12TH Konya International Mystic Music Festival

12TH Konya International Mystic Music Festival
Organized by Provincial Directorate of Culture
and Tourism of Konya, 12th edition of the Konya
International Mystic Music Festival will take
place under the serene shadow of Mevlana
Rumi's tomb, in Konya - a city ripe with mysticism.
The festival events are going to be held between
22nd and 30th of September, 2015.
Once a part of the Shab-i Arus activities, the
Konya International Mystic Music Festival has
been held each September since 2008. With
concerts and music recitals starting in the latter
part of the month, the Konya International
Mystic Music Festival always culminates on
September 30th, Mevlana's birthday. Since the
first Festival in 2004, it has become a melting
pot of mystical music from around the world.
The intention of the festival is to introduce
mystical music traditions of the world
emphasizing the authenticity and originality as
much as possible in presentation.
The Festival strives to commemorate Mevlana
Rumi in the best possible way, in alignment
with his pure, unbounded love for humanity
and his trust in every human being, no matter
who or what they are, and with no judgments,
questions or prejudices. The Festival also strives
to be a venue where musical traditions of the
world can find an opportunity to meet audiances
as they are, without being blended with more
popular elements.
Concerts will start at 21:00 everyday and they
will be at Metropolitan Municipiality Mevlana
Culture Center, in Sultan Veled Hall or Sema
Hall. All programs are open to public at no cost.
REPUBLIC of TURKEY
PROVINCIAL DIRECTORATE of CULTURE
and TOURISM of KONYA
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
www.twitter.com/MysticMusicFest
www.facebook.com/MysticMusicFest
www.youtube.com/KonyaMysticMusicFest
bilgi@mistikmuzikfest.com
Festival Program
(22-30 September 2015)
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www.mistikmuzikfest.com
www.twitter.com/MysticMusicFest
www.facebook.com/MysticMusicFest
www.youtube.com/KonyaMysticMusicFest
bilgi@mistikmuzikfest.com
September 22nd, 2015
Tuesday
Huun Huur Tu
Tuvan Music and Throat Singing
Throat singing is a form of overtone singing common
in many regions of Central Asia in different forms.
In overtone singing, along with a fundamental pitch,
its harmonics are created too. These overtones
always exist in normal sound production; however,
they are so low that they are never recognized. By
subtle manipulations of the vocal tract and keen
listening, one can break up the sound, amplifying
one or more overtones enough so that they can be
heard as additional pitches while the fundamental
pitch continues at a lower volume. shamans use this
technique to talk to the spirits, to get into the realm
of the supernatural. The state of trance created by
the mesmerizing effect of overtone singing is
interpreted as a journey to the supernatural world
where the shaman either guides the spirit of a dead
person to their proper abode, or heals ailments
by repelling the evil spirits which were seen as
the reason behind the disease. Tuva, a small
region close to Mongolia is unique in that
people of this region turned the throat singing,
common to almost all the groups in Central
Asia, into an art form. With this, throat singing,
once a way of communication in the most natural
way, and then a vehicle of religious practice to talk
to spirits, gained a third function: music.
The khöömei quartet Kungurtuk was founded in
1992 by prominent musicians of Tuvan traditional
music. Not long afterwards, the group changed its
name to Huun-Huur-Tu, meaning “sunbeams”
(literally “sun propeller”). Huun-Huur-Tu was one of
the first groups to combine throat singing with
ancient acoustic instruments and were pioneers in
introducing the ancient traditions of Tuva to the
audiences worldwide. Since the group’s inception,
Huun Huur Tu has gone through several changes
in its line up but has always been not only the most
prominent group of Tuvan Music but also an
institution where this music became an inspiration
for many followers of the group. The group
was among the nominees for the BBC World
Music Awards in 2004.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
September 23rd, 2015
Wednesday
Ensemble Thami al-Harraq
Samaâ and Sufi Music from Morocco
“Samaâ” is a word that in Arabic which means
“respectful listening” and Samaâ is a ritual which
takes place in the Zawiya (literally “Corner”) of
a Sufi house or meeting place, which could be
attached to a Mosque, used by members of a
spiritual brotherhood who gather to sing poetic
texts that exalt the feelings and deepen the
opennnes towards divine. In a typical ceremony,
after reciting some verses from the Holy Koran,
the Moroccan samaâ sequence continues with
a section accompanied by musical instruments.
