Istanbul Cymbals: From War Tool to Pulse of Global Music

Istanbul keeps Ottoman-era cymbal-making tradition alive

A centuries-old craft born in the Ottoman Empire continues to thrive in Istanbul, where master cymbalsmiths still handcraft bronze cymbals using techniques developed more than 400...

Istanbul cymbals: from war tool to pulse of global music

The rhythmic clanging of hammers on bronze echoes through the Istanbul workshop where three craftsmen are landing blows with astonishing precision to transform featureless metal discs into highly prized handcrafted cymbals.

Istanbul cymbals: From Ottoman war tool to pulse of global music

First used by Ottoman military "mehter" bands to frighten and demoralise the enemy, cymbals were a useful tool for an empire on the warpath. But it would take the skill of a 17th-century Armenian alchemist called Avedis Zildjian to transform them into a percussion instrument whose exotic sound would first captivate Europe's classical composers and then shape the world of jazz. Although cymbals existed long before Zildjian, he developed a unique…