Candid talk with Elif Sanchez on her musical journey, first album

ISTANBUL

The musical journey of Elif Sanchez, known for her unique interpretation of folk songs from Turkey and Azerbaijan, started in her hometown Istanbul, where she majored in classical performance on oboe and English horn from the Istanbul University State Conservatory.

In 2013, she was accepted to Berklee College of Music with a scholarship and studied jazz oboe and vocal, majoring in performance and music business as a minor. She graduated from Berklee, winning the Bill Pierce Award and the Mediterranean Music Institute Award in 2017.

Afterward, she moved to New York to continue performing her project at concert halls such as Drom NYC, Rockwood Music Hall and The Well Brooklyn. She caught the attention of 14 Grammy award winner Javier Límon with her group “Mediant Collective,” which she founded in 2015, and was invited to the “Refuge of Sound” project as a guest artist.

Sanchez uniquely interpreted her modern arrangements of Turkish and Azerbaijani folk songs, including “Ay Oğlan Yiğit Misin,” “Almanı Attım Xarala” and “Bağlamam Perde Perde,” alongside a well-known Spanish song called “Contigo Aprendí” by Armando Manzanero.

She released her first solo album with Pasión Turca.

“This album is basically a 40-minute-long biography and tells everyone who Elif really is. I grew up in Istanbul but under a roof that had Anatolian culture. I lived in the United States for a long time. I spoke English outside, but there was always Latin food and Spanish inside our home. I’ve always had multiple cultures in my life. This album represents all those cultures. Turkish and Azerbaijani folk songs with Jazz, Latin, basically world music influences,” she says.

The first single chosen from Sanchez’s debut album is “Ay Oğlan Yiğit Misin,” which was released on all digital platforms.

You have lived in America for many years. How did this adventure begin? When you compare Turkey and America, what kind of differences do you see in terms of approach to music and music education?

I’ve always dreamed of living abroad. So I decided to audition for Berklee College of Music, and I was accepted with scholarships. That’s how my adventure started. After I graduated, I felt like it was the right place for me to be at the moment, so I stayed longer and settled in the states. In the states, they give you more space and freedom to explore who you are and who you are as an artist. Teachers treat you more like their colleagues and recognize your potential. They’re also open to learning from the students. I really enjoyed that openness about them. In Turkey, there’s more discipline and a perfectionist mindset. Teachers treat students like their children; therefore, they are very much involved in student’s life. I think it’s sentimentally beautiful, but this doesn’t allow students to experience real life. We all have to make mistakes and be free to learn. I consider myself lucky to experience both ways. I took all the good and left all the bad behind me from both places.

Spanish, Azerbaijani, Turkish and folk songs... How does each of them make you feel as a singer? How was this mixture born?

It’s beautiful to be able to express my feelings in multiple languages. My mother tongue is Turkish. I’ve been exposed to Azerbaijani since I was a little girl. My mother used to sing for me both Turkish and Azerbaijani, so I always found comfort in both languages. My parents are from Erzurum, and the dialect from Erzurum is very much similar to Azerbaijani. That also made me feel closer to the language. After I moved to the states, English became the language I spoke the most, but also I was exposed to a lot of Spanish. I had a great interest in Spanish, so I started singing first. Then I married a Spanish speaker, so after that, it was inevitable for me to speak. That’s how Spanish came into my life. There’s more English and Spanish speaking at my house than my native language, which makes me long to speak more Turkish. I find comfort in Turkish songs. It’s a rare mix of languages; that’s why I always try to give some context to the audience at my concerts.

You also gave interviews to foreign newspapers and channels such as El Pais and Univision. What was the most curious thing about your music?

Basically everything. They find Turkish music fascinating and it definitely is. They ask a lot about microtones and ornaments that I do. It’s challenging for me to answer how I achieve those sounds theoretically because it genuinely comes from the heart, from my childhood. They’re sounds that I’ve heard all my life and are stuck in my head and my heart. I’ve been asked many times about my choice of instrument as well. People always wonder why oboe if I’m making improvisational music. And I always answer the same: Why not?

You have been invited as a guest artist in Javier Límon’s project “Refuge of Sound.” How did you cross paths with Límon?

I first met Javier when I was asked to play in a Paco de Lucia tribute concert. He got to know me as an instrumentalist and loved my playing. So I played in many projects of his. He didn’t know I sang. Nobody actually knew I sang until a friend asked me to sing the famous Azerbaijani song Ayriliq at a festival. After I performed at that festival, my career took a different turn. Javier heard the song and wanted to record an EP for me. From then on, we’ve done many projects and always kept in touch.

What are your next musical plans?

First of all, I’d love my debut album to reach more people. I’m still not over the fact that I finally have my album out. I am also working on my second album, produced by Limón. There are many more Turkish folk songs that I will be releasing as well. So many projects are on their way.