Then comes another Samaâ sequence called
“Houlal” without any instruments. This part
and Dhikr is in an extraordinary demonstration
of the power of the human voice.
Thami Al-Harrak is disciple of Ouazzaniyya
Brotherhood, founded over four hundred years
ago by the Cheikh Moulay Abdellah Cherif
(Shadiliya way) in Ouazzane, Morocco. He grew
up in that environment and received his
education in this Zaouïa considered the richest
and most complete education it provides. He
decided to found a musical troupe, dedicated
to the sacred music, Sufi poetry and invocatory
songs. named “Ensemble Thami al-Harraq “,
composed of beautiful voices and great
musicians, all engaged in a living tradition that
becomes a public performance and part of
cultural festivals.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
Photo Credits: Federico Pedrotti
September 24th, 2015
Thursday
Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba
Malinese Griot Music
Ngoni is one of the ancient string instruments of
Mande peoples of Western Africa. It may be one of
the oldest instruments on earth and its history goes
back to thousands of years. Along with the kora, ngoni
is one of the instruments of the griots, the hereditary
historians, poets, praise singers and wandering
musicians of the west African cultures. A griot might
have disciples, but his immediate family, especially
sons takes precedence to hand down the tradition
and the skills. For this reason, it is possible to find
families who have been griots for many generations.
Being a repository of the oral tradition, one function
of the griots was to recite the legends in the mythologies
of their culture. Griot, as the person who inherited,
enacted, preserved and lastly passed on these legends
was an important character in the religious practice.
Even after Islam became the dominant religion in the
region, the griot preserved his social position, this time
choosing the stories and subjects from the Islamic
tradition or teachings.
Bassekou Kouyate was born in 1966 in Garana, a small
and multi-ethnic village located at the banks of the
Niger river. He descends from a long line of griots on
both sides. He is the son of Moustapha Kouyate, who
played the ngoniba, or large lute, and Yakare Damba,
a singer. Bassekou received his initial education on the
ngoni by from his father at a every early age. Having
developed his own techniques on the ngoni, he added
strings to his instrument to give him a wider melodic
range. He was also the first to play the ngoni standing
up. This boosted the image of the ngoni as an
instrument that could compete with modern guitars,
which until then had been threatening to eclipse the
ngoni in the region. In 2005 Bassekou created Ngoni
Ba with the aim of emphasizing the special qualities
of the ngoni. Their first album was nominated 3 times
for the BBC 3 awards for world music and was awarded
twice: best album 2007 (by the critics) and best African
artist. Since then Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba
have toured extensively all over the world. In 2009
their follow up album collected a Grammy
nomination.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
Photo Credit: Khaula Jamil
September 25th, 2015
Friday
Jamal ud Din Fakir
Sindhi Soung Fakir from Pakistan
Founded in the iconoclast wake of he Chistiya Sufi
saints, the sufi choral singing style specific to Sindh,
“Soung”, which can be literally translated as “being
together”, evokes not only the thrill of group unity
in its energetic wave, but also the desired intimate
union between musicians and their murshid, and
eventually with the Divine. In Sindh region, the local
people’s expressions and practices were fruitfully
blended with the acknowledged tradition of classical
Hindustani music. On the other hand, it is from this
area of Sindh, both arid and fertile, that emerged
the most ancient vestiges of the famous Indus
civilisation, also a major source of classical NorthIndian music. And it is also from Sindh that a shining
culture would develop, in the melting pot of many
influences: Hindustani of course, but coming
also from Persia, Central Asia as well as,
particularly, from Arab countries. Known as the
“haft zaban shair”, or the poet of seven languages
Sachal Sarmast (Sachal: speaker of truth, Sarmast:
intoxicated) is considered as one the most outspoken
mystic poets of Wahdat-al-Wujood (or mystical)
school of thought. The shrine of this revered
intoxicated speaker of truth, born in 1739 as Abdul
Haq and died in 1827, lies in Dazara, nearby Khairpur,
and today is still highly revered by Muslims and
Hindus, both.
