The Ida Mountains in northwest Turkey do not normally host recitals by internationally-acclaimed musicians. But acclaimed pianist Fazıl Say recently performed on a sparse black stage before an audience of several thousand. His motivation: to help propel protests over deforestation by a mining project.
A renowned pianist and composer, Say frequently uses his celebrity status to raise awareness. His efforts earned him both legal troubles and the 2016 Beethoven Prize for Human Rights, Peace, Freedom, Fighting Poverty and Inclusion.
Say’s August performance featured the debut of a new composition titled “the Ida Mountains March.”
Then, the audience marched from the impromptu outdoor concert hall to the mining site. The pianist stated that he felt “honored by the Turkish people” for their environmental awareness and efforts.
Fazıl Say Uses Music to Move People
Say has long seen music as a way to solve problems. That may mean calling attention to deforestation, or building cultural bridges through his fusion music style.
“I play Western music in Turkey, and in the West I present pieces I’ve written with elements of Turkish music,” he explains. “So I’m considered one of those musicians who builds bridges.”
“It would be wrong for me to try to make music like a central European – a Dutchman or Austrian,” he adds. “I’m a Turk and make music like a Turk.”
In 2013, at the 38th Congress of the International Federation of Human Rights in Istanbul, Say articulated his approach: “I strongly believe that art and music will form a bridge between Western and Eastern cultures, blending and transforming these cultures.”
From Child Prodigy to Prolific Pianist
Say’s musical journey began at the age of three. His parents noticed their young son could already play flute. He would even play back pieces he heard from his father’s record collection. At the age of three, Say began playing piano. At 14 he composed his first sonata while studying at the Conservatory in his hometown of Ankara.
After German composer Aribert Reimann heard the young teenager perform during a visit to Ankara, he exclaimed in amazement to a colleague: “You absolutely must hear him – this boy plays like a devil.”
Say later spent years at institutions in Düsseldorf, Berlin and New York. In 1996, at the age of 26, he began touring Europe and the United States, delivering forty performances within six months. Say recalls that his life has been based on touring for the past 25 years.
Fazıl Say in the Legal Spotlight
Despite international recognition, Say has faced legal troubles at home in recent years. In 2013, a Turkish court handed him a 10-month jail sentence after a fellow citizen complained that Say was “insulting religious beliefs held by a section of society.” Say’s offending action: retweeting several lines attributed to the 11th century Persian poet Omar Khayyam.
Say was finally acquitted in 2015 after a long legal battle. While taxing, the case only elevated Say’s international profile. Following his Ida Mountain protest performance, Say is scheduled to perform throughout Germany, Holland, and the UK this winter.
“Whether the name is Carnegie Hall, here or there, or in a village in Sivas (a rural province in central Anatolia), one can make music,” he says.
