The Netherlands Institute in Turkey has been organizing the event series titled "Meetings on Diversity and the Liveable City" throughout 2019 in collaboration with the Netherlands Consulate General in Istanbul.

The second event of the series, which aims at exploring the socio-cultural diversity of Istanbul through the lens of street music, will be held on July 3. Street music is a means for diverse groups to experience and showcase their identities, and socialize via the affective and sensuous calling of music and dance. Moreover, street music can be considered as a channel for self-empowerment and visibility politics whereby disadvantaged groups make claims to the city, vie for recognition from the wider public, and demand more inclusivity.

This event will present talks by Evrim Hikmet Öğüt, an ethnomusicologist and faculty member at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University who studies the musical expressions of migrant communities in Istanbul, and Wim Selles, a Dutch composer who has been documenting the street musicians of Istanbul for nearly five years. Moreover, it will include live performances by several street musicians providing a glimpse of the variegated musical landscape of the city.

The event will be held in both English and Turkish.

Registration is required. You may contact u.sozen@nit-istanbul.org for further details and registration.

Event Program/ Etkinlik Programı

15:30: Doors open/ Kapı açılışı

16:00 - 17:30: Talks by/ Konuşmalar
* Evrim Hikmet Öğüt
* Wim Selles

17:30 - 19:00: Live performances/ Canlı performanslar
Q&A with the street musicians/ Sokak müzisyenleriyle sohbet

* Hatice Kaya
* Ramazan Ünlü
* Mood Band
* Saraymusicsm & Maat Band

Image: Street musicians on the Sirkeci waterfront. Photo by Wim Selles.