Jamaluddin Fakir is a bright representative of Sufi
Soung choral singing style of Sindh region.Jamaluddin
Fakir has a distinct and melodious voice. Within a
short time, his voice and style got a great recognition.
Distinctiveness of his art inspired larger audiences
here and elsewhere in the world. He sings
frequently the poems of such revered sufi saints
as Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai, Manthar and Sachal
Sarmast.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
September 26th, 2015
Saturday
Ostad Mohammad Reza Shajarian
Persian Classical Music
Although the modal structures, performance styles
and melodic elements found in the music cultures
stretching from the Northern Mediterranean to Central
Asia share many features, the Iranian classical repertoire
has a distinct character rooted in the unique cultural
and territorial history of Iran. Iranian art music was
transformed by the arrival of Islam and Sufi mysticism,
but the structures and performance styles associated
with the Persian court tradition also fundamentally
reshaped Islamic. Later, a new musical school emerged
based on the structure of the Persian classical verse
called ghazal. The ghazal’s adaptable structure
facilitated the sequentialization of modes and melodies
in accordance with its verses, resulting in the
development of the instrumental radif. Over time
different masters grouped all of the scattered pieces
of the melodic modes into a closed hierarchical system
of modes or suits called the dastgahs. Iranian
classical music is mostly improvisational. Thus the
interpretion of the modes depend heavily on the
performer’s skill. In an improvisatory
performance, the musician can change the
order of the gushehs and reshape the radif’s melodic
modes in any desirable progression.
Born in 1940 in Mashad, Iran, Mohammad Reza
Shajarian is an internationally and critically acclaimed
Persian traditional singer, composer and Master (Ostad)
and a living legend of of Persian music. Shajarian is
considered as one of the most celebrated world music
artists. His singing is widely believed to be technically
flawless, powerful, and strongly emotional. In Persian
classical Dastgah music, singing is the most difficult
art to master and Shajarian is the embodiment of the
perfect singer and a major source of inspiration.
Throughout his long career, he released about 50
albums. Two of these were nominated for Grammy
award in Best world Music first in 2004 and later in
2006. The same year he was awarded with the
Mozart Medal by UNESCO. In 2010, he received
the BITA award from Center of Iranian Studies
of the Standford University in the USA. The same
year he was included in NPR’s 50 Great Voices
list.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
September 27th, 2015
Sunday
This concert is presented in
collaboration with the
Aga Khan Music Initiative,
a programme of the
Aga Khan Trust for Culture
Pandit Shivkumar Sharma
Indian Classical Music
Classical music of the Indian subcontinent has a rich
history of being one the most developed expressions
of our cultural heritage. Its foundations pre-cede
5000 years, going back to the ancient Indus civilization.
The earliest form of Indian music was based on chants
or recitation of hymns, found in scriptures or Vedas.
The music of the Vedic era was of a simple nature,
yet it retained a systematic order, the basis of which
is still in existence today. Indian music underwent
several innovative changes after the advent of Muslim
rule beginning from the late 11th century. Islamic
influence brought in its wake a changed perspective
in the style and structure of Indian music, which over
the course of time evolved to become a unique blend
of Hindu and Muslim traditions called the Hindustani
music, common today especially in North India.
Born in 1938, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, a
musician par excellence, a great composer and
a tolerant, kind guru, is a living legend. He was
initiated into music at the age of five as a vocalist
and tabla player by his father Pandit Uma Dutt
Sharma. In his long career, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma
had innumerable achievements in and contributions
to music, and first among these is that he single
handedly brought forth an obscure, almost unknown
instrument to the level of being an important
instrument of Indian Classical Music. Convinced of
the potentialities of the instrument, Pandit Uma Dutt
Sharma bestowed the responsibility of establishing
it on the concert platform on his only son Shivkumar.
With his creative genius, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma
has created a new genre of instrumental music.
