Hanging with Hanefi Bey

Remember when I went to Konya, and I met Mehmet Bey, the Felt Guy? Well, Mehmet wanted me to meet a friend of his in Istanbul, named Hanefi Bey. Hanefi is a musician, specifically, a neyzen (someone who plays the ney, which is a flute-like instrument used in Turkish folk music). Way back when on this blog I talked about attending a ney lesson. Neyzen traditionally played a very important role in the Sufi communities, because they would play the ney during religious ceremonies (sema). Modern practitioners are very much carrying on a living tradition in the same way calligraphers do, and as a result I have found that these close-knit communities of musicians and calligraphers are very inter-connected. 

I met Hanefi Bey at his studio, very close to the Topkapi Palace in Eminonu. In his studio, he not only gives ney but also crafts the musical instruments by hand. I was lucky enough to get a private concert from Hanefi Bey (right), and to watch him create a ney from raw materials like reeds and bone! I was really impressed with Hanefi Bey (a former professional football player!), and with all of the information he had for me about playing the ney, which he has been doing for about 25 years. He has travelled around the world, as far as France and Argentina, to give music workshops and talk about his work. He speaks English and Spanish, and understands French, but he was kind enough to suffer through my insistence on practicing Turkish! The ney is a deceptive instrument. On the exterior, it seems really simple: a mouthpiece, a stick made out of reed, and a few holes. But, being able to control one's breath and create different sounds is really really difficult; apparently, some students take a whole week just to be able to produce a sound that resembles music! I took a shot at it, and after about 20 minutes of looking in the mirror, screwing my lips up to look like a bunny's, and blowing into the mouthpiece I finally got a sound out. Another fact I did not know is that there is not just one kind of ney; they vary greatly in size and length to create different musical chords (according to Hanefi Bey, there are over 20 different kinds of ney). 

I have never been all too gifted musically, but I really enjoyed my visit and I loved seeing all of the similarities between the neyzen and the hattat. For one thing, pursuing the ney, as well as calligraphy, could only be a labor of love.