The Gedik Philharmonic Orchestra, founded by conductor Cemi’i Can Deliorman, will be conducted by Cem Mansur. The first item on their programme will be a new Orchestral Suite by the contemporary Turkish composer Mehmet Nemutlu (a graduate of the Ankara State Conservatoire who was taught composition there by the celebrated Necil Kazım Akses, and who is now a lecturer at the Mimar Sinan University State Conservatoire).
Next the orchestra will play Ottorino Respighi’s 1928 Gli uccelli (‘The Birds’) – a suite of five pieces, based on music from the 17th and 18th centuries, that reproduce birdsong and bird movements. This attractive work demonstrates the composer’s mastery of orchestration.
The final item will be Manuel de Falla’s El amor brujo (‘Love, the Sorcerer’), a suite of pieces from a ballet of the same name, written between 1915 and 1922, that is based on folk music from Andalusia. It includes the famous Danza ritual del fuego (‘Ritual Fire Dance’). The ballet tells the story of a gypsy woman who is haunted by her husband’s ghost.
This concert will be the world premiere of the work by Mehmet Nemutlu. Taking part will be mezzo soprano Ezgi Karakaya. Before the music begins, there will be a talk (in Turkish) by Cem Mansur.
Issue 66, December 2023
Turkey’s Centenary Issue
