theartsdesk in Istanbul: Salzburg, Here We Come

Thanks to steel pipes, an international Turkish orchestra rises to the top

by Kate ConnollyMonday, 31 May 2010

A traditional melting-pot: 'Istanbul would lose its identity if it became too local.'

At a sprawling car plant in the suburbs of north-eastern Istanbul mechanics are busy repairing camshafts and dynamos, applying blow torches to the undercarriages of a range of luxury cars and retouching paintwork. Visitors to the building are met by signs reading: “Sheer Driving Pleasure” and “Check Your Engine”. Upstairs, away from the mechanical buzz, fine-tuning of a completely different kind is going on as the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra is taken through its paces by its vivacious Austrian conductor, Sasha Goetzel.

We could have established a basketball team or a football club, but we decided to concentrate on classical music because it was really dying in Turkey

Explore topics

Share this article

The future of Arts Journalism

You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!

We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d

And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.

Subscribe to theartsdesk.com

Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.

To take a subscription now simply click here.

And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?

more Classical music

Messiah, Wild Arts, Chichester Cathedral review - a dynamic battle between revelatory light and Stygian gloom This supple inventive interpretation of the 'Messiah' thrillingly delivers the story

Messiah, Academy of Ancient Music, Cummings, Barbican review - once more, with real feeling The seasonal standby returns with heart, zest and grace

Christmas with Connaught Brass, Milton Court review - delightful seasonal fare from Bach to Boulanger Young quintet dazzle with their technical accomplishment and easy charm

Classical CDs: Christmas 2024 The year's best seasonal releases

Giltburg, Bournemouth SO, Wigglesworth, Portsmouth Guildhall review - seemingly effortless élan New chief conductor turns Tchaikovsky waltz king, and a Rachmaninov partnership flows

Bach Mendelssohn Festival, Part I, Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra review - the flame that never died Top-flight performers show how a musical legacy endured

Currie, Hallé, Wong, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - sparkle and intrigue Energy and excitement in MacMillan… and then a surprise

Rajakesar, Selaocoe, The Hermes Experiment, Wigmore Hall review - a joyful, fascinating laboratory of noise Celebrating the avant-garde through different cultures

Classical CDs: Vitamins, kings and magic spells A neglected ballet score, romantic piano concertos and contemporary British music

Kavakos, Philharmonia, Blomstedt, RFH review - a supreme valediction forbidding mourning Nonagenarian conductor provides the flow, his players the passion, in Mahler's Ninth

Perianes, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Payare, Barbican review - elegance and drama but not enough bite Often dynamic Venezuelan conductor misses the darkness of the 'Symphonie fantastique'

La Serenissima, Wigmore Hall review - an Italian menu to savour Tasty Baroque discoveries, tastefully delivered

Follow @theartsdesk