KUDSI ERGUNER MASTER OF THE MEVLEVI NEY

Overview
The Ney player was considered the second most significant figure in the hierarchy of the order Mevlevî, the disciples of Djalāl ad-Dīn Rûmî

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The ney, which is a reed flute, the principal instrument of the whirling dervish brotherhood, held such importance that the Ney player was considered the second most significant figure in the hierarchy of the order Mevlevî (the disciples of  Djalāl ad-Dīn Rûmî, 13th century)
This respect was due to the Mathnawî  the great collection of poems by Rumi.
For the disciples, Rumi himself described the state of those inspired by God through the metaphor of the Ney.

“The ney is like a reminder of the awareness of the precariousness and the ephemeral nature of our existence.”

Here are a few couplets from the Mathnawî:

1. 

“Listen to the ney tell a story.
It laments separation.”

is separated from the
reed bed where it was born. It has been hollowed out
with iron heated in fire and finally pierced with seven holes
in order to produce harmonious melodies. In the same way,
man is separated from the spirituality that preceded his incar-
nation, a spirituality of which he retains an unconscious memory.
Man too must be cleansed from within—
that is, from the obstacles that hinder the flow of
divine inspiration. The ney was considered by the dervishes
as a symbol of Rûmî himself and of all
other Sufis, which explains the great attention paid to
listening to the ney, for it is somewhat like the voice of Rûmî.

“I want a heart torn apart by separation
To pour into it the pain of longing.”

Like the reed flute (ney), man feels the need to share his nostalgia for the reed bed with other men in the same situation as himself.
That is why Rumi chose the metaphor of the ney to write these eighteen distichs (couplets).

“Whoever remains far from his source
Longs for the moment he will be reunited with it once more.”

Thus, any person who becomes aware of this state of original purity will seek the inspiration that could bring them back to that condition.

10.
“The sound of the ney is the fire of love, not the wind,
And woe to those who do not have this flame.”
The sound of the ney is not born merely from the breath of the player,
but from the fire of love and passion. Those who hear only the breath
of the ney player must renounce their bodily shell
to discover the fire of love.

“It is the fire of love that makes one love the ney,
It is amorous ecstasy that makes the wine boil.”
Love is not a movement toward the beloved,
but rather an attraction emanating from the beloved.
And the ney is a materialization of that attraction.
Wine symbolizes inspired poetic speech,
for it induces a comparable intoxication.

11.
“The ney is the confidant of the one separated from his friend,
Its modulations tear apart the veil of separation.”
The melody of the ney is like a reminder of the longing
for the beloved. It removes the obstacles of forgetfulness.

12.
“Who ever saw a poison and an antidote like the ney?
Who ever saw a consoler and an inspirer like the ney?”

About Sufism?
The Prophet had foretold that after his death, Muslims would split into seventy-three factions, but only one of them would be saved. Even today, each of these sects still believes it is the one that will be saved!
Away from these controversies, some Muslims in the first century of Islam sought to practice their faith with the original purity of the time of the Prophet and his Companions. They were called “Sufis.”
Their hagiographies and sayings became a reference of piety for later generations.

Abdul Qasim al-Qushayrî, an 11th-century Sufi, wrote in a treatise: “The word ‘Sufi’ was originally a quality without a precise attribution. Today this word designates people, but the quality has disappeared.” Even at that time, there were complaints about those who claimed to be Sufis without possessing the qualities!

Different etymologies have been proposed for the word “Sufi.” Some have mentioned sophos, meaning “wisdom” in Greek; sâf, which means “purity” in Arabic; and saff, also in Arabic, which designates a “row of worshippers.” What is commonly accepted among Sufi brotherhoods is that the word refers to the roughly forty faithful who permanently lived in the Prophet’s sofa. These people wore, like the Prophet, a rough woollen robe called sof. The sof later became a symbol of poverty.

In the beginning, these were simply people without ambition for worldly goods, without greed, without attachment—even familial—living in prayer and worship, in the image of the Companions of the Prophet. A treatise related to the teaching of these first Sufis distinguishes three paths leading to knowledge: reason, transmission, and grace. For a Sufi, it is through this grace that the initiatory journey is not toward God, but with Him. It is this same grace that provokes trance. Rûmî said: “A moment of grace and trance is worth years of prayer and study.”

