Live Aegean vibes in Muswell Hill courtesy of Djanan Turan, Çiğdem Aslan and Baha Yetkin

Hura Nights is back this Thursday, 29 July, with a fabulous line-up: musical chanteuse and host Djanan Turan is joined by special guests oud virtuoso Baha Yetkin and Rebetiko star Çiğdem Aslan for a stunning night of Turkish and Greek music.

Launched four years ago in Covent Garden, this unique live music club celebrates the rich cultural sounds of Anatolia.

On Thursday night, Hura Live makes an appearance at Muswell Hill’s Belmeis, in North London. The cool-yet-classy venue has acquired a reputation for staging fantastic jazz and world music artists, and Hura will certainly add to that with its eclectic Aegean mix of Turkish classical and Greek folk music.

The musical journey travels back in time to the Café Aman taverns of Istanbul, Izmir (formerly Smyrna) and Thessaloniki of a century ago, where Turkish and Greek musicians entertained the locals with folk classics and songs of rebellion.

The musicians’ travels and improvised performances in tavernas across Greece and Ottoman Turkey created a shared culture and musical soundtrack, which is as popular today as then.

In the UK, Çiğdem Aslan is one of the leading voices of the Rebetiko revival scene, rekindling the romance of an outlawed underground culture with her delicate soulful voice and subtle theatrics.

Baha Yetkin has rare skills that not only straddle time, but also musical cultures, from Flamenco to Middle Eastern and Turkish Makam music. His talents are sought out for live performances, the recording studio and by oud players keen to learn from one of the best.

Singer-songwriter Djanan’s inspiration for Hura (Arabic for ‘free woman’) Nights came in a dream, which she took as a sign to create a new platform for fellow female artists.

Like Djanan’s own music, Hura blurs the boundaries between cultures, bringing the cool sounds of London’s ethnic underground into the heart of the capital.