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ANKARA: Armenian Musician Calls For Peace During Istanbul Visit

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  • ANKARA: Armenian Musician Calls For Peace During Istanbul Visit

    ARMENIAN MUSICIAN CALLS FOR PEACE DURING ISTANBUL VISIT

    Hurriyet
    July 7 2010
    Turkey

    Ara Dinkjian, an Armenian-American lute virtuoso and composer, issues
    a call for peace in the wake of a concert in Istanbul last week with
    local group KardeÅ~_ Turkuler. Aiming to strengthen ties between Turkey
    and Armenia, the musician hopes to end the enmity and hostility between
    the two neighbors through greater cross-border artistic collaboration

    Using a visit to Istanbul last week as a platform to sound off
    on Turkish-Armenian relations, Armenian-American lute virtuoso and
    composer Ara Dinkjian said it is time to end the "grudges and hatred"
    between Turkey and its eastern neighbor.

    "We should follow the oath of peace, not hatred," Dinkjian told the
    Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review, directing his comments to
    Turkish and Armenian societies following a well-received concert
    in Istanbul.

    Dinkjian dedicated his latest song to the long-running group KardeÅ~_
    Turkuler, with whom he recently performed in Istanbul.

    KardeÅ~_ Turkuler is renowned for its wide repertoire that includes
    folk songs from all the ethnic and religious groups of Anatolia.

    'My dark place:' a melody of deep grief

    Dinkjian titled his song as "My Dark Place," because "no matter where
    we come from or which religion or culture we belong to, we all carry
    deep grief in our hearts, even when we have a smile on our faces."

    Although he was born and raised in the United States, Dinkjian said he
    had never lost his contact with Turkey, from which his ancestors came,
    and is very eager to participate in projects with Turkish artists.

    Dinkjian said the desire for such collaboration is unsurprising,
    because "there is no discrimination in music. [Musical] notes do not
    judge people by their race, religion or nation."

    Further displaying his links with Turkey, Dinkjian said that when he
    was a child, his father had an unprecedented Turkish classical music
    collection. "I grew up listening to that music," he said.

    Diaspora not monolithic

    Although his family suffered during the 1915 events, he said:
    "They never taught us to bear grudges or hatred. This is extremely
    important."

    Asked about the Armenian diaspora, which is often known for its extreme
    hostility toward Turkey, Dinkjian said it was wrong to define diaspora
    as a homogenous whole.

    "There is another 'unmentioned' diaspora where people still do speak
    Turkish as their second language," he said. "They sing in Turkish and
    they still feel that they belong to these lands. They cannot belong
    to where they live currently."

    Dinkjian said he Turkey and Armenia would establish close relations
    similar to the relations now enjoyed between Turkey and Greece thanks
    to the efforts of artists from both countries. "All we need is a
    little effort and self-sacrifice."

    'I teach my children love, not hatred'

    Recalling the concert he performed last week together with KardeÅ~_
    Turkuler, Dinkjian said thousands of people sang along with him and
    gave him a standing ovation.

    "It was an incredible experience, I will never forget this," Dinkjian
    said. "I truly believe that we can make it."

    He said he had also taken his kids to Turkey to let them sight see,
    adding that he would not allow them to be poisoned with hatred. "I
    of course do tell them about the painful events but I also advise
    them to love all human beings without discrimination."

    When he visited the southeastern province of Diyarbakır, the home
    of his ancestors, five years ago with his father, Dinkjian said he
    felt like how a mother feels for her children.

    "I cannot really express my emotions but if somebody kidnapped me and
    took me to outer space and let me have one last look at the world,
    I would pick the one spot on the blue globe - and that would be what
    my grandfather and grandmother told me fairytales about, that is,
    Anatolia," he said. "That is where I belong."

    Dinkjian said he would not cut his ties with Turkey for as long as
    he lives. "It is not even possible for me to do so."




    From: A. Papazian
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