Tunceli/Dersim is one of the most significant regions in Anatolia, where Alevism and its related cultural components continue to exist extensively. In Tunceli/Dersim Alevism, which embodies the coexistence of many beliefs and cultures with its heterodox and syncretic belief structure, music and other practices related to music contain a wealth of information regarding culture. In Tunceli/Dersim, where products of oral culture created by the people are more prominent than written cultural products, oral and musical data on culture is a common phenomenon due to the cultural characteristics of the region. When it comes to conducting a memory-oriented study on Tunceli/Dersim, the primary source to be referred to are products of oral culture and, again, the most reliable data can be accessed through these sources. In addition to its strong presence in the Alevi belief tradition, the symbolic presence of the tembur, as it is called in the native Zazaki language, and the dede saz with its contemporary widespread use, is also reflected in oral culture products. The instrument, which has been performed intensively in both the socio-cultural life and belief practices in the Tunceli/Dersim region from the past to the present, has both served to convey oral culture through music and pioneered the development of the region's musical repertoire. In the present article, it is aimed to exemplify the effect of the tembur in the cultural memory of Tunceli/Dersim through two works, and the conceptual structure of the study is shaped within the framework of theories on cultural memory.

Keywords: Alevism, Dersim, Cultural Memory, Bağlama, Tembur