Mercan Dede
Encyclopedia
Mercan Dede also known as DJ Arkin Allen, is a Turkish
composer, ney
and bendir
player, DJ and producer. He divides his time between Turkey
, Europe and North America. He is a world music
artist, playing a fusion of traditional acoustic Turkish and other oriental musics with electronic sounds.
His best known albums include Seyahatname, Su, and Nar. He has worked in collaboration with Turkish and international musicians such as Susheela Raman
, Dhafer Youssef
, Sheema Mukherjee (Transglobal Underground
) and Hugh Marsh
.
and moved to Canada
as an art teacher, specialising in ebru
(a traditional Turkish marbled printing). He is still a resident of Canada
.
Dede speaks Turkish
, Arabic, French
, Persian
, and English
.
In 2001 he released his third album, Seyahatname, which means "travelogue" in old Turkish, evokes the era of the great caravanserai crossing Anatolia on the silk road. The sound of the ney
goes back to this period, and the music aspires to the spirit of the mystic Sufi poets of that time, such as Mevlana. Dede describes the sound of the ney as "a pure, universal spiritual sound" evoking deep feelings, deeper than we can comprehend in just our short time on earth. The ney "speaks the language of love, instantly comprehensible in the heart, compared to which all the mosques, churches, temples built to decorate (our spirituality) drift away". The album is Dede's personal effort to reflect on his own spiritual journey.
His 2002 album Nâr (which means "fire" in Turkish) continued in the same vein. In 2004 he released Su ("water") stayed at number one on European World Music Charts for two months. The album was recorded with an international line-up of musicians and has more vocals on it than the previous works. One track featuring folk singer Sabahat Akkiraz was particularly popular in Turkey. Dede made his U.S. debut at the first Globalfest that year, followed by a North American tour and the release of the album Fusion Monster under the name 'Arkin Allen', which has a slightly different twist on his familiar sound. He was commissioned by the Turkish Ministry of Culture as the music director of the Guldestan project to represent Turkish culture and arts all around the globe, working alongside choreographer Beyhan Murphy.
The February 2007 album Nefes ("breath") included Transglobal Underground sitar player Sheema Mukherjee in the line-up. The album includes spoken songs in Turkish, Arabic, and French.
Mercan Dede and his Secret Tribe have given live performances at festivals including the Montreal Jazz Festival, WOMEX
, the Festival de Trans Musicales and Banlieus Bleus, Arezzo, the Montreux Jazz Festival
, the World Roots Festival and the Rhythm Sticks Festival and at more than 100 shows in Vienna
, Geneva
, Brussels
, Cologne
, Paris
, Amsterdam
and Istanbul
.
from Turkey and other parts of the world, with horns, dance beats, ambient electronic music, and a Sufi spirituality. The name Mercan Dede itself evokes sufism
as "Dede" is the word for 'elder' in the Sufi traditions, although the name Mercan Dede was taken from a character in a modern Turkish novel. Dede composes his own music, some of which is rhythmic, some new age.
He plays with groups of various sizes and fluctuating membership: the Mercan Dede Trio, the Mercan Dede Ensemble, and the Secret Tribe. The instrumentation used includes electronics and elements of classical Turkish music such as the ney (which he plays himself), percussion, violin, and zither. The groups often include Montreal-based percussionist Scott Russell, Canadian violinist Hugh Marsh, and Turkish clarinetist Hüsnü Şenlendirici. The shows often include men and women in Sufi costume doing Sufi whirling
.
Dede works as a DJ under the name Arkın Allen, specialising in music related to that of his live groups, in this case dance music with an oriental flavour.
Dede has been criticised by Turkish music purists for not being steeped in the Sufi traditions and for not properly representing sufism in his music and writings. Another criticism is that the whirling dancers he uses to accompany his shows do not accurately display the correct dervish routines. However, as more than a ney player, working just as often as a DJ as performing live in concert, with an audience consisting of clubbers, not Islamic scholars, Dede aims to synthesise several different traditions rather than recreate a historically pure music.
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
composer, ney
Ney
The ney is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in Middle Eastern music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. It is a very ancient instrument, with depictions of ney players appearing in wall paintings in the Egyptian pyramids and actual neys being found...
and bendir
Bendir
The bendir is a frame drum used as a traditional instrument throughout North Africa. Unlike the tambourine, it has no jingles but most often has a snare stretched across its head, which when the drum is struck with the fingers or palm gives the tone a buzzing quality.The bendir is a frame drum...
player, DJ and producer. He divides his time between Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Europe and North America. He is a world music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
artist, playing a fusion of traditional acoustic Turkish and other oriental musics with electronic sounds.
His best known albums include Seyahatname, Su, and Nar. He has worked in collaboration with Turkish and international musicians such as Susheela Raman
Susheela Raman
Susheela Raman is an acclaimed British Tamil musician. Raman has released five albums since 2001. Her debut album Salt Rain was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2001.-Early years:...
