Milano / Saturday 11 September 2010

Piazza San Babila / at 04:00 PM

Musical Traditions of Turkey

Mehter, the Martial Music of the Janissaries Grand parade of the traditional Fanfare of the Turkish Army

Genelkurmay Askeri Tarih ve Stratejik Etüd Başkanlığı Askeri Müze ve Kültür

Mustafa Uğur Akten, conductor

The parade of the Janissaries will start from piazza San Babila and will process along corso Vittorio Emanuele, piazza del Duomo, piazzetta Reale e piazza della Scala
Free Admission
The arrival in Europe of the fanfares that accompanied the Janissaries (from yeni çeri, young troops) in battle was a memorable event: the volume was unheard of, and the ominous roll of exotic percussion (timpani, drums, cymbals, sticks and rattles), often placed on the backs of elephants or camels, blended with the piercing sound of oboes zurna. It is easy to imagine the shock produced by such a powerful music.

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by Giovanni De Zorzi

Fotogallery