LEAD DONOR TO THE GNO & THE 2021 BICENTENNIAL OF THE GREEK REVOLUTION
This production, part of a tribute to the 2021 bicentennial of the Greek Revolution, is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) [www.SNF.org].
Postponed due to the pandemic, one of the most highly anticipated productions of the GNO's tribute programme for 2021 is now set to be presented in March 2022 at the Stavros Niarchos Hall. Newly commissioned by the GNO from a Turkish creative team headed by the acclaimed composer Kamran Ince and the librettist Izzeddin Calislar, this work seeks to bring the perspective of the vanquished to the fore and into the light, letting the other side, the modern-day descendants of the Ottoman Empire, speak for themselves.
How is the subjective standpoint of the other coarticulated beyond the safe ground afforded by a national consensus? How does it give voice to the inherently traumatic dimension that accompanies the dissolution of an empire that endured for five-and-a-half centuries, and the painful transition from its traditionally pluralist make-up to the monocultural approach of the nation state? Might there be some common ground between the official narratives adopted by each side and the experiences of their leaders and subjects, as seen through the lens of the here and now? What lyrics, what musical motifs, what images have the power to capture the kaleidoscopically diverse array of emotions felt by these peoples in the face of how they experienced, first, the collapse and loss of their customary way of life, and second, being violently uprooted and displaced in the bloody exchange of Greek and Turkish populations that followed?
The Jus soli oratorio seeks to talk about the Greek Revolution from the Turkish perspective, to trace its repercussions and impact by boldly confronting this cascade of thorny questions. Along the way, it deploys a robust, symbolic, and expansive musical language, and grants the last disarming word to the sea - the iconic body of water that divides and unites two peoples, an entity that this work attempts to distil into a symbol of peace and love and understanding.
