Mahmut Okutan

Karadeniz folk is the regional folk music of Turkey’s eastern Black Sea (Karadeniz) coast, associated with Laz, Hemshin, Pontic Greek (Romeika-speaking), and Turkish communities. It is typified by the piercing, agile sound of the kemençe (Pontic lyra) and the droning tulum (Black Sea bagpipe), propulsive asymmetric dance meters (especially the horon in 7/16), and call-and-response vocals. Melodies often draw on Anatolian/Turkic and wider maqam-based modal practices, while lyrics evoke seafaring, mountain life, migration, tea and hazelnut harvests, and fervent love. In modern practice, traditional ensembles are frequently joined by guitar, bass, and drum set, producing a lively folk-rock crossover that retains the region’s characteristic rhythmic lift and ornamented melodic style.

Karadeniz türküleri are traditional folk songs from Türkiye’s Black Sea coast, especially the eastern provinces of Trabzon, Rize, Giresun, and Artvin. They are distinguished by driving dance rhythms (notably for the horon), odd meters such as 7/16, 5/8, and 9/8, and a bright, agile vocal style rich in ornamentation. Core timbres come from the Black Sea kemençe (a bowed lyra) and the tulum (a local bagpipe), often joined by bağlama/cura, koltuk davulu or davul–zurna, and frame drums. Melodically they are modal (makam-informed), with drones and microtonal inflections that reflect both Turkish folk and older Pontic/Caucasian layers. Lyrically, songs celebrate seafaring life, mountain villages, love and courtship, migration, teasing humor, and local identity. While most are in Turkish, regional languages such as Lazuri and Hemşince (and historically, Romeika/Pontic Greek) appear in the tradition, underscoring the region’s cultural mosaic.