The 33rd İzmir European Jazz Festival, organized by the İzmir Foundation for Culture, Arts and Education (İKSEV) in collaboration with İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, the Italian Consulate in İzmir, Goethe-Institut İzmir, the Honorary Swiss Consulate in İzmir, and Institut français Turkey – İzmir, came to a close last night (March 17) with the Jef Giansily Quintet Concert.
Pianist and composer Jef Giansily — whose music jazz authorities describe as “unquestionably unique, personal and modern” — delivered an unforgettable concert alongside his quintet comprising Hermon Mehari (trumpet), Pierre Bernier (saxophone), Apostolos Sideris (bass), and Darrel Green (drums). Giansily expressed his delight at sharing his album “Insight” — which reflects the inner world that has shaped nearly his entire life and career — with İzmir’s jazz lovers, and drew warm admiration for both his fluent Turkish and his sincerity.
At the concert, held in collaboration with Institut français Turkey – İzmir, Mehari, Bernier, Sideris, and Green — each a distinguished name in their own field — made the evening truly memorable with their solos. The quintet returned to the stage time and again to acknowledge the audience’s unceasing applause.
Photo Credit: Kutsal Lenger
Simon Mundy, Member of the European Parliament’s Council for Cultural Cooperation, Journalist, Writer and Publisher, who examines member festivals of the European Festivals Association (EFA) “under the microscope” within the scope of the “Festival in Focus” project, evaluated the International Izmir Festival. Having a long conversation via Skype with Filiz Eczacıbaşı Sarper, President of İzmir Culture Art and Education Foundation and Festival Art Director, Mundy shared his impressions and views on the EFA website and social media.
In his article, Mundy mentioned the rich historical and artistic heritage of the Aegean Region and Izmir, emphasizing that the International Izmir Festival brings together the past and present through events organized in these venues. Mundy said, “The Izmir Festival offers a wonderful combination of ancient architecture and music of more recent times. More importantly, it always demonstrates the continuity of culture on the Aegean coast – empires, kingdoms and politicians come and go, but civilization recovers and art never diminishes.”
At the end of his well-received and appreciated article, Mundy made the following assessment: “… The International Izmir Festival, a festival with great prestige and high artistic standards, is held in Izmir on the Aegean Coast, located right in the middle of Turkey’s various historical sites and popular tourist resorts. Featuring a wide range of classical, traditional and contemporary works with both international and national performances in music, ballet, theatre and opera, the International Izmir Festival has proven to be one of Turkey’s cultural and intellectual cornerstones as a festival that attracts great interest from local people and foreigners visiting Turkey. Since its inception, the Festival has made a special effort to incorporate the ancient city of Ephesus, one of the best-preserved ancient cities in the world, and other heritage sites of Izmir into its venues. Ephesus, where performances are staged at the Festival, is listed as a UNESCO cultural heritage site.”
