Clarinet masters in Istanbul for festival

ISTANBUL – Anadolu Agency

The Fifth International Clarinet Festival will be held between Sept. 16 and 25 in Istanbul, centered on the theme “Istanbul is breathing.” 

The most important part of the festival will be a series of concerts about “Respect for the Master,” said the event’s art director, Serkan Çağrı. “We call everyone, who teaches us something, master. Last year we commemorated Barış Manço; I learned many things from his experiences since my childhood. This year we will commemorate Kayahan, who was a leader that enriched culture more. Everything he said had a message for society.”

Çağrı said they organized the festival with the theme “Istanbul is breathing” for people living in a metropolis to take a breath with music. 

Musician İskender Paydaş, the music director of the “Respect for Kayahan” concert, said Kayahan had had a massive effect on his music career since he was 17.

“That was one of the most important turning points in my career. He would have been proud of us if he had lived,” he said. 

Among the performers of the festival will be clarinet master Giora Feidman, Rastrelli Cello Quartet, Turkish flute player Mercan Dede, Turkish singer Zara, famous Macedonian trumpeter Dzambo Agusev, Egyptian-Belgian musician Natacha Atlas and the Amsterdam Klezmer Band. 

A number of activities at the festival will be organized at the Cemal Reşit Rey (CRR) Concert Hall. 

Various concerts will also be organized in Ortaköy, Nişantaşı and Caddebostan, the historic tram on the İstiklal Avenue, metro stations and ferries to the Prince Islands. There will also be free concerts on the Caddebostan coast. 

As part of the festival’s social responsibility project, a Young Breaths Clarinet Competition will be held on Sept. 18 at Life Park Nar Bahçe.