, Dhafer Youssef
Dhafer Youssef
Dhafer Youssef is a composer, singer and oud player. He developed an interest in jazz at an early age and clandestinely listened to it during his education at a Qur'anic school. He later left Tunisia to start a jazz career and has lived in Europe since 1990, usually in Paris or Vienna. He also...
, Sheema Mukherjee (Transglobal Underground
Transglobal underground
Transglobal Underground is a London-based music collective who specialise in a fusion of western, oriental and African music styles...
) and Hugh Marsh
Hugh Marsh
Hugh Marsh is a violinist from Toronto, known for his electric violin sound. Marsh was nominated for a 2007 Juno Award in the best contemporary jazz album category.-Early days:...
.
Early life and education
Dede graduated in media studies from Istanbul UniversityIstanbul University
Istanbul University is a Turkish university located in Istanbul. The main campus is adjacent to Beyazıt Square.- Synopsis :A madrasa, a religious school, was established sometime in the 15th century after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople. An institution of higher education named the...
and moved to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
as an art teacher, specialising in ebru
Ebru
-Given name:*Ebru Destan, Turkish singer, actress and model*Ebru Gündeş, Turkish pop-folk singer, actress, and television personality*Ebru Kavaklıoğlu, Turkish long-distance runner*Ebru Yaşar, Turkish pop folk music singer...
(a traditional Turkish marbled printing). He is still a resident of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Dede speaks Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
, Arabic, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
.
Career
The Mercan Dede ensemble was founded in 1997, by which time Arkın had been working as a musician for some years. Their first album was Sufi Dreams, released in 1998. This album got a boost when the music was used in a German television documentary on Sufi music.In 2001 he released his third album, Seyahatname, which means "travelogue" in old Turkish, evokes the era of the great caravanserai crossing Anatolia on the silk road. The sound of the ney
Ney
The ney is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in Middle Eastern music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. It is a very ancient instrument, with depictions of ney players appearing in wall paintings in the Egyptian pyramids and actual neys being found...
goes back to this period, and the music aspires to the spirit of the mystic Sufi poets of that time, such as Mevlana. Dede describes the sound of the ney as "a pure, universal spiritual sound" evoking deep feelings, deeper than we can comprehend in just our short time on earth. The ney "speaks the language of love, instantly comprehensible in the heart, compared to which all the mosques, churches, temples built to decorate (our spirituality) drift away". The album is Dede's personal effort to reflect on his own spiritual journey.
His 2002 album Nâr (which means "fire" in Turkish) continued in the same vein. In 2004 he released Su ("water") stayed at number one on European World Music Charts for two months. The album was recorded with an international line-up of musicians and has more vocals on it than the previous works. One track featuring folk singer Sabahat Akkiraz was particularly popular in Turkey. Dede made his U.S. debut at the first Globalfest that year, followed by a North American tour and the release of the album Fusion Monster under the name 'Arkin Allen', which has a slightly different twist on his familiar sound. He was commissioned by the Turkish Ministry of Culture as the music director of the Guldestan project to represent Turkish culture and arts all around the globe, working alongside choreographer Beyhan Murphy.
The February 2007 album Nefes ("breath") included Transglobal Underground sitar player Sheema Mukherjee in the line-up. The album includes spoken songs in Turkish, Arabic, and French.
Mercan Dede and his Secret Tribe have given live performances at festivals including the Montreal Jazz Festival, WOMEX
WOMEX
WOMEX is an international world music support and development project based in Berlin, whose main event is an exposition held annually in different locations throughout Europe. It integrates a trade fair, showcases, conferences, film market, networking sessions, and awards...
, the Festival de Trans Musicales and Banlieus Bleus, Arezzo, the Montreux Jazz Festival
Montreux Jazz Festival
The Montreux Jazz Festival is the best-known music festival in Switzerland and one of the most prestigious in Europe; it is held annually in early July in Montreux on the shores of Lake Geneva...
, the World Roots Festival and the Rhythm Sticks Festival and at more than 100 shows in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
and Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
.
His music
His sound incorporates traditional instruments and neyNey
The ney is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in Middle Eastern music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. It is a very ancient instrument, with depictions of ney players appearing in wall paintings in the Egyptian pyramids and actual neys being found...
from Turkey and other parts of the world, with horns, dance beats, ambient electronic music, and a Sufi spirituality. The name Mercan Dede itself evokes sufism
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
as "Dede" is the word for 'elder' in the Sufi traditions, although the name Mercan Dede was taken from a character in a modern Turkish novel. Dede composes his own music, some of which is rhythmic, some new age.
He plays with groups of various sizes and fluctuating membership: the Mercan Dede Trio, the Mercan Dede Ensemble, and the Secret Tribe. The instrumentation used includes electronics and elements of classical Turkish music such as the ney (which he plays himself), percussion, violin, and zither. The groups often include Montreal-based percussionist Scott Russell, Canadian violinist Hugh Marsh, and Turkish clarinetist Hüsnü Şenlendirici. The shows often include men and women in Sufi costume doing Sufi whirling
Sufi whirling
Sufi whirling , is a form of Sama or physicaly active meditation which orginated among Sufis, and which is still practiced by the Sufi Dervishes of the Mevlevi order. It is a customary dance performed within the Sema, or worship ceremony, through which dervishes aim to reach the source of all...
