Jazz and classic meet on stage

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Jazz pianist Kerem Görsev (R) met with The Deutsche Philharmonie Merck orchestra’s manager, Stefan Reinhard, during the press meeeting.

The best of both worlds will come together at the Istanbul Jazz Festival tonight, when Deutsche Philharmonie Merck will team up with Opera Swing Quartet and pianist Kerem Görsev to combine jazz and classical music.

The Deutsche Philharmonie Merck orchestra, led by conductor, pianist, composer and arranger Wolfgang Heinzel, will present the project Teatime at the Savoy at the Cemal Reşit Rey concert hall tonight.

On his first visit to Istanbul, Heinzel has said he feels impressed with the city.

“I feel very good in Istanbul, privately and with the orchestra,” Heinzel told a group of journalists yesterday. “We have a bath with the vibrations of this wonderful city.”

Heinzel only met renowned Turkish pianist Görsev two days ago, but said he was very happy that they would make music together and blend classical and jazz music.

“We will be a team, I think, but we will see the public’s reaction,” he said.
Görsev is also confident that the combination will be a successful one.

“When they asked me if I would join, I did not just accept it, I jumped into the idea,” the pianist said.
“We talked [with Heinzel] for five minutes about what kind of music we like and I immediately understood how the concert would sound.”

The orchestra was founded in 1966 with the participation of workers of Merck, the Germany-based chemical and pharmaceutical company. Later on, professional musicians were added to the line-up.

The orchestra’s manager, Stefan Reinhard, has been in the same position since 1987, but said the last decade is a new era for them, with Heinzel joining the project. Their main focus is Europe and Germany, but the orchestra is playing sets all over the world.

“We have 100 musicians with us,” Reinhard said. “The orchestra plays examples from classical, romantic and modern music. I am very proud of my orchestra, and you will see it tomorrow.”

Görsev said tonight’s collaboration could be the start, not the end.

“Let’s call it an introduction,” he said. “We’ll see what we can do in the future.”