The project is put together by two ensembles – the Pera Ensemble from Turkey and Capella Cracoviensis from Poland – aiming to give life to Bobowski’s diverse cultural horizon. Musicians from the {oh!} Orkiestra Historyczna will also accompany the performance.
The repertoire is composed of Polish music from the beginnig of 17th century (Mikołaj Zieleński, Marcin Mielczewski, Adam Jarzębski, mostly in the Venetian style, with an example of Polish Psalms by Mikołaj Gomółka from late 16th century); Ottoman music (from Alī Ufqī's collection Saz ü söz); and Psalms by Alī Ufqī.
Concerts will go live on 10 October, 2014, at the Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall in Istabul and on 11 October, 2014, at the MEB Concert Hall (MEB Şura Salonu) in Ankara, both starting at 20:00.
The project is dedicated to the work of Alī Ufqī (born Wojciech Bobowski, the Małopolska Region in Poland, ca. 1610), who was a man of many talents in the 17th century. In the 20 years he spent after being sold by Tatars as a slave to the Turkish Sultan’s court, the Seraglio, in Istanbul, Bobowski made a brilliant career as a musician, a composer, a painter, and as a multilingual interpreter. During this time, he played instruments and became the first to write down Turkish music with European notes. Bobowski also learnt the Turkish language, and after converting to Islam, became a diplomatic interpreter. His emerging contacts with European ambassadors resulted in outstanding works, among them: a description of the Turkish Seraglio, a Turkish grammar book, an introduction to Islam written in Latin, translation of the Holy Bible and English Book of Common Prayer into Turkish.
Bobowski showed unique openness and skills for adapting himself to the Turkish way of life, thanks to his diverse cultural background in having spent his childhood in the multicultural Poland of his time (with Poles, Ukrainians, Lithuanians, Muslim Tatars, Jews, Germans, Italians, Ormians; all possible variety of Christian religions, as well as Judaism and Islam). Hence his new name "Ufqī" meant "horizon" in Turkish.
Among his works was also a peculiar translation of the Psalms of David (only the first 14) into Turkish. This was a really ambitious project, emphasizing what is common in the two major religions, Christianity and Islam, and how a mutual understanding between them may be achieved. Bobowski dreamed of Psalms written in a Calvinist manner, sung in Turkish language and probably in Turkish musical style, accompanied by instruments from the Seraglio... This was a real melting pot of the two traditions, and is also the inspiration behind the Saz ü Söz (Music&Words) project.
Concerts in Istanbul and Ankara will be accompanied by pre-concert talks, dedicated to Bobowski, Polish culture of the period and relationships between Ottoman Turkey and the Kingdom of Poland.
Programme
Polish and Turkish Music From 17th Century
By The Pera Ensemble & Capella Cracoviensis
10 October 2014, 20:00, Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall, Istanbul
11 October 2014, 20:00, MEB Council Hall, Ankara
The Capella Cracoviensis Choir is a vocal ensemble whose technical mastery as well as flexibility enable it to diversify its repertoire, which ranges from Gesualdo’s arduous mannerist madrigals to the avant-garde compositions of the 20th century. The choir of Capella Cracoviensis has accompanied such eminent guests of Misteria Paschalia and Opera Rara festivals as Fabio Biondi with his ensemble Europa Galante, Marc Minkowski and Les Musiciens du Louvre-Grenoble, Le Poème Harmonique and ensemble La Venexiana under Claudo Cavina.
Jolanta Kowalska – soprano
Łukasz Dulewicz – alto
Szczepan Kosior – tenore
Jacek Ozimkowski – basso
Martyna Pastuszka – violin (as {oh!} orkiestra historyczna, Katowice)
Adam Pastuszka – violin (as {oh!} orkiestra historyczna, Katowice)
cornetto and three sackbuts (from Ensemble Oltremontano)
Bartosz Kokosza – cello
Justyna Krusz – viola da gamba
Marcin Świątkiewicz – harpsichord, conductor
Christoph Sommer – lute
The Pera Ensemble, lauded by critics as “a discerning blend of flavors, a fertile and prolific interweaving of soundscapes” (Mitteldeutsche Zeitung), is named after a district in Istanbul, which for the last 2000 years has stood as a crucible of myriad cultures and religions. This is also reflected in the ensemble's composition, which sees the internationally renowned specialists of historically informed performance from Europe coming together with the elite of Turkish art music. Pera was founded in 2005 by musicians Mehmet Cemal Yeşilçay and İhsan Özer, both natives of Istanbul, and founding members of the Ensemble Sarband. They have toured throughout the world in collaboration with ensembles such as Hesperion XXI, Concerto Köln, Emre Ensemble and the Ferahfeza Ensemble, and have made a name for themselves in illustrious concert halls and at international festivals.
Mehmet Yesilcay – oud (Germany, Munich)
Ihsan Özer – kanun (Istanbul)
Hasan Esen – kemence (Istanbul)
Volkan Yilmaz – ney (Istanbul)
Salih Sirmacekic – percussion (Istanbul)
Sehvar Besiroglu – ceng (Istanbul)
Ozan Pars – percussion (Izmir)
Aziz Hardal – singer (Istanbul)
Enes Ergur – singer (Istanbul)
Furkan Bicer – singer (Istanbul)
Bora Uymaz – singer (Izmir)
The project is organized as part of the cultural programme celebrating the 600th anniversary of Polish and Turkish diplomatic relations.
Edited by E.M. 12/09/2014