.
Dede works as a DJ under the name Arkın Allen, specialising in music related to that of his live groups, in this case dance music with an oriental flavour.
Dede has been criticised by Turkish music purists for not being steeped in the Sufi traditions and for not properly representing sufism in his music and writings. Another criticism is that the whirling dancers he uses to accompany his shows do not accurately display the correct dervish routines. However, as more than a ney player, working just as often as a DJ as performing live in concert, with an audience consisting of clubbers, not Islamic scholars, Dede aims to synthesise several different traditions rather than recreate a historically pure music.
Discography
- Sufi Dreams (Golden Horn 1998)
- Journeys of a Dervish (Golden Horn 1999)
- Seyahatname (Doublemoon 2001)
- Nar (Doublemoon 2002)
- Fusion Monster (Numoon 2004) (as DJ Arkin Allen)
- Su (Doublemoon 2003) (23 July 2003)
- Sufi Traveler (High Times 2004)
- Nefes (Doublemoon 2007) (22 June 2007)
- 800 (Doublemoon 2007) (5 November 2007)
Achievements
- His album 800 was selected as the World's Best World Music Album of 2008 by mONSIEUR Cul!
- Mercan Dede has been nominated by BBC 3 Awards for World Music in the Middle East and North Africa category twice and three times in the Club Global category.
- Su stayed at #1 spot for two months on the European World Music Charts
- Featured in Fatih Akin's documentary Crossing the BridgeCrossing the Bridge: The Sound of IstanbulCrossing the Bridge: The Sound of Istanbul is a 2005 film/documentary directed by Fatih Akın. The film is a journey through the music scene in modern Istanbul, Turkey as well as portraying its cultural life. It was screened out of competition at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival.It features German...
- Composer of some music for the recent work Istanbul by Pina Bausch, the German choreographer
Collaborations
- Violinist, long-time collaborator Hugh MarshHugh MarshHugh Marsh is a violinist from Toronto, known for his electric violin sound. Marsh was nominated for a 2007 Juno Award in the best contemporary jazz album category.-Early days:...
- (Canada) - Vocalist Susheela RamanSusheela RamanSusheela Raman is an acclaimed British Tamil musician. Raman has released five albums since 2001. Her debut album Salt Rain was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2001.-Early years:...
- (England, Australia, India) - KanunKanun (Instrument)The Qanun is a string instrument found in the 10th century in Farab in Turkestan...
virtuoso Göksel Baktagir - (Turkey) - Clarinet virtuoso Hüsnü Şenlendirici, and his group Laço Tayfa - (Turkey)
- Vocalist Dhafer YoussefDhafer YoussefDhafer Youssef is a composer, singer and oud player. He developed an interest in jazz at an early age and clandestinely listened to it during his education at a Qur'anic school. He later left Tunisia to start a jazz career and has lived in Europe since 1990, usually in Paris or Vienna. He also...
- (Tunisia) - Urban poet and rapper CezaCezaBilgin Özçalkan better known by his stage name Ceza is the most commercially famous and influential Turkish rapper. His albums have featured many artists including Sezen Aksu, Candan Erçetin, Tech N9ne, Dr. Fuchs, and his sister Ayben...
- (Turkey) - Azam AliAzam Ali-Biography:Born in Tehran, Iran 1970, Ali spent most of her childhood in Panchgani, India. Ali and her mother moved to Los Angeles, California in 1985, after which Ali discovered the santour...
and her group, Niyaz - (Iran) - Classical pianist Fazil SayFazil SayFazıl Say , is a Turkish pianist and composer born in Ankara, Turkey.-Biography:Born in 1970 in Ankara, Turkey, Fazıl Say started playing the piano at the age of four. He continued his music training in Ankara State Conservatory as a student of Special Status for Highly Talented Children and...
- (Turkey) - Jazz saxophonist Ilhan Ersahin - (Turkey)
- 'Arabesque' singer Özcan Deniz - (Turkey)
- Folk singer Aynur DoganAynur DoganAynur Doğan is a contemporary Kurdish singer and musician from Turkey. She was born in Çemişgezek, a small mountain town in Tunceli Province in southeastern Turkey. Her family fled to İstanbul in 1992 during the conflict between the Turkish military and the Kurdistan Workers Party...
- (Turkey) - Pop Musician Peter MurphyPeter Murphy (musician)Peter John Murphy is an English rock vocalist. He was the vocalist of the rock group Bauhaus, and later went on to release a number of solo albums, such as Deep and Love Hysteria...
- (England, Turkey) - Hurdy Gurdy player Ben Grossman - (Canada)
- Dancer Emine Mira Hunter (née Burke) - (Canada)
- Dancer Tevhide Tanya Evanson - (Canada)