Ensemble Rûm

About

Ensemble Rûm is a music ensemble dedicated to performing Ottoman music, focusing on early period music practices and aiming to contribute to the development of this cultural heritage. The ensemble’s repertoire includes music performed in the Ottoman court and the lands of Rûm—encompassing various regions of the Balkans and Anatolia—between the 16th and 18th centuries. A key part of the ensemble’s repertoire is based on the valuable notational collection Mecmua-i Saz ü Söz (MSS), compiled by Ali Ufki (Wojciech Bobowski), a significant 17th-century musician and composer.

Events

Upcoming Events
20.04.25, 18:00 Nicesün Venedik Frengi?, Cemal Reşit Rey, Istanbul, Türkiye.


Past Events
05.05.24, 16:00 Nicesün Venedik Frengi?, Pera Muesum, Istanbul, Türkiye

Works

"How Are You Venetian Frank Now?"
Ottoman-Safavids War of Baghdad

"How Are You, Venetian Frank Now?"

The concert repertoire is centred around seven pieces recorded by Ali Ufkî and other compositions of the same era. This selection is supplemented by a rich historical narrative and archival materials related to the 24-year-long War of Crete, which have been integrated into the concert program. This endeavour gave rise to a narrative or semi-theatrical concert format, providing a brief overview below for your reference. By including works associated with the era and events, our aim is to recreate the auditory atmosphere of one of the longest war stories in history. It’s worth noting that this concert, aligned with Ensemble Rûm’s long-term objectives, seeks to deliver a historically grounded musical experience to modern audiences in a more authentic and inclusive manner, diverging from efforts focused solely on recreating period music as it would have been heard by contemporary listeners.

Ottoman-Safavids War

Work in progress...

Music of Jean Baptise Van Mour's Istanbul

Work in progress...

Ensemble

Hasan Baran Fırat, Art Director
Enes Durceylan, Percussion, Rebab
Eray Cinpir, Vocal
M. Enes Üstün, Vocal
Avni Özaydın, Nay
Hasan Kiriş, Ud, Çöğür, Tanbur
Murat Tırnak, Zurna, Nay
Murat Yerden, Kopuz
Muhammet Salih Yıldırım, Şahrud
Mevlüt Gökhan Başin, Percussion
Nikos Papageorgiou, Lavta, Vocal
Mustafa Selçuk Eraslan, İstanbul Kemençesi, Kemanche

Hasan Baran Fırat

Art Director, Istanbul Kemençesi, Setar
He was born in 1988 in Ankara and completed his primary and secondary education in Istanbul. In 2012, he graduated from Yıldız Technical University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He then pursued a master’s degree in the Architecture Department, Building Physics Program at the same university. Following his master’s studies, he continued his doctoral research in Architecture, Industrial Design, and Cultural Heritage at Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli in Naples, Italy. His doctoral dissertation, supervised by Prof. Dr. Luigi Maffei and Prof. Dr. Massimilano Masullo, focused on the reconstruction of historical soundscapes and was awarded the “Material Culture in Historical Music and Dance Studies” prize by the American Institute of Archaeology. His postdoctoral research has been supported by the Istanbul Research Institute (IAE) and Koç University’s Research Center for Anatolian Civilizations (ANAMED). He is currently a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow at the University of Antwerp, Faculty of Design Sciences, where he conducts research on historical soundscapes, urban music practices, and their contribution to knowledge circulation. He has published numerous academic works on Ottoman-Turkish music, historical soundscapes, urban musicology, and architectural acoustics. In addition to his academic pursuits, he has been involved in practical music training since his undergraduate years. He studied kemençe (Istanbul lyra) with Neva Cansın Gülses, Aslıhan Özel, and Derya Türkan, and took music theory lessons from Özer Özel and Fikret Karaya. He has performed as a kemençe player in various concert programs. Alongside kemençe, he also plays the setar.

Rebab, Percussion

Enes Durceylan

Enes Durceylan was born in Siirt in 1994. At a young age, he learned rhythm from his brother Tayyip Durceylan, and studied rebab (a string instrument) and music theory with Mehmet Refik Kaya during high school. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Theology at Uludag University. Currently, he serves as a rebab artist in the Historical Turkish Music Ensemble of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in Istanbul.

Ud, Çöğür, Tanbur

Hasan Kiriş

Hasan Kırış was born in Osmaniye in 1990. He completed his primary and secondary education in Osmaniye. He began his musical journey with saz (a string instrument) training during high school and also engaged in ud (a string instrument) performance. In 2008, he enrolled in the Turkish Music State Conservatory, specializing in Turkish Musicology, with tanbur (a long-necked fretted lute) as his primary instrument. He later pursued his studies in Music Theory at Istanbul Technical University (ITU) State Conservatory and graduated in 2015. Between 2016 and 2019, he served as an instructor of tanbur at ITU Conservatory. He has participated in numerous concerts both domestically and internationally, showcasing his skills in tanbur, bowed tanbur, and vocal performances. He released an album titled "Etraflıca Yürümek" with tanbur solos and collaborated with Muhammed Ceylan to form the "Esvat Duo," releasing a ney and tanbur album. He is also involved in instrument-making, ebru art, and organological research at his workshop named "Kirişhane." Currently, he works as a project support specialist and a vocal artist at the Istanbul University Research Center for Ottoman Music Practice and Research (OMAR) and continues his postgraduate studies in Turkish Music at Kocaeli University.

