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Classical Music Education Takes Off
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An innovative series of classical music concerts began at the university last week for children between six and fourteen. Prof. Talat Halman, Chair of the Department of Turkish Literature, initiated the series, jointly with the Faculty of Music and Performing Arts and Milli Eğitim Bakanlığı (Ministry of National Education). The objective of the concerts is to introduce children to the pleasures of listening to classical music. A formal educational aspect was provided by Prof. Halman's enjoyable and explanatory commentary. Two more concerts are scheduled, one in March, and one in June which will take place at the Bilkent ODEON, a theatre that holds about 4000 people.
On this occasion last week, the venue at the Bilkent concert hall was very lively with nearly 1000 students (and their teachers) listening to the BASSO performances under the direction of Alfred Michourine. All in all, it was quite impressive how the young students managed to remain quiet throughout the concert. The program included selections from Mozart, Tschaikovsky, Kalman, Kabalevsky and others. It also featured such short
pieces as "The Dancing Cat", "Love of Three Oranges", and "Carmen." Soloists included a tenor and a soprano. When the young soloist Canan Günçer (only about 10 yrs old) joined the orchestra and started singing popular songs, such as Sway (by Dean Martin), Falling In Love (by Linda Ronstadt), and Unutamadım (by Barış Manço), she received great applause.
Erol Erdinç, Dean of the Faculty of Music and Performing Arts, said that not only are these concerts investments for the future, but they also will have a positive influence on the children's experience of music and increase the number of classical music listeners.
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