Seyyah I 
for pan flute and orchestra

Performed by Matthijs Koene (pan flute) & Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Cem Mansur. 

Being the first instalment of Seyyah trilogy, the piece houses a unique instrumentation with pan flute at the spotlight surrounded by an orchestra. While being one of the oldest known instruments, pan flute is still a rare sight to be seen within classical music scene. In the hands of the right player, this fascinating instrument produces one of the purest earthy tones with occasional agile attacks, which result in a unique timbre. Combined with an orchestra, it complements the sound world of Seyyah in a way that few others can.

One of the key elements that bring the piece together is the recurring Seyyah Motif which is revealed in critical points within the piece. Acting as leitmotiv or idée fixe; this simple melody not only holds this piece together, but the whole series, as this motif can be found both within Seyyah II & III. The melody that is derived from a diatonic tetrachord, represents the identity of Seyyah, who initiates the whole trilogy at the opening passage of Seyyah I while making multiple appearances throughout the series

Seyyah I is written for Dutch pan flutist Matthijs Koene and dedicated to the person who became home for this Seyyah.

Seyyah I

Indigo Ma | for ensemble: ​flt, cl, perc, pno, vln, vla, vlc

Commissioned by Ensemble TaG Winterthur for “30 Jahre Ensemble TaG – ein Gesprächskonzert zum Jubiläum”.

Premier at 4th June 2023 | Theater am Gleis (Winterthur/Switzerland)

Indigo Ma

Indigo Öz | for orchestra

Commissioned by Bilkent Symphony Orchestra as the “100th Anniversary of Turkish Republic Commission”.

Premier at 29th October 2023 | Bilkent Concert Hall (Ankara/TR)

Indigo Öz

with love from Arashiyama...

This piece is aimed for Yokobue, which is the term that is given to the Japanese ‘Transverse Flute Family’. The purpose of the piece is to introduce and blend some unique features and techniques of the Yokobue with contemporary music. ‘with love from Arashiyama...’is originally intended for Yokobue; yet one could play the piece in Western concert flute or any other ethnic flutes  (preferably transverse or any end blown flute that one could accurately perform the techniques) that provides the necessary range.

Performed by Arda Yurdusev

with love from Arashiyama...

Senri for string quartet, performed by Hezarfen Ensemble.

Özcan Ulucan (Violin)
Şenol Aydın (Violin)
Ulrich Mertin (Viola)
Gökhan Bağcı (Violoncello)

Senri (I)

Performed by Hezarfen Ensemble in Bilkent Concert Hall. Conducted by Orhun Orhon.
_______________________

Seyyah III

Written for an ensemble of 7 players, this piece finalizes the Seyyah trilogy. The piece finds its core within the imperishable work of the Persian mathematician, astronomer and poet Omar Khayyam; The Rubáiyát. The quote below which is taken from this work represents the essence of the trilogy, therefore is the final step on the path.

(…)

The thoughtful Soul to Solitude retires, *

(…)

 Solitude is a powerful concept which should be distinguished from the state of being alone. In various cultures, solitude is seen as a divine purpose. Hence one should realize that the crucial aspect of this state is that it is often dependent of someone’s will. Of course, it is probably required to acknowledge that solitude would be a necessity which comes natural to the souls that pursue divine paths of their cultures. 

 The thought process that comes with solitude is often regarded from the outside as, stimulating the mind and reaching some version of enlightenment by releasing yourself from your earthly connections, depending on the culture. According to my version, this process should make the mind reflective of its surroundings rather than isolated, as contrasting as it may sound. To me, what Khayyam might have tried to propose could be the realization that earth and possible outside universe(s) does not matter. What matters is the self as both those realities are one within each of us and varies from person to person. This almost intangible (and possible) definition of soul might be a way for the self to be aware of one’s reality.

   That is why the mentioned quote reflects the idea behind Seyyah perfectly. This realization process marks the end of the wandering path and enable the Seyyah to retire.  

