CSO appoints first female manager

ANKARA

A woman has been appointed for the very first time as the manager of the Turkish Presidential Symphony Orchestra (CSO) since the institution’s establishment in 1826.

Flute artist Sibel Ayhan Bayer will serve in the CSO’s top post for a year.

“We have many female artists in the orchestra, and I think women can also succeed in management,” Bayer told Demirören News Agency.

The CSO was established in 1826, and since 1957 its board members have been selected with an election held every year. Following the elections, this year’s board, with three female representatives out of five, started duty on March 29.

Bayer, who was selected by the board as the new manager, said it was “interesting to see that there were no female managers of the CSO until now.”

When asked if she ever had experience directing orchestras, she replied “Yes.”

“I directed the provincial state symphony orchestra in the northwestern province of Bursa for two years,” she added.

Stating that she entered the musical world at the age of 9 when she first attended flute lessons in the state conservatory in the capital Ankara, Bayer highlighted that her daughter, İpek, is now at the same conservatory playing the same instrument.

“İpek decided to make a career in music playing flute after seeing me play at concerts. I did not lead her,” Bayer said.

Her daughter’s interest in music has become a source of inspiration for Bayer. “We, as the CSO, want to see more children audience in our concerts,” she said.