ORNAMENTS USED IN UZBEK NATIONAL MELODIES AND SONGS

Abstract

This article examines the ornaments used in Uzbek national melodies and songs. It is shown that Uzbek national music stands apart from the music of other peoples through its rich and varied ornaments, which enrich the fundamental tones of national melodies and songs and lend them a unique charm and expressiveness. The article traces the historical roots of musical ornaments to ancient times, noting that medieval treatises on Eastern music, particularly Mahmud ash-Sherozi's “Durratut toj,” contain information concerning musical ornaments. Melisms and their types, including the trill, forshlag, mordent, and gruppetto, are analyzed. The melisms widely employed in Uzbek national performance practice - qochirim, nola, kashish, molish, and xonish - are considered separately. The simple and complex types of qochirim, the character of nola as a vibrating sound within the range of a half tone, the execution of forshlag by lightly striking the principal sound with the aid of a sound at an interval of a half or whole tone in advance, the performance of the mordent with the plectrum, and the formation of kashish through the sliding of the fingers of the left hand are all elucidated. The article also examines rez, ornaments characteristic of the chang instrument, the role of ornaments in maqom performance, the use of ornaments in folk melodies and songs and in the work of contemporary composers, and the methodology of studying and teaching ornaments. The conclusion emphasizes that national ornaments are the principal elements ensuring the distinctiveness of Uzbek music and that preserving them and transmitting them to future generations is essential.