Zurna, Nay

Murat Tırnak

He was born on January 23, 1980, in Lüleburgaz. After completing his primary, middle, and high school education in Lüleburgaz, he was admitted to the Istanbul Technical University Turkish Music State Conservatory, where he continued his musical career in Istanbul. He has performed traditional Turkish instruments such as ney, kaval, balaban, and kaba zurna in various orchestras at concerts both in Turkey and abroad. He is currently working as an instrumentalist in the Istanbul Historical Turkish Music Ensemble under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Vocal

Eray Cinpir

Born in Bursa in 1991. He was introduced to the ney instrument during his high school years. In 2009, he successfully passed the entrance exams for the Dilek Sabancı State Conservatory at Selçuk University in Konya. While continuing his ney education with Dr. Emrah Hatipoğlu and Nuri Parmaksız during his conservatory years, he also pursued studies in ney performance with Neyzen Yusuf Kayya during his free time. Following his mentors' guidance, he continued his vocal performance studies during his school years, further developing himself in this field. Since 2012, he has been a soloist and ney player in various groups such as the Konya Turkish Sufi Music Ensemble, Research and Application Group, and Sufi, Mystic, and Square Music Ensembles under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. After completing his master's degree at Gazi University, he is currently pursuing a doctorate in Ethnomusicology at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University. He has served as a presenter, soloist, ney player, and rhythm artist in over a hundred live broadcasts on TRT-1, TRT Avaz, and TRT Diyanet channels. He has participated as a vocalist and ney player in workshops and concert programs in various countries such as England, Belgium, Romania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Kosovo, and Albania.

Vocal

M. Enes Üstün

Born in Bolu in 1993. During his high school years, he began his music education at the Bakırköy Music Conservatory Foundation as a part-time student. There, he received training from Fatih Salgar, Faruk Salgar, and Suat Güney. In 2008, he started his tanbur (a long-necked lute) apprenticeship with Özer Özel. During the same period, he accompanied the Boğaziçi University Turkish Music Club workshops under the direction of Gönül Paçacı. Through this club, he met Hakan Alvan and studied Sufi music repertoire and style. He graduated from the tanbur program at Yıldız Technical University Faculty of Art and Design in 2016 and began working as a vocal artist at the Istanbul Historical Turkish Music Ensemble in 2017. He also worked as a lecturer at Medipol University and Istanbul Medeniyet University Faculties of Art and Design. In 2019, he completed his postgraduate studies in Turkish Islamic Music at Marmara University. Since 2022, he has been serving as the choir conductor at Boğaziçi University Turkish Music Club.

Nay

Avni Özaydın

Born in Aksaray in 1992. He became interested in music at a young age. Between 2000 and 2005, he received ney, modal, and rhythmic lessons from Emin Yalın. During this time, he performed religious music on various local television, radio, and concert platforms. During his high school education, he began ney and music education with Neyzen Salih Bilgin in 2006. Later, he continued his work in ney instrument making and ney performance education within the Hazerfen Art organization established by Neyzen Salih Bilgin. In 2012, he entered the ITU Turkish Music State Conservatory. Throughout his conservatory education, he received ney training from Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ali Tüfekçi. Since 2014, he has been giving ney performance and music theory lessons at various private and official institutions. He has participated in concert and album projects with groups such as the Hazerfen Art Group, Ayasofya Hafızlar Group, and Zakiran Ensemble. He has served as a ney performer in concerts held in many countries as part of the activities of organizations such as TİKA and the Yunus Emre Institute. He has appeared on TRT, numerous private channels, and programs under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Kopuz

