The companion to Meshk
Between Frets
An ongoing research project on Middle Eastern and Central Asian modal music traditions.
Content Domains
Notes on theory, history, instrument guides, and tuning systems for Turkish makam, Persian dastgah, and related modal music traditions — compiled as we learn, and the companion to meshk.app.
Foundations
Instruments
Cümbüş, oud, setar, tanbur, tar, saz, kemençe, ney, and santur — construction, history, and playing technique.
Foundations
Tuning Systems
Holdrian commas, 53-TET, Pythagorean tuning, and the gap between theory and practiced intonation.
Traditions
Turkish Makam
Cesni, perde, seyir, and the modal framework of Ottoman court and modern Turkish music.
Traditions
Persian Dastgah
Radif, gusheh, avaz, and the modal system of Persian classical music.
Context
Theory
Comparative modal theory, string acoustics, microtonal psychoacoustics, and notation systems.
Context
History
Ottoman court music, Persian classical tradition, and Central Asian connections.
Applied
Repertoire
Analysis of specific compositions, taksim traditions, usul, and performance recordings.
Applied
Practice
How to practice makam and dastgah effectively, with meshk.app as a companion tool.
Start Reading
- Persian DastgahThe Dastgah System: An Introduction to Persian Classical MusicAn overview of the twelve-mode dastgah system — seven primary dastgahs, five satellite avazes, and the radif tradition that defines Persian classical music.
- Tuning SystemsPythagorean Tuning: How Stacked Fifths Built an OctaveThe ancient method of tuning by pure fifths, the comma it produces, and the mathematical accident that connects it to the 53-tone system of Turkish makam theory.
- InstrumentsThe Oud: History, Construction, and Playing TraditionsA guide to the oud — its deep history, bowl-back construction, fretless technique, and the distinct Turkish and Arabic traditions it anchors.