Weekend in Istanbul: Greek music, a rock festival and a silent concert

ISTANBUL – Anadolu Agency

Greek singer Maria Farantouri to perform in Istanbul  

Singer and political activist Maria Farantouri will play to Istanbul fans at Harbiye Open-Air Theater on August 2 to celebrate the 90th birthday of Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis.
     
Theodorakis is known as Greece’s best composer alive, who wrote songs for 1964 classic “Zorba the Greek” and Costa Gavras’s political thriller, “Z.”
     
Theodorakis and Farantouri met in 1963 when she was singing for a society choir in Greece. According to Farantouri’s publicist, after listening to Farantouri, the composer told the 16-year-old girl: “Do you know that you were born to sing my songs?”
     
Farantouri is well-known to Turkish audiences, as she has given concerts across the country with Turkish musician Zulfu Livaneli, especially at the end of the 1980s.

Another Greek musician, Alexandros Karozas, will accompany the 67-year-old singer during the event.
     
http://www.farantouri.gr

           
Rock Off festival to gather music lovers in Istanbul
     
One of the most anticipated music festivals of this year, “Rock Off,” will take place August 1-2 at Istanbul’s LifePark.
     
The main groups of the festival this year are American metal band Korn and Finnish metal band Apocalyptica.
     
Along with Korn, French metal band Gojira, America’s Soulfly, Sweden’s Unleashed and Finnish folk metal band Korpiklaani will perform on the first day of the event.
     
The second day will see Apocalyptica as well as death metal band Behemoth, My Dying Bride from the U.K., Sweden’s Dark Tranquility, and Canada’s Annihilator.
     
“Along with the main stage performances, the festival also includes conversations at the Dragon’s Den tent, acoustic performances and autographing sessions,” say organizers.
     
http://pozitiflive.com/en/event/2015/rock-off

           
German heist thriller to hit Turkish theaters
     
Award-winning German crime movie “Victoria” will open on July 31.
     
Directed by German actor and filmmaker Sebastian Schipper, “Victoria” stars German-Turkish actor Burak Yiğit as well as Catalan actor Laia Costa.
   
The single-shot movie tells the story of a Spanish girl named Victoria who is living in Berlin and her attempt to rob a bank.
     
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4226388/


     
‘Silent’ concert in Istanbul
     
Istanbul-based artist collective Ha Za Vu Zu will have a silent concert in Istanbul on Friday, July 31.
     
Luzia Istanbul, a cafe on the European shoreline of the Bosphorus, will host the event.   

The first 60 visitors will get earphones to listen to the performance, silencing noise in the 15-million-strong city.
     
Formed in 2005, the collective says, “By instigating the spontaneous formation of new modes of collective action and experience, such performances offer audience members the opportunity to imagine new social orders, new roles for themselves, and alternative modes of political engagement.”
     
http://www.themovingmuseum.com/artists/ha-za-vu-zu/