The opening gala of Türk Telekom Opera Hall in Istanbul's Atatürk Cultural Center (AKM) was held late Tuesday with the participation of many names from the world of sports, politics, culture and art.
Collaborating with AKM, which has left its mark on Turkey's cultural and artistic memory, Türk Telekom carried its digital transformation and technology experience to the field of culture and arts. As the main supporter of Atatürk Cultural Center, the company organized a gala night at Türk Telekom Opera Hall, located at the heart of AKM. Hosted by Türk Telekom CEO Ümit Önal with the participation of the Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, Türk Telekom Chairperson of the Board Ömer Fatih Sayan and many guests, the night hosted a special performance by the Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra (IDSO).
Giving the opening speech of the gala, Türk Telekom CEO Önal told, "We are proud to be the main supporter of Atatürk Cultural Center, which has been renovated and transformed into a large and comprehensive cultural complex and lives like a 'city magnet' at all hours of the day. We are excited to put our knowledge in the field of high technology into the service of our national culture with this long-term support that will last seven years. While leading Turkey's digital transformation with the responsibility of shaping the future with new generation technologies, we adopt the approach of transforming technology into goodness and benefit and making everyone we come in contact with feel valuable. In addition to this important technical support, we are working to make AKM a center where people of all ages and from all walks of life will enjoy, in which we integrate our applications that will make life easier for the visually and hearing impaired."
In the special performance by the IDSO, Istanbulites listened to the repertoire consisting of 12 unique pieces. Musicians Dilek Türkan, Cengiz Özkan, Görkem Ezgi Yıldırım and Mazhar Alanson accompanied to the orchestra, performed under the baton of conductor Hasan Tura. The concert held in Türk Telekom Opera Hall, which was designed to achieve the best natural acoustics as a result of physical, technical and architectural analysis, was highly appreciated by the audience.
The digital art show created with innovative stage and light design and reflected throughout the hall also marked the night before the gala and during the orchestra performance. For the first time in Turkey, a symphony orchestra performance was blended with digital content. The digital show accompanying the symphony performed by a 70-person orchestra, 40-person choir and 4 soloists in the iconic architecture of Türk Telekom Opera Hall gave the audience a privileged experience. The show that brings together the performing arts and the digital world was inspired by the stories of 12 pieces performed by the orchestra.
Speaking at the gala, Minister of Culture and Tourism Ersoy also told that AKM is not a building but a living space with character and spirit. "It is necessary to mention our opera hall separately. It was built using the latest technical and technological elements, from design to functionality with sound, light and stage systems, to provide unforgettable experiences to art lovers and to reflect the value of art and artist. With its original and symbolic value, it became the heart of AKM," he added.
Ersoy continued: "Türk Telekom never refrained from doing its part in the field of social responsibility with the support it provides and the roles it assumes in different services for our people, from education to the arts. The 'Istanbul Atatürk Cultural Center Donation and Support Agreement' signed between our Ministry and Türk Telekom on November 15, 2021, is a very good example in this sense. Within the scope of this contract, our opera house now has a naming sponsor and it started to serve arts, artists and our people under the name of Türk Telekom Opera House."
In addition to art and technology, Türk Telekom continues to contribute to AKM's mission to become a more accessible center as part of the agreement. for example, Türk Telekom's application "Audio Steps", which aims to make life easier for the visually and hearing impaired, will soon be used in Atatürk Cultural Center as well. Thus, visually and hearing-impaired art lovers will be able to visit the indoor and outdoor areas of AKM with this special application they download to their mobile phones.