SAZ is neither a typographical error intended to read 'sax', nor the prefix to a new Roland piece, but a turkish bowl-backed stringed instrument. In the frequency of its use throughout all forms of turkish secular music it is the guitar equivalent, the electric saz now being as common as the acoustic version. The word 'saz' is a non-specific persian term for 'musical instrument'. This means that it is difficult to find a short, tidy definition as it is now applied to several similar instruments, long-necked lutes of the same family as the iranian tambura (which itself is the name of three dissimilar, Turkish, Iranian and Indian instruments) as well as a Kashmiri fiddle which is completely different. Even in and around Turkey, the saz comes in different sizes with different numbers of frets and strings. There are regional variations from Iran and the U.S.S.R. to Yugoslavia and Albania but the tuning is generally similar, although the number of strings in one course varies from one to four and they are often tuned to a singers voice rather than to any absolute pitch. The westernmost variant is the greek bouzouki, now popular, usually in flat-back version with British and American folk groups.

However there is, as with the guitar, a standard type which is made in four sizes. The largest, called divan sazi is found decreasingly in urban areas as it is considered unwieldy and requiring too large a span. The smallest, called cura saz is more or less a mandolin equivalent. The two most popular sizes are the baglama which is 34 in. from bridge to nut, about 10 in. longer than a guitar and the modestly named saz is about 4 in. shorter. The baglama and the saz are made acoustic or electric (but not yet solid body) in qualities ranging from 'tourist' to professional and the electric models come with different pick-up combinations, both single-coil and humbuckers. The pick-ups are Turkish made but look as if they are modelled on a late sixties/early seventies guitar. The various knobs and switches also look a little Watkins Rapierish.

The top of the body is pear or tear-drop shaped of white wood traditionally flanked with darker strips, with or without inlay. The body is bowl-shaped, hollowed from a single piece of wood and is much deeper than a bowl-backed guitar of a mandolin (which makes it awkward to play standing up). The soundhole is at the back of the body near where the strings are anchored, not on the sound-board (which makes it difficult to mike-up an acoustic one). The neck is about half the width of a guitar neck with movable nylon frets (fifteen to the octave, allowing three quarter tones), and the tuning pegs are like violin pegs, set three into the side and four into the top of the headstock.

Seven strings, sometimes six, in three courses is the norm, tuned to G-D-A on the baglama. The D strings are higher in pitch than the A and G strings and the seventh string is another G string, an octave down. The A strings can also be tuned an octave apart. The melody is usually played on the A strings with the G and D strings left open to provide a drone. The saz has a brighter sound than an acoustic guitar and the octave G gives a depth of tone and a built in chorus effect. The closest guitar sound might be a 12-string tuned to D-A-D-G-A-D (take the E and B strings down a tone) but this does no justice to the saz. The clear tone and sound is distinctively its own and if you have ever struggled with 12-strings and/or chorus pedals to get 'that sound', then a saz might have been your answer. As would be expected this distinctive sound is lost by putting guitar pick-ups on, especially as the electric players all seem to favour playing through the same crude phasers and reverbs. (It drifts up from the open air belly dance club to the balcony).

There are two shops I would recommend if you want a saz. If you happen to be going that way: Fahretten Celik, Yeniceriter Caddesi Evkaf Sokak no. 2/A, Cemberlitaş, Istanbul. (You could fly there and back and pick up a decent saz, all for the cost of a Squier). The owner of the shop, who makes the instruments himself is very helpful and would charge £25-£30 for a beginners baglama, around £70 for a better Divan up to about £150 for the best instruments. Slightly nearer is Ercüment Plâkevi, (Contact Details). The proprietor here is very helpful too. The store is a tobacconist and general store as well as selling Turkish instruments and tapes. He has beginners saz and baglama from around £40 with electric ones at around £100. He also sells strings, tuning pegs, bridges, etc. and is happy to recommend tapes, although most of what he has is modern/electric rather than traditional/acoustic. For traditional playing; there are two tracks on 'Folk Music of Turkey', Topic Records, available from Triple Earth, who may well be able to suggest other records. Apart from a couple of CCat Trance tracks; 'Miss Manners' and 'She Steals Cars' the only other non-turkish musician I know of who has used a saz is Ry Cooder on one track on the Long Riders sound-track.