The Istanbul International Music Festival, formerly Istanbul Festival, ( tr, Uluslararası İstanbul Müzik Festivali) is a cultural event held every June and July in Istanbul, Turkey. It offers a selection of

European classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

, ballet, opera and traditional music performances with the participations of famous artists from all over the world. The festival was first held in 1973 and is organized by the Istanbul Foundation of Culture and Arts. In 2006,

Borusan Holding Borusan Holding A.Ş. is a Turkish industrial group headquartered in Istanbul, Turkey. Its activities include steel manufacturing, car distribution, energy generation and logistics. The company was founded by Asım Kocabıyık in 1944 to trade iro ...

took over its main sponsorship from

Eczacıbaşı Holding Eczacıbaşı Holding is a Turkish industrial group of companies founded in 1942. The group with 44 companies has 11,400 employees and a combined net turnover of TL 11.1 billion in 2020. Group Eczacıbaşı's core sectors are building products, ...

. The festival was the idea of the late Turkish businessman Dr.

Nejat Eczacıbaşı Mehmet Nejat Ferit Eczacıbaşı (; January 5, 1913–October 6, 1993) was a chemist, industrialist, entrepreneur and philanthropist, and a second-generation member of the notable Turkish Eczacıbaşı family. He was the founder of Eczacı ...

. The first Istanbul Festival was held from June 15 to July 15, 1973, on the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the

Republic of Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. From its first inception, the Istanbul Festival has aimed at including in its programs the finest examples of artistic creativity in all disciplines of art from both Turkey and abroad, as well as seminars, conferences and lectures. So, other festivals dedicated to

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

(1984), jazz (1986), contemporary art (1987) and theater (1989) were added to the program of Istanbul Festival. From 1994 on, the name was changed to Istanbul International Music Festival to distinguish it from the other sister festivals. It is accredited as a member of European Festivals Association since 1977. In 2014, a project title "Istanbul Music Festival Seeks Its Young Soloist" ( tr, İstanbul Müzik Festivali Genç Solistini Arıyor) was started to promote talented young musicians. From its beginning, the festival hosted world-renowned artists and groups from La Scala Philharmonic ( Riccardo Muti), New York Philharmonic ( Kurt Masur and Zubin Mehta), Berlin Philharmonic to Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra ( Wolfgang Sawallisch), Dresden Staatskapelle and the soloists, orchestra and chorus of the Mariinsky Theatre ( Kirov Opera), from

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra (founded 1972) is a classical music chamber orchestra based in New York City. They have won several Grammy Awards. The orchestra is known for its collaborative leadership style in which the musicians, not a conducto ...

( Gidon Kremer) to Scottish Chamber Orchestra ( Charles Mackerras and Richard Hickox), from Tokyo String Quartet to

Hilliard Ensemble The Hilliard Ensemble was a British male vocal quartet originally devoted to the performance of early music. The group was named after the Elizabethan miniaturist painter Nicholas Hilliard. Founded in 1974, the group disbanded in 2014. Although ...

, from Aldo Ciccolini to

Ivo Pogorelich Ivo is a masculine given name, in use in various European languages. The name used in western European languages originates as a Normannic name recorded since the High Middle Ages, and the French name Yves is a variant of it. The unrelated So ...

, from Yehudi Menuhin to

Itzhak Perlman Itzhak Perlman ( he, יצחק פרלמן; born August 31, 1945) is an Israeli-American violinist widely considered one of the greatest violinists in the world. Perlman has performed worldwide and throughout the United States, in venues that hav ...

, from Julian Lloyd Webber to Mischa Maisky, from Narciso Yepes to

Christopher Parkening Christopher William Parkening (born December 14, 1947) is an American classical guitarist. He holds the Chair of Classical Guitar at Pepperdine University under the title Distinguished Professor of Music. Biography Parkening was born in Los Angel ...

, from Leyla Gencer to Montserrat Caballé and Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, from

Bolshoi Ballet The Bolshoi Ballet is an internationally renowned classical ballet company based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. Founded in 1776, the Bolshoi is among the world's oldest ballet companies. In the early 20th century, it came to internatio ...

American Ballet Theatre American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant, it is recognized as one of the world's leading classical ballet companies. Through 2019, it had an annual ei ...

and to Mark Morris, Mehmet Sander, Kibbutz dance companies; and such traditional music groups as Istanbul Oriental Ensemble of

Burhan Öçal Burhan ( ar, برهان, ) is an Arabic male name, an epithet of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad. It is especially popular in Turkey, as it respects Turkish vowel harmony and the end syllable "-han" can be interpreted as the Turkish variant of " K ...

, Kudsi Ergüner’s Tac Mahal project and Whirling Dervishes. The 31st festival saw the prominent conductor

Lorin Maazel Lorin Varencove Maazel (, March 6, 1930 – July 13, 2014) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He began conducting at the age of eight and by 1953 had decided to pursue a career in music. He had established a reputation in th ...

with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and a legend of the music world, Cecilia Bartoli, who received an enthusiastic standing ovation from the audience for several minutes. The festival venues include Galata Mevlevihanesi,

Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

Rectorate Building,

Istanbul Modern ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

and Santralistanbul Energy Museum,

Zorlu Center PSM Zorlu PSM ( Turkish: ''Zorlu Performans Sanatları Merkezi'', English: ''Zorlu Performing Arts Center'') inside Zorlu Center is currently the largest dedicated performing arts theatre and concert hall in Istanbul, Turkey. It is in the Beşikta� ...

and Boğaziçi University Albert Long Hall in addition the Hagia Eirene Museum,

Archaeological Museum An archaeology museum is a museum that specializes in the display of archaeological Types Many archaeology museum are in the open air, such as the Ancient Agora of Athens and the Roman Forum. Others display artifacts inside buildings, such as Na ...

, Tiled Kiosk,

Süreyya Opera House Süreyya Opera House, also called Süreyya Cultural Center ( tr, Süreyya Operası or Süreyya Kültür Merkezi), is an opera hall located at Gen. Asım Gündüz Avenue No: 29, in the Bahariye quarter of the Kadıköy district in Istanbul, Turkey ...

and Lütfi Kırdar Convention and Exhibition Center. According to a famed international musicologist, the Festival bridges cultural and religious divisions.

References

External links

Official web site
{{Authority control Music festivals established in 1973 Festivals in Istanbul

Music festival A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or h ...

Classical music festivals in Turkey Annual events in Turkey 1973 establishments in Turkey Summer events in Turkey

See also

References

External links