Grammy-nominated: Mehmet Ali Sanlıkol at CRR with 'A Gentleman of Istanbul'
Mehmet Ali Sanlıkol, who was nominated for a Grammy Award this year in the Best Classical Compendium category for his album 'A Gentleman of Istanbul' (Bir İstanbul Çelebisi), will perform at the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) Cemal Reşit Rey (CRR) Concert Hall on February 24.
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In the concert, Mehmet Ali Sanlıkol will be accompanied by the CRR Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Murat Cem Orhan. The concert will feature the Turkish premiere of Sanlıkol's work "A Gentleman of Istanbul," as well as performances of G.F. Handel's "Overture to Giulio Cesare in Egitto" and B. Bartók's "Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta."
Prof. Mehmet Ali Sanlıkol, who continues his work in Boston, Massachusetts, builds bridges between his musical heritage and cultural roots, producing works that successfully blend traditional Turkish music with Western music.
Sanlıkol, who is of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus descent and serves as a faculty member at the New England Conservatory, has established an important place in the international music world with albums such as "Turkish Hipster" and "A Gentleman of Istanbul."
2024 GRAMMY AWARDS NOMINEE
Nominated for "Best Classical Compendium" at the Grammy Awards, "A Gentleman of Istanbul" is a four-movement symphony composed for strings, percussion, piano, oud, ney, and tenor, inspired by Evliya Çelebi's Seyahatname (Book of Travels).
The work offers a new perspective on Muslim identity through Evliya Çelebi's cosmopolitan worldview. The piece highlights various elements encountered in Evliya's travelogue, ranging from science to tragedy, and fantasy to history.
The composition interprets selected elements from Evliya Çelebi's travelogue using a modern musical language. While the "Viyana'nın Saatleri ve Çanları" (Clocks and Bells of Vienna) movement carries Bartókian influences, "Kaya Sultan'ın Ölümü" (The Death of Kaya Sultan) is shaped around the piano as a jazz ballad.
The "Vejetaryen Dervişler" (Vegetarian Dervishes) movement is presented as a blend of Turkish Sufi and African music, accompanied by the ney. The final movement, "Büyük İskender" (Alexander the Great), incorporates features of classical Ottoman/Turkish music, while the programmatic nature of the text provides the artist with a space for freedom.
With this work, Prof. Mehmet Ali Sanlıkol aimed to present the richness and diversity of 17th-century Ottoman culture through a symphony. The work takes listeners on a journey through various styles of concert music, jazz, African polyrhythms, and traditional Turkish music.