Turkish Daily News - Istanbul, Turkey
Friday, May 26, 2006
Turkish-born DJ and reed flute (ney) player Mercan Dede, known worldwide for his combinations of electronic music with the eastern spiritual tunes of Sufi music, is getting ready to perform as a special guest at the 35th Festival de Saint-Denis to be held this summer in France.
Dede, whose real name is Arkın Allen, will perform five concerts as part of the festival, which will start on May 28 and run through until June 29.
A special performance was held on Wednesday for the press at the Galata Mevlevihanesi in Istanbul by Dede and the musicians who accompanied him on his latest album.
Songs from his latest album, “Nefes” (Breath), were performed during the event, attended by Turkish and French journalists. Clarinet player Aykut Söğütoğlu and singer Aynur Doğan as well as two dancers accompanied Dede during the performance, featuring semah figures -- an Alawite dance.
Dede, whose name comes from a minor character in a contemporary Turkish novel, debuted in 1987 and his first album, recorded for Golden Horn Records in San Francisco, was titled "Sufi Dreams."
His most recent project was "Güldestan," a dance theater project by the State Modern Dance Troupe, directed and choreographed by Beyhan Murphy.
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