Peşrev

Peşrev (pronounced [peʃˈɾev] in Turkish), Pişrev ([piʃˈɾev]), peshrev, or pishrev; called bashraf بشرف in Arabic; is an instrumental form in Turkish classical music. It is the name of the first piece of music played during a group performance called a fasıl (Turkish pronunciation: [faˈsɯɫ]). It also serves as the penultimate piece of the Mevlevi ayini, ritual music of the Mevlevi order, under the name son peşrev (final peşrev), preceding son semai. It usually uses long rhythm cycles, stretching over many measures as opposed to the simpler usul the other major form of instrumental music uses, saz semai.

Along with the saz semai (called sama'i in Arabic), it was introduced into Arabic music in the 19th century, and became particularly popular in Egypt.

Etymology

In Ottoman Turkish, it was a Persian loanword composed of the particles pīš, which means "before, ahead", and rev, "that which goes"; coming to mean "that which comes first". In Persian, the word pišdaramad is used instead to denote the first piece of a traditional music performance.