It was only from the 11th century onward that the first traces of organizations around Sufi communities appeared. The “paths” (tariqa) began to have various institutions, and buildings were dedicated to gatherings, with different names depending on their importance: zāwiya (“corner” in Arabic), hānegāh (“large inn”), āsitāne (built around a mausoleum), and tekke, which is the general term used to designate a meeting place for the Sufis. It is this last word that we will use throughout this book.

The confraternities, often encouraged by the sultans, and their tekkes spread throughout the Muslim world, especially in large cities. In the 19th century, for the single city of Istanbul alone, there were three hundred and fifty tekkes, including five belonging to the Mevlevi confraternity, the focus of this book. The Mevlevi order possessed one hundred and twenty-nine tekkes scattered throughout the territory of the Ottoman Empire.

Kudsi Erguner Ney (1952)

Master of the Ney, musician, composer, and internationally renowned scholar
Born into a distinguished family of musicians, Kudsi Erguner received a traditional
oral transmission of Ottoman classical music from his father, Ulvi Erguner, a master
of the ney (reed flute) and a leading figure in Ottoman Sufi music. As the only Turkish
musician of his generation to receive such direct training, he absorbed a deep and
authentic musical heritage, shaped by centuries of tradition.
Through his participation in various Sufi brotherhood gatherings, Erguner also
underwent spiritual and musical training. He took part in the first performances of the
Whirling Dervishes’ ceremonies in Europe and the United States, and was a member
of the Istanbul Radio Orchestra.
In 1973, he moved to Paris, where he studied architecture and musicology, earning
both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree. His concert tours across Europe, the United
States, and Japan brought Ottoman classical and Sufi music from Istanbul to
Western audiences, raising significant awareness of this rich musical tradition.
In Turkey, Erguner formed various ensembles dedicated to reviving neglected and
nearly forgotten musical styles, which had been marginalized by the country’s
modernist reforms. As an artistic advisor to major festivals, and a record producer for
several European labels, he has played a major role in the restoration of these
traditions, both internationally and in Turkey.
With over 130 CDs released across Europe, the U.S., Japan, and Turkey, Kudsi
Erguner has created an extensive discography showcasing not only his authentic
interpretation and creativity, but also offering a broad overview of Ottoman and
Mediterranean musical heritage.
His work extends beyond the concert stage. He has contributed music to major
theatrical productions including The Mahabharata by Peter Brook, Orta Direk by
Yaşar Kemal-Mehmet Ulusoy, and The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho–Genco Erkal. He
also worked with Bartabas, Sarkis, and composed for Brook’s film Meetings with
Remarkable Men. Since 1990, his performances at the Istanbul Music Festival have inspired a growing
number of young Turkish musicians and sparked a renewed interest in traditional
arts, particularly Sufism-related music. Today, many young ney players view him as a model.

Erguner has collaborated with numerous leading artists from various genres including
Robert Wilson, Carolyn Carlson, Maurice Béjart, Peter Gabriel, Tony Gatlif, Georges
Aperghis, Didier Lockwood, Michel Portal, Alexandre Desplat, Marcus Stockhausen,
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Jordi Savall, New Ensemble, Marc Minkowski, Fazıl Say,
Christophe Lauer, Michel Godard, Renaud Garcia-Fons, Anouar Brahem, and others
— bridging the worlds of classical, jazz, and contemporary music.
A passionate educator, he lectures worldwide on Sufism and traditional music, in
Turkish, French, English, and Italian. He is also the author of numerous books,
including:
*Journeys of a Sufi musician, translated  from French by Anette Courtenay Mayers Saqi books

• The Fountain of Separation, The Book of the Bektashi Dervishes (Bois d’Orion)
• The Mesnevi – 150 Sufi Tales, Rumi and the Whirling Dervishes (with Arzu Erguner, Albin Michel)
• The Flute of Origins (Plon)
• Fifty Misconceptions about Mevlana and Mevlevi Order, Stories from the Mesnevi (alBaraka)
• Ayrılık Çeşmesi, Bir Neyzen İki Derya (İletişim)
• Musiche di Turchia, with Giovanni De Zorzi (Ricordi)

In recognition of his contributions, Erguner was awarded honorary doctorates by
Bülent Ecevit University (2014) and Skopje University (2015), and was named
UNESCO Artist for Peace in May 2016.
In parallel with his international concert activities, he teaches at CODARTS –
University of Performing Arts in Rotterdam. He also founded the Birun Ensemble at
the Cini Foundation in Venice and has led annual masterclasses at the IISMC
(Intercultural Institute for Comparative Musical Studies) since 2012

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