103rd anniversary of the adoption of the Independence March lyrics: 'Notes of Freedom-The Story of the National Anthem' hits the shelves

While the National Struggle was continuing at full speed, the foundations of the Republic were being laid in the new Parliament established in Ankara, and the sprouts of the new Turkey were rising from Anatolia.

Just like the flag, there was a need for a common voice, a national anthem, that would unite the people.

For this, during the stormy days of the War of Independence, a lyrics competition was first organized, and Mehmet Akif Ersoy's heart-touching poem was accepted with great enthusiasm as the lyrics of our Independence March in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey on March 12, 1921. Next up was a composition competition...

So, how did the composition of our Independence March, every note of which binds an entire nation with love and gratitude, come to life?

The answer to this question is found in the work titled "Notes of Freedom - The Story of the National Anthem," which author Mehmet Altun penned as a result of his research in state and private archives and second-hand bookstores, with the support of the Tekfen Foundation.

This unique work, first published in 2008, is now in bookstores with its 3rd edition, which was produced specifically for the 100th anniversary of the republic by Tekfen Culture and Arts Publications and is limited to only 1000 copies.

'REACHED HISTORICAL INFORMATION AND DOCUMENTS'

Stating that they are carrying the forgotten notes of the National Struggle Period to future generations with a research book that will ensure their permanence, Tekfen Foundation General Manager Dori Kiss Kalafat said, "Our journey, which began with Mehmet Altun finding two of the compositions that applied to the National Anthem composition competition in second-hand bookstores, continued in the 100th year of our republic.

In this journey that started by following the trail of these notes, which have the same lyrics but different compositions, we managed to reach the original scores of 11 works known to have participated in the Independence March competition opened by the Ministry of National Education in 1921, thanks to the historical information and documents Altun reached. Now, this valuable book has a richer content with its special 100th-anniversary edition, including 3 newly reached compositions and archive documents."