The saz or bağlama, a generic name for long-necked lutes in Turkey, plays an important role in the Turkish musical culture. It forms the core of all folk musical ensembles and orchestras and is a popular instrument in the arabesque, entertainment, and pop music. It is the instrument par excellence in Turkish music education and in the religious rituals of the Âlevi and Bektaşi. The saz or bağlama can also be heard as a solo instrument on international concert stages. Acknowledging the instrument’s unique place in Turkey, The Turkish Long-Necked Lute Saz or Bağlama, an updated and revised edition of the Dutch book Turkse Langhalsluit of bağlama, mainly focusses on its cultural and historical background while briefly discussing various saz or bağlama types and their construction, tuning, and playing techniques.

Hans de Zeeuw began to take bağlama lessons and became interested in its long and fascinating history while working at the Free University in Amsterdam and studying at the Open University. This led him to decide to break of his studies and focus, for many years, on research into the Turkish saz or bağlama under the supervision of Dr Leo Plenckers of the Department of Musicology of the University of Amsterdam and Dr Okan Murat Öztürk of the Devlet Konservatuvarı of the Başkent Üniversitesi in Ankara.