Muammer Ketencoglu, Turkish folk artist based in Istanbul.
He was in India recently to perform at a show in Delhi
I might not see an audience's reaction, but it is generally not hard for me to 'feel' the response to my music, especially in smaller auditoriums, where I am close to the audience.
I have always had a strong passion for life and music. And despite being visually challenged, I never looked at life as a series of hurdles. Rather, I knew I had to walk a bit of a winding road. And whatever difficulties came my way, I would tackle them.
I was born blind. For people like me, there is no darkness. We have four senses to perceive the world and do not know the difficulties that sighted people face when in the darkness. As a child, I would not have understood what not seeing meant if the other children had not kept telling me that I was blind.
But despite not having vision, I had visions about life … I tried to perceive life with the senses I was born with.
I could smell, touch, hear and taste life. And I have been able to feel music, see music and create it, because I have been fascinated by it since childhood.
My earliest memories are of the small brazier in our house, the cats, sheep, chicken and donkeys that I caressed; the enchanting sound of a toy violin I heard in the bazaar and my musician uncle, Ali Riza Su, who loved me very much.
Numerous other memories come to mind when I think of the years gone by. But one of my fondest memories is of my graduation ceremony from primary school. I stood third in line and my family was there to celebrate my success. I remember being given a watch – of course, one meant for the blind.
Once I became aware that there was something called 'seeing'...
... I missed and wished I could see animals and nature. But I never let any negative thoughts overpower me.
I would tune in to Greek and Balkan radio stations and enjoy the sound of music while other children my age played outside.
Seeing my interest in music, my uncle gave me an accordion when I was 8. My teachers at the school for the blind taught me how to play it. But I became interested in singing and other instruments and stopped playing the accordion. I didn't pick it up again until much later, when I was studying at Bosphorus University in Istanbul.
At 11, I did my first performance on stage at a conference in Izmir held to create greater awareness on eye diseases. At the time, I only sang. I was very excited and felt deeply honoured by the recognition I received.
When I was 17, I joined the town orchestra, in which I played the organ and sang as a soloist. By then, I had received good music training and had learnt to play the accordion, piano
and drums.
After graduating from university...
... I had to make the toughest decision of my life: to either study psychology at university or try to become a professional musician, which basically meant starting from scratch.
I chose the latter. I knew the accordion had such a rich capacity to perform all kinds of folk music. I embraced my accordion and channelled all my energy into it with all my heart.
Gradually, I mastered contemporary Turkish folk music, Rebetiko (urban underground music) and Balkan music. My first album was released in 1993. Two Rebetiko compilations prepared by me appeared in 1994 and 1996. In 1995, I prepared an anthology, Halklardan Ezgiler, which comprised four albums featuring the traditional folk music of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and the Central Asian Turkic republics.
The following year, I participated in various activities in Turkey and abroad with several ensembles. My second album, Karanfilin Moruna, consisting of West Anatolian Zeybek songs and melodies, was launched in 2001. The same year another album Ayde Mori, made with The Balkan Journey Ensemble, was released. This contained folk songs from all over the Balkans. While doing this, I wrote articles about traditional music from all over the world. These were published in various magazines and newspapers. Since 1995 I have been producing and announcing the radio programme From This Side of Danube, focusing mainly on Balkan music. This is broadcast every week by Acik Radyo 94.9 in Istanbul.
In 2004 I founded the Muammer Ketencoglu Folk Trio with Mithat Arisoy and my wife Deniz.
Arisoy has been a violin artist in the Ministry of Culture's Istanbul State Classical Turkish Music Chorus since 1989. While giving an authentic taste of Turkish folk music with the help of traditional folk instruments, we also present a contemporary approach. Our repertoire consists of folk songs and dance tunes from all over Turkey and the Balkans. Folk songs created and sung by the women of Turkey, which represent their hidden social culture have great importance.
In all my activities, Deniz – whom I married in 2003 – is my constant companion.
She was born in Balikesir in 1973 and dealt with music as an amateur, as there was no music school where she lived. While practising law, she sang Turkish folk music in several choirs.
I knew her parents. Once after a concert in Bursa, they introduced me to Deniz, who was then one of my fans. From that time on, we never parted. We are quite harmonious together, which makes it easy to overcome the little difficulties that come our way. Since she likes music very much, we did not have difficulty understanding each other, even initially!
When we close our eyes – that is when we hear music fully.
That's probably why musicians, vocalists or players close their eyes when they sing or play, particularly when they are reaching the apex.
It could be because seeing keeps you far from what you need to focus on, and musicians like to get rid of any distractions in order to perform perfectly.
Although it is hard to make a comparison between a blind and sighted people's perceptions, I can say that the journey made inward by sighted people might be shorter than the blind. But musicians – whether sighted or blind – can all feel music enter deeply into their souls.
Close your eyes, open your mind, open your heart and the music flows – that's how it goes for me.
SNAPSHOTS
The place dearest to me:
I admire my birthplace, Tire; this is a small town in Izmir Province, Western Turkey. I love its awesome natural beauty. Tire is also famous for its traditional delicious food, such as Tire meatballs and keshkek, a special meal made of wheat and meat. My mother and three elder sisters still live there.
On trying to build a bridge:
As a musician and researcher, my philosophy is to always keep away from any form of discrimination. What I am trying to do is to present folk music from all over the world by performing, giving lectures, announcing on radio programmes and writing articles. Through music, I am trying to build a bridge to show the universal identity of human beings.
- Ketencoglu's website is www.muammerketencoglu.com
