Blessed with a stunning voice and the ability to sing in multiple languages, Olcay Bayır is delights live and in the studio. Last month, she released a new 4-track EP Inside (İçerde) to great acclaim. Four gorgeous tracks rooted in Anatolia, yet soaring to many other different cultural places. Olcay received funding awards from the […]
One of the world’s leading DJs will be performing a unique set in an eleventh century castle in North Cyprus that was said to have inspired Walt Disney. Global dance music hit maker Kölsch will be live from Saint Hilarion Castle for a 90-minute concert on Monday, 31 May. Organised by music events specialist Cercle, […]
Led by Essex Arab funny girl Esther Manito as MC, and with performances from Palestinian hip hop star El Far3i (47Soul), Turkey’s Olcay Bayir, and Alia Al Zougbi, and with DJ Nooriyah spinning some tunes throughout, the evening promises to be an arts extravaganza of Middle Eastern-inspired music and storytelling. The setting is London’s Grand […]
Any visitor to Turkey will know how important music is to the local culture. From Turkish pop to Ottoman-inspired classical music (Türk Sanat Müziği), folk (Halk Müziği) and the blues (Türkü), live renditions can be seen and heard everywhere. One of the country’s biggest modern entertainment traditions has been the gazino – a high-end cabaret […]
One of London’s most iconic live music venues has launched a crowdfunding appeal to try and survive the coronavirus pandemic. The Jazz Cafe has been an important platform for a diverse range of artists, including those of Turkish origin. Like other venues up and down the country, it was forced to shut its doors in […]
UPDATE, 12 March 2020: This event has been postponed due to the Coronavirus Istanbul based musician/producer Tolga Böyük set the wheels in motion for Islandman, a fictional character composing musical stories about a non-existent place… On stage, Islandman is an electro-acoustic trio serving up a tasty mix of mellow electronica and dance beats with […]
Artist Ferhat Göçer continues to defy expectations. The 49-year-old doctor-turned-singing sensation first burst onto Turkey’s musical scene in 2005 with his self-named diamond-certified debut release, and has remained at the top of the Turkish music charts ever since. Nine more studio albums, several compilations and EPs have followed, each providing a slew of number 1 […]
Olcay Bayır’s music is a natural marriage of her time-honoured Anatolian heritage and the vibrant, eclectic sounds of London, which she now calls home. Of Turkish-Kurdish origin, her contemporary sound blends elements of folk, jazz and urban music with evocative vocal deliveries through original eclectic compositions that draw from the rich musical heritage of Anatolia, […]
For years it was the venue where stars performed, and where ordinary folk could come and watch, rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous. When Taksim’s Grand Maksim Gazino finally closed its doors in 2004, its fate was unknown. Earlier this month, the remodelled site opened to the public as a high-end hotel. Part of […]
If you’re after a hybrid mix of psychedelic rock, funk, and electronic, wrapped in a heavy Anatolian twang, look no further than Lalalar. This trio of multi-media musicians-cum-producers aim to bury the borders between the Middle East and the rest of the world without “harming any species” as they create fresh psychedelic vibes plucked from […]
