Saturday, February 04, 2006

Crossing the Bridge - Istanbul


We went to the movies tonight ...it was bliss.
The Turkish Art Film Festival has come to Antwerpen. Gert came home with exciting news on Thursday ... I thought 'I'm legal!' But no, the Turkish movies had come to town and we were going to them and it was almost as good.

Anyway, tonight's movie was Crossing the Bridge: The Sound of Istanbul" is a fascinating trip through the music scene of Istanbul, where east meets west and past and present come together. Our guide was Alexander Hacke (bass player with Einstürzende Neubauten). Hacke owns a mobile recording studio where he composes all varieties of music, from classical Arabesque to Indie rock and rap. Among the performers seen in the film are the popular Sezen Aku and Orhan Genebay, Maverick rocker Erkin Koray and the Kurdish singer Aynur. In addition to these talented artists, we also meet a new generation of musicians such as fusion DJ Orient Express, digital maestro Mercan Dede and groups like Baba Zula, Duman and Replikas. "Crossing the Bridge" is not simply a music documentary: the camera moves through the streets and along the river of Istanbul, peeks into buildings and alleyways and around corners. "Crossing the Bridge" is a beautiful portrait of the bubbling cultural life of this metropolis. From the director of "Gegen die Wand".

I miss that city so much sometimes.

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