İş Sanat concluded its 24th season with a gala concert special for İş Bankası’s 100th anniversary

In its 24th Season program, İş Sanat brought together award-winning artists and orchestras, our country’s proud young musicians, as well as different voices from around the world and Turkey with a special gala concert to celebrate Türkiye İş Bankası’s 100th anniversary at its closing. İş Sanat’s 24th season program, presented to art lovers under the slogan ‘Stage Ready’, brought world-renowned musicians and music ensembles, as well as different voices from Turkey and around the world, together with art lovers throughout the season. The season closed with a Gala Concert on May 28th dedicated to Türkiye İş Bankası’s 100th anniversary, where İş Sanat gathered thousands of art lovers at the Volkswagen Arena with leading voices of the world such as Plácido Domingo, tenor Murat Karahan, soprano Elena Stikhina, and the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Carlo Tenan. The solo performances and duets presented a special music feast to the audience, and with this approximately 3-hour gala concert, the soloists and orchestra left a memorable night for music lovers. İş Sanat’s 24th season opening was marked by the 100th Year Gala Concert with world-renowned tenor Murat Karahan as the soloist accompanied by the Presidential Symphony Orchestra conducted by maestro Tolga Atalay Ün; while the traditional New Year’s concert featured the English Chamber Orchestra conducted by Stephanie Gonley and soprano Corinne Cowling, performing Viennese waltzes and polkas. The European renowned chamber orchestra Wiener Concert-Verein and the ‘miracle violinist’ Timothy Chooi provided a Mozart night for art lovers. Chooi also shared his experiences with young musicians in a master class held at the Painting Sculpture Museum BlackBox before the concert. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Cyprus operation, guests of İş Sanat were the KKTC Presidential Symphony Orchestra conducted by Rengim Gökmen and the famous pianist Rüya Taner. In an event organized on the 100th anniversary of the Turkish-Hungarian Friendship Treaty, the Anima Musicae Chamber Orchestra of the Franz Liszt Music Academy, led by violinist Gwendolyn Masin, introduced a wide repertoire to music lovers. İş Sanat also presented world premieres of special works to music lovers. In a concert specially prepared for İş Sanat on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, the world premiere of the new composition ‘Grand İş Bank Fantasy’ dedicated to İş Bankası by violin virtuoso, composer, and comedian Aleksey Igudesman was performed. The Kronos Quartet, one of the leading ensembles in classical and contemporary music, celebrated their 50th anniversary tour in Istanbul, and performed the work ‘Kiss Yo’ Ass Goodbye,’ a collaboration between minimalist music pioneers Terry Riley and composer Sara Miyamoto, for the first time. Grammy Award-winning musicians and music groups were also on İş Sanat’s stage this season. Concerto Köln, winner of the Grammy Award for the opera ‘La nozze di Figaro’ (The Marriage of Figaro), performed Baroque repertoire with violin virtuoso Giuliano Carmignola. Cécile McLorin Salvant, a 3-time Grammy winner following the footsteps of world-renowned artists like Billie Holliday and Ella Fitzgerald, brought jazz winds to İş Sanat. Directed by famous musician Luis Bravo, the tango dance group Forever Tango, with its 12 dancers and 9 musicians, brought the birth story of Argentina’s cultural heritage, tango, to the stage with a striking choreography and music. The passionate voice of romance, Luz Casal, delivered one of the unforgettable performances of the season. The Spanish diva, who introduced herself to the world with the song ‘Piensa en mi’ in Pedro Almodovar’s award-winning film ‘High Heels,’ visited İş Sanat with the last concert of her European tour. Karsu, known for her extraordinary interpretation and stage performance, won the audience’s admiration by including many works from different parts of the world in addition to her popular songs in the ‘Sounds of the World’ concert specially prepared for İş Sanat. The songs of the prominent figure in Turkish pop music, Kayahan, came to life again at İş Sanat with the voice of Emre Altuğ. The guests of the ‘As Beautiful as Istanbul’ concert, featuring arrangements by Alper Kömürcü, were Ipek Açar and Demet Sağıroğlu. In the concert of the beloved group Barabar, which included Taner Ölmez on vocals and Serkan Keskin on bass guitar, the surprise guest was Demet Evgar, while in the ‘Dost Meclisi’ concert, Coşkun Karademir was accompanied by Ceylan Ertem and Buray. Kubat, who conveys our cultural heritage of folk songs to future generations with modern touches, was on stage with Canan Çal, one of the successful interpreters of the new generation, in the ‘Aegean Folk Songs’ concert. İş Sanat continued its ‘Rising Stars’ concerts aimed at providing young musicians with both stage experience and support at the beginning of their careers, with 20 young artists performing this season. The concerts were followed by the award ceremony for the ‘Meriç Soylu Awards.’ In the recital series that continues to bring together the unforgettable works of master names of Turkish literature with music, the works of Âşık Veysel, Nazım Hikmet, Nezihe Meriç, Ahmet Muhip Dıranas, and Melih Cevdet Anday were featured. Mini art lovers in the ancient world In İş Sanat’s 24th season, a very special production for children was featured: ‘Pat Pat Patara.’ The musical play, using the ancient city of Patara as the background of the Lycian civilization by author Yekta Kopan and director Lerzan Pamir, not only blended the curiosity of young viewers about history with entertainment but also introduced the audience to our country’s cultural heritage. The play, which received great interest from the audience, will be on stage in the new season as well. On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Republic, the exhibition ‘Long Live the Republic! The First Steps of Economic Independence in the Atatürk Era’ opened at the Türkiye İş Bankası Museum in Eminönü, Istanbul, and the Museum of Economic Independence in Ulus, Ankara, welcomed visitors until the end of March. İş Sanat Kibele Art Gallery presented the works of Hamit Görele, one of the leading figures of the innovative movement in Turkish painting in the 1930s, to art lovers with the ‘Retrospective’ exhibition until April. İş Sanat Ankara Art Gallery hosted the exhibition ‘Paris, Istanbul, Nice’ by Zeki Faik İzer, an important representative of the ‘D Group,’ in the fall. İş Sanat’s exhibitions continue to welcome art lovers during the summer months. The temporary exhibition ‘The Portrait of Istanbul’ at the Türkiye İş Bankası Painting Sculpture Museum takes art lovers on a tour of Istanbul neighborhoods through landscapes. Kibele Art Gallery commemorates the half-century art career of Latif Demirci, one of Turkey’s leading cartoonists, with the exhibition ‘The Writer-Drawer Latif Demirci,’ open for visit until June 30. Oktay Anılanmert’s exhibition ‘Retrospective’ at Ankara Art Gallery, interpreting the values and connection of the lost human element in today’s world, awaits visitors until July 1.