Murat Yerden

Born in Ankara in 1983. After completing his primary and secondary education, he pursued his undergraduate studies at Ankara University Faculty of Communication in the same city. He graduated from the Radio TV and Cinema department in 2008, having entered in 2003. During his school years, he directed and assistant directed two films that were accepted and awarded at international festivals (2005 "Pinata Pia" - animation and 2006 "Which Side of the Lock Cell?" - Documentary). Additionally, he elevated his amateur music endeavors, which he started during middle school, to a professional level by composing music for some short films and documentaries. After graduation, he briefly worked in various positions at television channels before resigning in 2009 to start learning kemençe (a bowed string instrument) making from Fikret Karakaya, a musician at TRT Istanbul Radio. In the same year, he began taking kemençe lessons from Neva Cansın Gülses. As part of the 2010 European Capital of Culture events in Istanbul, he handled all the recordings, mixing, and mastering of the album "Music in 17th Century Istanbul According to Ali Ufki Bey's Testimony" by the Bezmara Ensemble. He also managed the recording, mixing, and mastering of the Bezmara Ensemble's album "A Pole in the Enderun: Ali Ufki Bey" released in 2014 and subsequently the album "Tarab-ı Kevser - Selections from Kevseri Mecmuası 1" released in 2017. With the decision to turn his interest in instrument making into a professional endeavor, he began working with Ud maker Mustafa Copçuoğlu, a graduate of the Instrument Making Department of ITU Conservatory, in November 2009. In 2011, he formed a band called "Retrobus," playing Nostalgic Turkish Pop repertoire, and served as the guitarist and vocalist until 2021. With this group, he performed over 600 concerts domestically and internationally. In 2016, he opened his workshop and established himself in classical kemençe making. In 2017, he was registered as an "Artist" in Classical Kemençe Making under the category of "Intangible Cultural Heritage Carrier" by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Also in the same year, he reproduced the tenor kemençe with unique templates for Italian artist Giordano Antonelli to revive Arel's "kemençe quintet" project. Antonelli has been using this instrument in many international festivals and album recordings since then.

Şahrud

Muhammet Salih Yıldırım

Born in Istanbul in 1995, originally from Çanakkale, Yeniceli. After completing his primary, middle, and high school education in Istanbul, he pursued his undergraduate studies at the State Turkish Music Conservatory of Izmir Ege University. During his undergraduate years, he worked on collective performance and theoretical knowledge with instructor Halil İbrahim Yüksel, participating in numerous concerts and recitals. During the summer periods of 2013-2017, he took ud (a Middle Eastern lute) lessons at the Ottoman Music Research Center (OMAR) of Istanbul University, studying with instructors Necati Çelik, Mutlu Torun, Yurdal Tokcan, and Bilen Işıktaş. He also benefited from the teachings of Dr. Bekir Şahin Baloğlu at Yıldız Technical University during the same period. In 2017, as part of the Ministry of Youth and Sports Project, he participated in the album project titled "Manisa's National and Spiritual Greats Hasan Rüşdi Hz. & Müftü Alim Efendi" alongside many prominent Turkish music artists. After completing his undergraduate studies, he continued his education with a master's degree at Marmara University, completing his thesis on the meşk system in 2020. During these years, he also taught ud lessons at ISMEK (Istanbul Art and Vocational Training Courses) in Üsküdar, Kadıköy, and Fındıkzade Art Schools. Since 2019, he has been working as a Music Teacher under the Ministry of National Education. He continues his duties at Istanbul University Itri Fine Arts High School while also maintaining various domestic and international concert, recital, and album projects.

Percussion

Mevlüt Gökhan Başin

Born in 2003 in Istanbul's Kartal district. He received his primary education in Kartal as well. He began his music journey at the age of 12, focusing on music during his middle school years. After passing the talent exam, he entered Hakkı Demir Anatolian Imam Hatip High School, where he intensified his music studies, receiving instruction in rhythm from some of the best teachers in the field. In 2021, he achieved first place in the talent exam for the ITU State Conservatory of Turkish Music. He continues his music studies there and in various ensembles.

Lavta, Vocal

Nikos Papageorgiou

He was born in 1996. At a young age, he began learning the lavta with Evgenios Voulgaris and studied Byzantine music with his father, Georgios Papageorgiou. In 2011, he met Murat Aydemir at the “Labyrinth Workshop” and started playing the tanbur. While closely following the Labyrinth Workshop, he had the opportunity to work with prominent musicians such as Ross Daly, Sokratis Sinopoulos, Erkan Oğur, Ömer Erdoğdular, Ahmet Erdoğdular, and Derya Türkan. In 2014, he began his university education in the Department of Pedagogy at the University of Patras. In 2015, he started working with Nikos Paraoulakis as part of the “Aura Duet” project. He participated in various musical projects involving the lavta and tanbur. Since 2018, he has been living in Istanbul, where he has had the opportunity to collaborate with Panagiotis Neochoritis and Özer Özel. He has performed with different musicians and participated in numerous concerts. Currently, he serves as a cantor at the Yeniköy Panayia Kumariotissa Greek Orthodox Church. .

Kemanche, İstanbul Kemençesi

Mustafa Selçuk Eraslan

He was born in Istanbul in 1983. After completing his primary and secondary education in Istanbul, he continued his studies at Sakarya University State Conservatory in 2001, where he received kemençe training from Fikret Karakaya. In 2004, he enrolled in the Sound Recording Department of the Music Technologies Program at ITU Turkish Music State Conservatory, where he is still continuing his education. He has shared the stage with musicians such as Reha Sağbaş, Sadreddin Özçimi, Fatih Zülfikar, Ahmed Şahin, and Özer Özel. He has participated in numerous concerts and album projects both in Turkey and abroad as a performer and producer. In 2018, he joined the Istanbul State Turkish Music Ensemble’s Research and Application Group under the Republic of Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, General Directorate of Fine Arts, serving as a classical kemençe performer in the İrfan, Tasavvuf, and Meydan Meşkleri Department, where he continues his work.

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Elements

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