IKSV
In the 48th Istanbul Music Festival, the emphasis is on the theme “The Enlightened World of Beethoven”, though it is much more than just a celebration of the 250th birthday of Ludwig van Beethoven.
Originally scheduled for June 2020, the summer fest had to be cancelled. A new programme of 18 concerts has been specially filmed and painstakingly recorded at historical locations in Istanbul (and elsewhere), for a month’s streaming online. Most concerts come with a nominal TL20 fee, though some are free. The festival kicks off on September 18, and our music critic, John Shakespeare Dyson will be listening intently. For tickets and access go to online.iksv.org. Times given below are Istanbul time (GMT +3).
September 18, 2020: Recorded at the Bosphorus University Campus in Rumelihisarı, the Tekfen Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Aziz Shokhamikov, with the violinist Emre Engin, perform Beethoven’s Overture to the Creatures of Prometheus, op. 43; Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, K. 219; Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 1, op. 25; and Bartók’s Romanian Folk Dances, Sz. 68. (free concert, streams 8pm, Sept 18 – 8pm, Oct 18)
September 19: Music Route; recorded at Saint Esprit Cathedral, the Surp Ohan Vosgeperan Armenian Catholic Church, and the Schubertkirche, Vienna. Tickets: TL20: 8pm, Sept 19 – 8pm, Oct 19
September 20: Weekend Classics I
September 21: Festival Encounter: Evcil & Kocabeyler
September 22: Festival Orchestra & Cem Mansur
September 23: Philharmonix – Vienna–Berlin Music Club
September 24: Wiener Akademie “Beethoven Gala” (streaming only in Turkey)\
September 25: Stars Of Chamber Music: Kheops Ensemble
September 26: Tekfen Philharmonic Orchestra & Anna Tifu
September 27: “Pastorale Alla Turca”
September 28: Bilkent Symphony Orchestra & Gökhan Aybulus
September 29: Women Stars of Tomorrow: Young Women Musicians Support Fund
September 30: Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra & Vikingur Olafsson
October 1: BIPO Focus: Borusan Quartet
October 2: BIPO Focus: “From Baroque to Classical”
October 3: Weekend Classics II: ‘Canto In Flow’ (11pm, free concert)
October 4: Beethoven Trio Berlin
October 5: BIPO Focus: “Recomposed” Vivaldi – The Four Seasons
Issue 66, December 2023
Turkey’s Centenary Issue