* NOTICE: The English version of the above quote from Omar Khayyam’s work The Rubáiyát is translated by Edward FitzGerald in 1859. Although criticized for its poor authenticity to the original Farsi text, it is praised for its literary aesthetics and attention to rhyme.     Therefore, FitzGerald’s translation is featured because of phonetic and aesthetic preferences.

Seyyah III

Performed by Arditti Quartet (June 2019).
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Senri
千里

By definition, the word Senri may be translated as a thousand miles which comes from two Japanese words; Sen 千being the numerical value thousand and ri 里 being an old Japanese unit of distance which is roughly a mile. However, the reason behind the title of this piece is because of a time in my youth while I was residing near a place called Senri-yama which was a defining period in my life. In that sense, Senri can be viewed as a homage to my time in Japan.

Senri (II)

Performed by Sigma Project in Barcelona within the scope of Festival Mixtur 2020.

Pati

As a composer - performer - audiovisual artist, his interests include (but not limited to) combining contemporary art music with various musical and theatrical elements though timbre-based sound worlds and audio-visual projects ranging from concert music to interdisciplinary stage works. A key aspect of his artistic output is his music theaters which focus on topics between the spectrum of real life and sci-fi settings with audiovisual and scenic elements. He is also heavily active with his audiovisual works that often result in collaborations with artists from various fields.

During 2023-24 Season, his latest series “Indigo” premiered with the first chapter “Ma” being commissioned by Ensemble TaG Winterthur for their “30 Jahre Ensemble TaG – ein Gesprächskonzert zum Jubiläum”. The series continued with “Öz” which is the “100th Anniversary of Turkish Republic Commission” by Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, “Ryu” which was an ensemble piece commissioned by Ensemble Proton Bern within the scope of “Protonwerk 13” and “Skye” which was a commission by Aventurin Quartett for string quartet and electronics. Alongside Indigo series, his audiovisual album project “Quanta” has also started its productions to be released and toured in 2025. In the coming seasons, two major projects are his concert length music theatre pieces, the first one being a collaboration with director Ludmilla Mercier for “The Lost Generation” set to premier within the scope of Musikfestival Bern in September 2025 and his collaboration with Kollektiv Unruhe for “G.O.A.T. Protocol” to be toured within Germany and Switzerland starting from spring 2026.

His most recent stage work was the collaborative concert long audiovisual piece “NeuroDrive” for ensemble, live electronics, visuals and lights, which was premiered in Grosse Halle in Kulturzentrum Reitschule in Bern. Some more of his recent stage works can be mentioned as his concert long musiktheater “C-AML”, an auto-biographical musiktheater piece “Suita” that was a part of Play Time Festival and “underneath the pieces…” for flute and puzzle which was featured within the scope of Musikfestival Bern with the commission of ArtConnection. Some notable concerts from past seasons include his string quartet “Senri (II)” with Arditti Quartet and his Seyyah concept pieces; his concerto for pan flute and orchestra “Seyyah I” that was premiered by Matthijs Koene and Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, ”Seyyah Trio" with ensemble XX. jahrhundert , “Seyyah III” with Cikada and “Seyyah Trilogy” with Black Pencil Ensemble.

He has worked with ensembles such as Arditti Quartet, Klangforum Wien, Cikada, Ensemble Proton Bern, Ensemble TaG Winterthur, Black Pencil Ensemble, ensemble XX. Janrhundert, Collegium Novum Zurich, Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, NK Ensemble and Hezarfen Ensemble. He is pursuing his doctorate research in Freiburg Bern Graduate School for Artistic Research, supervised by Nathalie Meidhof and Simon Steen-Andersen. He holds a B.A. degree in Theory and Composition from Bilkent University Faculty of Music and Performing Arts with Yiğit Aydın and an M.A. degree from Hochschule der Künste Bern in Music Composition with Simon Steen-Andersen and Xavier Dayer. During various workshops, he had private lectures with well-known composers such as Mark Andre, Michael Beil, Stefano Gervasoni, Pierre Jodlowski, Klaus Lang, Ken Ueno, Matthew Shlomowitz to name a few. Arda Yurdusev is based in Bern, Switzerland.


www.ardayurdusev.com

ardayurdusev@gmail.com

Arda Yurdusev

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