The Turkish Presidency will continue the concert series "From 7 Hills to 7 Continents," launched from Istanbul on April 23, in different cities of the country during the month of Ramadan and over Ramadan Bayram, also known as Eid al-Fitr.
As humanity is struggling with the COVID-19 outbreak, the Turkish Presidency held the concert on National Sovereignty and Children's Day with the slogan "message of love and unity from Istanbul where the continents meet." The concert series, which heralds the beginning of a tradition, will continue with seven performances in Ramadan and Ramadan Bayram.
For these events, the presidency will take the Turkish nation on a journey through history with seven different concerts to be organized in seven different places that reflect the historical values of Turkey, and will also touch the hearts of citizens on these most special days of the year, with a rich concert program created from different genres of music.
Ferman Akgül, Şirin Pancaroğlu & Bora Uymaz, Serkan Çağrı, Yusuf Güney, Murat Karahan, Kubat and Fettah Can will perform at the concerts to be held in Cappadocia, Aphrodisias, Patara, Ephesus, Hierapolis, Safranbolu and Istanbul's Mimar Sinan University.
The events will be broadcast on mainstream and social media. On May 19, Şirin Pancaroğlu and Bora Uymaz will perform the concert titled "Marifetnağme" at the Aphrodisias Ancient Theater. Ferman Akgül with Ethnic Band will be the next guests of the series. Their concert "Folk Songs and Folk Rock Tunes" will take place in Cappadocia on May 20.
Serkan Çağrı will share the stage with Balkan Ensemble and Elif Buse Doğan on May 21 at the Ancient City of Patara. On May 22, Yusuf Güney will meet enthusiasts with his performance at the ancient city of Ephesus.
On May 23, Murat Karahan will perform with the Antalya State Opera and Ballet Orchestra at the ancient theater of Hierapolis. May 24 will be the day of folk songs. Kubat will perform "Essential Folk Songs" in Safranbolu. On May 25, Fettah Can will give an unforgettable concert at Mimar Sinan University. The last performance of the series will be Mazhar Alanson's concert at the Istanbul Archaeology Museum on May 26.
Against outbreak
Turkey consistently tries to take all precautions against the coronavirus pandemic in every part of life, including this concert series. During the organizing process of the concerts, hygiene and safety measures are being strictly followed due to the outbreak. For example, all vehicles to transfer musicians are being professionally disinfected. On concert stages, artists will be placed in accordance with the rules of social distancing.
This is especially important for the Hierapolis concert, which will take place with a huge staff of 60 people. Extraordinary measures are being taken in a way Turkey considers the most exemplary in the world. Among these actions are COVID-19 tests for all orchestra members, available special medical kits for everyone in transportation vehicles and the disinfection of artists' chairs and music stands before installation and placement. In addition, all artists will be at least 1.5 meters away from others, per social distancing guidelines. An additional stage of 300 square meters is being installed at the ancient theater of Hierapolis, as it was previously inadequate.