNDERSTANDING OF TURKISH MUSIC AND COMMENT
We have tried to make clear that Atatürk listened to Turkish music with love
and illustrated this by various memories. What is more, Atatürk yearned for a
national and developed Turkish Music.
As we have said before, he was very right to complain about the musics with
the “Ah” and “Oh” from the radio.
I myself counted once. There were eighteen ahs and ohs just in one song.
We had a janissary band music. Türkiye is the first nation to introduce music
into warfare.
The first target of the enemies had been to silence the janissary band. It
was the music that bewildered the enemies on the battlefield.
He had emphasized on improving the music of our ancestors as the solution for
the new line of music.
Great Atatürk asked those present at a meeting.
- Which is the most difficult reform?
Atatürk replied himself
- The most difficult reform is music reform.
Therefore Atatürk had showed this by a laconic expression in his historical
Speech made in the Grand National assembly.