Through his performance career of over half a century,
he has created millions of new listeners and ardent
fans of Indian classical music. Today he has over
100 recordings to his credit in LPs, CDs, Audio
Cassettes and DVDs, and he is the recipient of
many national and international honors and
awards.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
September 28th, 2015
Monday
Iwami Kagura Gotsu-dan
Iwami Kagura
Among Japanese traditional performing arts like
Kabuki and Noh, Kagura is the oldest and its origin
goes back to the ancient Japanese mythology and
religion. In the old times, shinto priests who took
care of the shrines were the only people allowed
to perform kagura. Since antiquity, Kagura has
been performed as a ceremony in which people
ask for a good harvest and abundant catches of
fish and also wish away illness. Due to some
regional differences, in the eastern Shimane, in
Iwami region, it is called “Iwami Kagura”. The
series of performances usually starts with a
ritualistic dance to welcome the deities, and then
more profane performances follows. There are
varieties of programs, and performers play deities,
demons, and sometimes humans who appear in
ancient Japanese mythology. Another regional
version called th Hayachine Kagura was enlisted
in UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of
Humanity in 2009. While wooden masks are
mostly used in kagura in other regions, the Iwami
Kagura masks are made of many layers of Sekishu
Japanese washi paper. The elaborate costume is
embroidered with great amount of gold and silver
threads. Even ogres and bandits wear splendid
costumes and mesmerize the audience.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
September 29th, 2015
Tuesday
Rabbi Haim Louk
Sephardic Music
After living for more than 1500 years in the Iberian
Peninsula , Sephardic Jews were forced to exile by
the Spanish Reconquista. The year 1492 marks the
year that the harmonious co-habitation of Spanish
Jews, Muslims and Christians was forcibly shattered,
putting an end to centuries of an exalted artistic
heritage. In the new communities where they
established themselves, from Morocco in the western
edge of North Africa to the shores of Asia minor,
the Jews of Iberian descend sought to maintain
their Andalusian culture, which has survived the
trauma of their uprooting and enabled them to
preserve their identity. Due to the mutual interactions
and influences that resulted from establishing
themselves in new foreign lands, the Sephardic
cultural heritage is today known to stem from
a same Spanish root and to be tinted by the
cultural specificities of the communities they
neighbored wherever they migrated, which gave
birth to an astonishing diversity, especially in music.
The Sephardic Jews thought of perpetuating their
music culture (Piyyut) as a way of glorifying their
past .
Rabbi Haim Louk was born in Casablanca, Morocco
in 1942. Blessed with a beautiful voice and
tremendous talent, he became famous at a very
young age as a musical prodigy. In the tradition of
Sephardi scholars of days past, Rabbi Louk combines
his schooling in rabbinical texts and his work as an
educator with his musical talent and love for Sephardi
poetry and liturgy. He has produced scores of audio
recordings of the authentic Moroccan Jewish
liturgy. Internationally recognized as a virtuoso
of classical Andalusian music, Rabbi Louk has
given recitals all over the world.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com
September 30th, 2015
Wednesday
Konya Turkish Sufi Music Ensemble
Mevlevî Semaâ (Whirling) Ceremony
The Sema (Whirling) Ceremony will performed by
Konya Türk Tasavvuf Müzi¤i Toplulu¤u. The Ensemble
specialized on Mevlevi Music and the Sema (Whirling)
Ceremony was established in 1991. The Ensemble
has continued to perform Sema Ceremony on
Shab-i Arus and other periodic performaces every
year since its establishment.
YUSUF KAYYA. He was born in Kütahya in 1963.
He graduated from Ankara University, Faculty of
Language History and Geography, department of
Arabic Philology in 1985. He started his career in
music in Kutahya; learning how to play ney from
ney player-painter Ahmet Yakubo¤lu. He benefited
from the ney player U¤ur Onuk. He was assigned
to Ankara Radio passing the qualified instrument
player test prepared by the Turkish Radio and
Television Association (TRT). He worked as an expert
in TRT Music Department. He joined The Turkish
Republic Ministry of Culture and Tourism's Konya
Turkish Sufi Music Ensemble that was established
in 1990. He gave lectures in Selçuk University Faculty
of Education and State Conservatory.
In 1997, he was appointed as Konya Turkish
Sufi Music Ensemble Assistant Art Director. He
is serving as Ensemble’s Art Director dated
from 2004.
www.mistikmuzikfest.com