Bosphorus

'...the Turkish group Bosphorus, which now includes such leading performers of Turkish art music as Hasan Esen (kemençe) and Murat Aydemir (tanbur). On vocals is Vasiliki Papayeoryiou, who has worked with Bosphorus in the past. In short, this is an impressive line-up....' The Turkish ensemble Bosphorus is comprised of veteran virtuosi who specialize in traditional Ottoman music. Founded in 1986 by Nikiforos Metaxas, a specialist in Byzantine music...

'...the Turkish group Bosphorus, which now includes such leading performers of Turkish art music as Hasan Esen (kemençe) and Murat Aydemir (tanbur). On vocals is Vasiliki Papayeoryiou, who has worked with Bosphorus in the past. In short, this is an impressive line-up....' The Turkish ensemble Bosphorus is comprised of veteran virtuosi who specialize in traditional Ottoman music. Founded in 1986 by Nikiforos Metaxas, a specialist in Byzantine music, Bosphorus became one of the first Turkish ensembles to seriously explore the roots of both Greek and Turkish music and their impact on one another.

In fact, Bosphorus was first to truly unveil the Greek contribution to 'Ilm-i Musiki,' the 'Science of Music' tradition, also called 'Turkish Art Music' and 'Classical Turkish music.' The musicians forming the core of Bosphorus are from Istanbul. For almost twenty years now, they have been studying the musical tradition of that city through its many periods. They have also been churning out amazing records off the mainstream. Bosphorus has explored, among other things, the musical tradition of Greek composers of Istanbul, as well as the interplay between what existed in the city (the Byzantine tradition) at the time Istanbul was called Contantinople, and what came after (the Ottoman musical tradition, which includes both court music and folk music/ In 2000, Bosphorus recorded 'Heybeli'den Son Vapur / Last Boat from Heybeli (Halki),' which contains a set of original compositions thematically focused on emigration from the island of Halki (Heybeli), which is in the sea of Marmara.

In 'Last Boat from Halki,' Bosphorus is joined by the Greek singer, Vassiliki Papageorgiou, in a collaboration that has contributed to the growing movement (or meme) known as 'Greek Turkish Friendship through Music'. Turkish art music (Turkish classical music) is a tradition which carries agglomerate substrata of all the musical traditions, as well as the philosophical and cosmological speculations, which through time immemorial have circulated from the Eastern Mediterranean to Persia and beyond. The music of the the group Bosphorus is deeply influenced by Turkish Sufi music, (as is all of Turkish art music), for it was the Turkish Mevlevi Sufi Order, colloquially known as the "whirling dervish" brotherhood, who transported the body of the Eastern musical tradition with its 'makams,' transforming the music to fill the needs of their Sema (Sufi ceremony) which contains a whirling, trance-inducing dance at its heart. The group Bosphorus explores musical universes of both the Mevlevi and Bektashi brotherhoods of Islam. What distinguishes Bosphorus from other Turkish groups performing traditional Ottoman music is its link with Greece through its Greek founder, artistic and musical director.

In many ways, the true nationality of the group has always been ambivalent. This ambivalence has opened the group to the creation of wholly new musical expressions that stem from both Greek and Turkish musical traditions, but no longer fully resemble either one. To make the group more creative and to establish its credibility, major Turkish musicians of legendary status were incorporated into the group to form its nucleus. To be able to enthrall large audiences made up of mostly young people, Bosphorus developed a dynamic style and immediacy, which became its hallmark.

But beyond that, Bosphorus's true ambition was to open its boundaries in order create dynamic interweavings of Turkish and Greek music by collaborating with prominent Greek musicians and groups in concerts and recordings. From its inception, Bosphorus has not only presented the treasures of Turkish musical traditions to Greece, but has collaborated with Greek musicians to enhance the traditions of both cultures. Since 1986, Bosphorus has performed in all the major venues of Athens and the whole of Greece. ---------------------------------------- The Geographical Bosphorus ---------------------------------------- The Bosphorus, also known as the Istanbul Strait (Turkish: İstanbul Boğazı) (Greek: Βόσπορος) is a strait that forms the boundary between the European part (Rumelia) of Turkey and its Asian part (Anatolia). The world’s narrowest strait used for international navigation, it connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara (which is connected by the Dardanelles to the Aegean Sea, and thereby to the Mediterranean Sea).

The shores of the strait are heavily populated as the city of Istanbul (population of 11 million) straddles it. Two bridges cross the Bosporus. Another crossing, Marmaray, is a 13.7 kilometre-long undersea railway tunnel currently under construction, expected to be complete in 2012. Istanbul (historically Byzantium and later Constantinople) is the world’s 3rd largest city and Turkey’s cultural and financial center. It is located on the Bosphorus Strait and encompasses the natural harbor known as the Golden Horn, in the northwest of the country.

It extends both on the European (Thrace) and on the Asian (Anatolia) side of the Bosphorus, and is thereby the only metropolis in the world which is situated on two continents. In its long history, Istanbul served as the capital city of the Roman Empire (330–395), the East Roman (Byzantine) Empire (395–1204 and 1261–1453), the Latin Empire (1204–1261), and the Ottoman Empire (1453–1922). User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License and may also be available under the GNU FDL..