Bosphorus to perform at Istanbul’s Cemal Reşit Rey

The Bosphorus band, which was founded in 1985 by Nikiforos Metaxas with the help of flute player Niyazi Sayın and kemancha artist İhsan Özgen, will perform at Istanbul’s Cemal Reşit Rey (CRR) Concert Hall tonight. The band was originally formed by veteran musicians who specialize in Ottoman music, but it became one of the first musical ensembles to explore the historical traditions of Greek and Turkish music, as well as the Greek contribution to classical Turkish music. The band is famous in Greece for its interpretation of the works of composers such as Dimitrie Cantemir, Tiryaki and Zaharya Efendi. They have two albums containing such classics as “The Last Boat from Heybeli,” “Peyk-i Safa Saz Semaisi,” and “Suzidilara Devr-i Kebir,” and modern pieces like “The Waves” and “Copper Cauldrons.” The band has so far performed concerts in various parts of the world and won various awards, including the 1991 Abdi İpekçi Friendship and Peace Award, as well as the 2003 Europe Brussels Award for Building Bridges through the Arts. The concert will begin at 8 p.m.