Masters of classical notes in Ayvalık

Deniz Burak FLAG

The Ayvalık AIMA Music Festival , organized by the Ayvalık International Music Academy (AIMA) for the 11th time this year, kicks off on July 25th with a packed program. The festival, which runs until September 21st, will feature prominent artists from Turkey and around the world. As in previous years, the festival is notable for its concerts as well as masterclasses. Pianist and musicologist Prof. Dr. Filiz Ali, Founder and Honorary President of the Ayvalık Foundation for Culture and Arts (AKSV), spoke to BirGün about the festival.

Last year, you prepared a very busy and rich program to celebrate your 10th anniversary. What kind of program can classical music enthusiasts expect this year? Do you have a specific theme ?

This year, together with our AIMA Artistic Board, comprised of accomplished musicians, we have prepared a packed festival program highlighting chamber music ensembles and works by master composers rarely performed in Turkey. Our opening concert will take place at the Taksiyarhis Memorial Museum, where Ayşegül Kirmanoğlu, Okan Akbaş, Seyfi Can Dağlar, Banu Selin Aşan, Eylül Umay Taş, Aykut Avcıoğlu, Çağlayan Çetin, and Deniz Yurdakul will perform Schubert's 1824 Octet , a work of considerable difficulty and rarely performed in our country. Following this, Evangelia Koutsodimou and Ioannis Nikolis, two young and talented violinists who performed the opening concert of our partner Molyvos International Music Festival in Greece last year, will meet the audience in Küçükköy. On August 19th, our violin masterclass instructors Marc Danel and Pelin Halkacı Akın, accompanied by master musicians Yağmur Tekin, Artemis Sis Balkız, Çağ Erçağ, and Gözde Yaşar, will perform Brahms's string sextet and Tchaikovsky's famous work for string sextet, A Memory of Florence . As you know, 2025 is being celebrated internationally as the "Year of Ravel." We will be presenting a concert and talk on this subject with pianist Emre Yavuz on August 29th. On September 3rd, the CelloPianoDuo, consisting of Emine Serdaroğlu and Dilbağ Tokay, will perform pieces from their new album, Dreamlike , at Cunda. On September 6th, the Tilif-Yaşar-Yakar Trio will interpret piano trio works by Haydn and Mendelssohn-Bartholdy. Meanwhile, we will also be holding several final masterclass concerts where our students will gain stage experience. So, just like last year, a busy and rich program awaits classical music lovers from and visiting Ayvalık.

Does your insistence on classical music, despite the imposition of popular culture and popular music, make it difficult for you to reach the masses?

It's a fact that mainstream media and mass communication channels impose popular culture and music on the masses. This is impossible to avoid. Existing social relations and the marketization that permeates every aspect of life create and propagate such a culture. As AIMA, we and institutions like us are simply digging a hole. We are like Yaşar Kemal's red ants, refusing to bow to the Sultan of the Elephants. Many countries in the West, and especially in East Asia, actively support classical music education and studies in this field. When you look at the results of prestigious international competitions in recent years, you can see the benefits of this policy.

THE STATE IS NOT BEHIND THE YOUTH

Unfortunately, the opposite is true here. Young talents can only achieve their place on the world stage through their own hard work and a little luck, as they lack the strong government support system they once had. This is precisely where institutions like AIMA come in. Are we struggling? Yes, it's not an easy task. But when we see the success of the talented young people we've helped connect with master virtuosos and gain stage experience, we're filled with pride and realize we're not wasting our time.

How would you describe the festival to someone unaware of AIMA? What sets it apart from similar festivals ?

The AIMA Music Festival is a long-term project that brings together young and accomplished classical music artists with both discerning listeners and a broader audience that might otherwise lack access to quality music. Various individuals and institutions across Türkiye are conducting similar activities. We respect them all and wish them continued growth. What distinguishes AIMA is that it operates under the Ayvalık Culture and Arts Foundation (AKSV), a non-profit, non-governmental organization. Indeed, through the extraordinary efforts and dedication of our volunteers and employees, we achieve work that far exceeds our financial limits. A foreign instructor who previously attended an AIMA Masterclass remarked, "You're doing professional work with an amateur spirit." This statement perfectly sums up the AIMA spirit.

POLITICS DIRECTLY AFFECT CULTURE AND ARTS

In our interview last year, you said, " We're not yet a festival entirely specific to the city . In fact, we can't say we've touched the lives of everyone in Ayvalık in one way or another . However, we're striving for this, and every year we take new steps in this direction . Still, we have a lot of work to do." Is AIMA working on this this year ? What would a city- specific festival look like?

I believe a city-specific festival should include various spaces used by the public in daily life. This is, in a sense, a prerequisite for connecting with the broadest possible audience. However, the "rakı-fish-Ayvalık" mentality propagated in the press and social media in recent years, fueled by fast-paced mass tourism, has undoubtedly negatively impacted cultural and artistic activities like ours. This type of mass tourism not only captivates and blocks city life but also hinders the use of shared public spaces for cultural and artistic activities. Nevertheless, we shouldn't lose our heads. For example, with many young art lovers gravitating to Ayvalık in recent years, and some settling permanently, we've begun to connect with a new audience. We organize concerts in many different locations, from Küçükköy to Ayvalık city center to Cunda. We wish we could use the squares, side streets, and historical buildings more effectively. However, the dominant mindset that prioritizes the demands and interests of capital under all circumstances makes this impossible, at least in the short term. In the past, we've held concerts in front of a street cafe, in the garden of an inn in the heart of the city, or even wandering the streets. If we tried to do it now, neither the cars nor the commercial establishments on every corner in Ayvalık would allow it. In other words, the decisions of national and local policymakers directly affect the scope and reach of cultural and artistic activities.

I know you've been giving a big shout-out to masterclasses at the festival. What's the importance of these classes for your festival in particular ?

AIMA Masterclass is one of the pioneers and longest-running instrument masterclasses in Türkiye. Over time, we've become a self-sustaining organism. Many musicians performing at our festival have, in some way, passed through AIMA Masterclass, either as students or instructors. Furthermore, the AIMA Music Festival is crucial for young people who participate in AIMA Masterclass and deliver successful performances, gaining stage experience. We prioritize the chamber music ensembles formed by these young people in our festival. We also include the free and public final concerts of our masterclasses within our festival. This summer, we have five masterclasses for flute, clarinet, violin, piano, and cello, and consequently, five final concerts. We welcome everyone interested in listening to the performances of talented young musicians alongside these masters.

For detailed information: www.ayvalikmusic.org