Concert held in memory of Ertegün family
ANKARA
A jazz concert was held on Feb. 18 at Türkiye’s Washington Embassy in memory of music producers Ahmet and Nesuhi Ertegün, who supported jazz — then known as Black music — in the 1930s and 1940s and took a stand against racism.
Hosted by Ambassador Sedat Önal and his wife, Figen Önal, the event took place at the ambassador's residence as part of the 2024-2025 "Ertegün Jazz Series." The concert featured a performance by the jazz group Dwayne Adell Trio and was attended by a large number of guests.
During the 1930s and 1940s, a period when racial segregation was at its peak in the United States and Black and white musicians rarely shared the stage, Türkiye’s Washington Ambassador Mehmet Münir Ertegün’s sons, Ahmet and Nesuhi Ertegün, opened the doors of the Turkish ambassador’s residence to both Black and white jazz artists.
Operating under the principle that "jazz is our weapon for social harmony," the Ertegün brothers hosted live jazz concerts at the residence, welcoming legendary musicians such as Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington. Their efforts surprised many members of Washington’s white elite at the time.
When prominent figures in Washington learned about these gatherings, some complained that African American guests were not using the back entrance, as racial customs of the time dictated. In response, Ambassador Ertegün firmly stated that, in Turkish culture, guests always entered through the front door.
In 1947, Ahmet Ertegün founded Atlantic Records, and in 1956, Nesuhi Ertegün joined the company as a producer, working with some of the greatest musicians of all time, including Ray Charles, Charles Mingus, Aretha Franklin and John Coltrane.
In honor of the Ertegün brothers’ legacy, where their fight against racism merged with their love for music, the Turkish Embassy in Washington has been holding commemorative events since 2010.
