World music comes under the spotlight in Istanbul throughout December

World music, a rising trend and popular music genre, visits Istanbul via Akbank Sanat's World Music Days from Dec. 7-21. Musicians from around the world will bring a piece of their country and culture onstage with indigenous music for the event.

World music is described as a musical category that embraces many various genres and rhythms from around the globe, including Western genres such as folk music as well as selected forms of ethnic music, indigenous music, neo-traditional music and music that represents the cultural traditions of more than one community of people. Although it is hard to put a concrete description on world music, it is definitely not mainstream Western pop. According to the article by Carl Rahkonen, traditional, popular or even art music can be considered as world music but there is a catch; world music must have ethnic or foreign elements. It is simply not "our music;" it is "their music", music that belongs to a foreign community. In short, as Roots Magazine puts it, world music is "local music from out there."



Once a misfit in the popular music industry, world music has gained the attraction that it deserves in recent years. Realizing the popular demand for the genre, Akbank Sanat has been bringing the best musicians from around the world and introduces new rhythms to Istanbulites every year.

Carnatic music all the way from Southern India

This year's World Music Days will kick off with the concert of Jyotsna Srikanth who is an Indian violinist and composer, performing Carnatic music and Western classical music on Dec. 7. Jyotsna Srikanth is the most sought after South Indian Carnatic violinist in Europe, a composer known for her versatility and ability to collaborate with different genres seamlessly and with ease. Srikanth started her musical career at the age of nine from her mother Rathna Srikantiah and later from R. R. Keshavamurthy, both legendary seven stringed violinists. She is an all-rounder who has given numerous South Indian classical (Carnatic) solo concerts, Indo-Jazz concerts and Contemporary Indian Music shows. In addition to this, she has flourished as a performer and composer, exploring lush ground in the crossover between Indian music and a variety of world music and contemporary flavors. In 2008, Srikanth received a fellowship in Carnatic Music from the Trinity College of Music in London.

Carnatic music is one of the two sub genres of classical Indian music. The main emphasis in Carnatic music is on vocal music; most compositions are written to be sung, and even when played on instruments, they are meant to be performed by vocalists. Classic Carnatic music is usually performed with an ensemble and Srikanth will be accompanied on stage by Ramachandra Narsimha Prakash on Mridangam (double-sided Indian drums) and Sivagurunathan Pujan Than on Khanjira (a type of Indian tambourine).



Blues from the Sahara Desert with Anewal

In the brand new project called Alhousseini Anivolla, Anewal brings the sandy winds of the Sahara desert around the globe with the magic of music. Anivolla presents the best examples of desert rock and blues with his trio. The musician who traveled around the world decided to settle in Germany in 2014 and founded his new trio Anewal right away. Anivolla is joined by Lyon-based Amazigh percussionist Smail Khabou and Benin-born bass player Segbegnon Gnonlonfoun joins him from Brussels. The three professional and open-minded African musicians, all living in Europe, are passionate in bringing together traditional African tunes and new soundscapes. With their debut album "The Walking Man," Anewal evokes the great African blues masters and blazed a trail through Anivolla's Saharan homeland. The band brings hypnotic two-chord jams, trance-inducing beats, biting blues-infused guitar and Anivolla's warm, laid-back vocals together to take the audience on a journey to the Saharan desert. Anewal will take over Akbank Sanat's stage on Dec. 14.

From past to present: Traditional Vietnamese music

The Vietnamese duo Nguyen Le and Ngo Hong Quang are set to present a concert covering thousands of years of Vietnamese traditional music on Dec. 21 at Akbank Sanat.

Born in Paris to Vietnamese parents, Nguyen Le began to play drums at the age of 15, then took up guitar and electric bass. After graduating from the department of visual arts, he majored in philosophy, writing a thesis on exoticism. Then, he devoted himself to music, forming "ULTRAMARINE" (1983), a multi-ethnic band whose CD "DÉ" has been considered "1989'sBest World Music Album" by music critics. Le, who is a self-taught musician, started to play music which pushed the stylistic borders. In 2014, he released a studio album titled, "Celebrating the Dark Side of the Moon," a very personal version of the famous Pink Floyd's album, with the NDR Bigband, Youn Sun Nah, Gary Husband and Michael Gibbs' orchestrations. He was nominated as best international guitarist for the ECHO JAZZ 2015 festival.

Composer Ngo Hong Quang is known for his projects that combine Vietnamese traditional music and Western music. Over the years, Quang has attracted audiences not only in Vietnam but also in Thailand, Korea and the Netherlands. Born and br

ought up in a village in Hai Duong in northern Vietnam, Quang began to learn how to play the "Nhi"(a traditional Vietnamese instrument) at the age of eleven and soon fell in love with it. Currently, Quang follows his passion in teaching, composing and playing traditional Vietnamese music around the globe.

The duo aims to express and share the soul of Vietnam, and bringing together the roots and the future of Vietnamese music. With their performance on Dec. 21, Le and Quang will offer a repertoire of modern adaptations of traditional Vietnamese compositions.

A night of 'Buena Vista' in Istanbul

Luis Frank, cited as the best second generation vocalist from critically acclaimed ensemble Buena Vista Social Club, and Pianist Lazara Cachao Lopez, the daughter of the legendary contrabass player of the Buena Vista Social Club, will bring Cuban wind instruments to the Akbank Sanat stage on Dec. 28.

Luis has dedicated his life to introducing Cuban music to the world, contributing to various bands and ensembles. A highlight of his career was starring in Wim Wender's 2004 film, "Cuban Music" and his contribution to the soundtrack of the film as well. He won the ECHO JAZZ 2003 with Soneros de Verdad, which he co-founded with Pio Leyva, and sold more than half a million album copies around the world.

With "The Queen of the Piano," Lopez continues to demonstrate the musical talent that she inherited from her family. She shares the stage with salsa bands, such as Fuego de Salsa and performs solo around the world.

The duo will present a rich Cuban repertoire to the Istanbulites, ranging from guaracha to cha-cha-cha, danzon and bolero.