Today’s Zaman
27 September 2009, Sunday
Ara Dinkjian crossing borders on musical notes
– Music reaches out to almost all segments of society more quickly
than politics can.
Music reaches out to almost all segments of society more quickly than
politics can.
Two important figures of Turkish and Armenian folk music, Erdal Akkaya
and Ara Dinkjian, were together yesterday on the same stage in
Ä°stanbul, performing at a special charity concert at the Hagia
Eirene Museum.
Titled `Roots and Branches’ and organized by the Turkish Association
for the Handicapped (TSD), the concert was more than a fundraiser. `We
have been working on this project with Dinkjian for a year, and we
started this initiative in order to maintain the humanism, love and
memory of Anatolia,’ said Akkaya during a press conference for the
concert on Thursday. `This is also a social responsibility project,’
he said. `And we are going to play the melodies that depict the joys
and sorrows that make up our common memory.’
As the concert coincided with an important political agenda in which
debates are continuing on Turkish-Armenian relations, Dinkjian
categorizes their own positions as musicians. `We’re here to see what
we have in common and respect our differences, and symbolically this
is very important,’ he stated during the press conference. `Once
again, music brings people together instead of dividing them. The fact
that we’re giving a concert together is, in one way, a very strong
statement. That’s how we make our statements; that’s how we say how we
feel.’
As the member of a family that migrated to the United States from the
southeastern Anatolian province of Diyarbakır in the 19th
century and as the son of Armenian folk musician Onnik Dinkjian, Ara
Dinkjian points out the essence of the music is the `human element,’
in an interview with Sunday’s Zaman.
You were born in the US, and you’re still living there. But you have
not forgotten your roots. How did this influence your music?
For me, the most important th
enian, it doesn’t matter where I’m born, it’s important to recognize
who I am and my history. I might have been born in the United States,
but I can never forget my history. So that explains the
Armenian-Anatolian elements in my music. But at the same time, I
cannot ignore the fact that I’m in America. That freedom of expression
comes into my music, too. And in varying amounts, you’ll hear some
Eastern and some Western elements in my compositions. It’s just who I
am and what I am.
How did the idea of the concert come about?
I give Erdal all the credit for the concert. We actually met and
performed together in New York City. I think it was nine years ago, at
a concert for peace with Zülfü Livaneli and Maria
Farandouri, and we were among the musicians who made guest appearances
there. That’s the only time we met. But for this concert, I give him
all the credit. He contacted me and said, `Let’s do something
together.’ I feel very strongly that through music we see what we have
in common. And that’s the human element. We all have those same human
emotions and reactions. And music is a very safe place to [get
together] with those common feelings. But at the same time, there’s a
great excitement and respect for the differences, for the cultures,
the instruments and the languages.
Armenian oud player Ara Dinkjian and Turkish baÄ?lama player
Erdal Akkaya (R) pose for photographs ahead of rehearsals for a joint
performance at a special charity concert Saturday evening at the Hagia
Eirene Museum in Ä°stanbul.
And your recent album `Peace on Earth’ also gives the same message¦
One day I found a picture that was taken in 1905 in
Ä°stanbul. Pictured there were four Ä°stanbulite
musicians. They were: Kanuni Artaki, an Armenian; Udi Ä°brahim,
a Jew; Kemençeci Sotiri, who was a Greek; and Kemani
Ä°hsan, who was a Turk. And four of them were sitting
together. For me it was a very powerful piece of evidence of how the
music community has always been together despite what might be
happening all around the world. A
istory, and I have every intention of respecting that concept — even
if it’s a fantasy and even if the real world doesn’t represent that
music. It’s the way we love the world. So my album `Peace on Earth’ is
[the live recording of] a concert that took place in Jerusalem; on the
stage there was a Turk, a Jew, a Greek, an Arab and an Armenian. And
we played none of my compositions. We played the masterpieces of
Greek, Turkish, Arab, Jewish and Armenian composers. And we didn’t
make
any political statements. We just mentioned our names and played the
repertoire and let the people decide what that meant.
You are the composer of many songs that have been made famous in
Turkey by various artists, like `Dinata’ (sung in Turkish as
`SarıÅ?ını ;m’ by Sezen Aksu), but people are
not aware of this. What do you think is the reason?
As far as Sezen Aksu is concerned, she was one of the first artists
who insisted on putting the names of the musicians on her albums. So,
besides being an important artist, singer and composer, she has been
an advocate for musicians, and she [respected my intellectual
rights]. My name is there [on the album booklet]. If the people choose
to read it, that’s up to them, but she has been wonderful about
that. Of course, when Sezen Aksu sings your song, people say, `Wow,
you are a composer!’ So she has helped me a great deal.
But when people hear the Greek version of the song, they say that they
stole it from us…
To tell you the truth, please don’t misunderstand, but from my last
count, my songs have been recorded in 13 languages. To me what that
says is sometimes language separates us. But music doesn’t. There’s a
melody. And all those different cultures say, `That’s our melody!’ And
my reaction is, `Yes, of course it’s yours, of course!’ So, that
doesn’t offend me. If anything like that happens, it’s a great
honor. It shows again we all feel the same things. We’re sometimes
political, military or cultural enemies, and yet we sing the same
song. So what does that tell us?
The same counts for the song, `Katibim,’ which is claimed by many
nations, for example…
It’s interesting that you bring that song up because there’s actually
a documentary about that song called `Whose Song Is This?’ I watched
that film, and it’s almost comical how people got almost violent. `No!
They stole it from us! That’s not their song; it’s our song!’ I’ve
always imagined being on the moon and looking down on the earth where
unlike a map, there are no lines.
‘ and it’s the same thing with the music. You can say, `That song came
from this area,’ on who wrote it, who owns it. I mean we can argue
about that forever, but folk music is exactly that.
Will there be more joint efforts with Turkish musicians in the near
future?
God willing. This is something special. And actually I should make the
point that it’s not enough for me that Erdal is a wonderful player. He
had to be the right person for me to feel comfortable with, with the
right thought behind his music. And he’s exactly that. So when you
meet people like that, almost anything is possible. So, yes, we are
willing [to do more] projects [that will] bring people
together. Sometimes people say, `Why don’t you come to Turkey?’ And I
say, `I come every time you ask me to come.’ I just don’t come and
say, `OK, I’m here.’ Whenever projects come along, I will be here.
27 September 2009, Sunday
AHSEN UTKU Ä°STANBUL