Zülfü Livaneli
Encyclopedia
Ömer Zülfü Livanelioğlu (b. 1946 Ilgın
, Turkey
) is a popular Turkish
folk musician (singer and composer), a novelist, newspaper columnist
and a film director who has been highly popular for decades. He is also a prominent left-wing and social-democrat politician and was a member of the Turkish parliament for one term.
He is most known for his fusion of Turkish folk music
with contemporary music, in much the same way as Bob Dylan
and his contemporaries in the United States
. His 1997 Ankara concert was attended by no less than 500 thousand people. His collaborations with Mikis Theodorakis
of Greece
have been noted as a gesture of bringing together the two countries. Livaneli has been a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador
since 1996.
Livaneli has composed some three hundred songs, a rhapsody –recorded by London Symphony Orchestra–, and a ballet. His compositions have reached cult status nationwide and have been performed by internationally renowned artists such as Joan Baez
, María del Mar Bonet
, Udo Lindenberg
, Maria Farantouri
, Haris Alexiou
, Jocelyn B. Smith and Kate Westbrook
. He has also written five plays and thirty film soundtracks. Among these soundtracks are the soundtrack for "Yol" (The Path), directed by Yilmaz Güney and winner of the Golden Palm in Cannes Film Festival, "The Herd", directed by Yılmaz Güney
and Zeki Ökten, and "Shirin’s Wedding" by German director Helma Sanders-Brahms
. His recordings have been published in the USA, Sweden, Germany, Holland and France, and he has given dozens of concerts throughout the world. He has produced albums and performed with Mikis Theodorakis
and Maria Farantouri
, and he has also collaborated with Manos Hatzidakis, Giora Feidman
, Inti Illimani and Angel Parra
. Livaneli has been distinguished with the awards Best Album of the Year (Greece), the Edison Award
(Holland), and Best Album of the Year (Music Critics Guild of Germany), and the "Premio Luigi Tenco" Best Songwriter Award, San Remo, Italy, in 1999, among others.
(Grand National Assembly of Turkey) as a Deputy for Istanbul
for the Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi
(CHP). Livaneli resigned from the CHP in early 2005, however, in protest at "CHP's non-democratic and authoritarian system of politics",
During his political career in Ankara, Livaneli presented a legislative proposal for amending Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. The amendment proposed that the concept of "Turkishness" should be replaced with that of the "Turkish nation" which would put an emphasis on the concept of "nation" which, as formulated by the Republic, unites under its umbrella people of different origins. With this amendment, there would no more be a stress on the notion of Turkish race.
Besides this, in 2006 he presented a proposal to the National Assembly demanding that a commission be established in order to investigate the reasons for increasing violence and fanaticism among the youth; his proposal was accepted.
Following his resignation from the party membership, Livaneli continued in his position in the Grand National Assembly as an independent
until the end of that term. He did not take part in the 2007 Turkish elections and appears politically inactive. He has since concentrated on his art, novels, and daily column.
Livaneli is a daily contributor as a columnist in the newspaper Vatan
.
. His film Iron Earth, Copper Sky
was screened in the Un Certain Regard
section at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival
. Veda
that based on the life of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
is the last film written and directed by Zülfü Livaneli.
One of the most acclaimed Turkish films of the decade – and one of the first narrative films to tackle the highly charged subject of honor killings – Bliss
was originally adopted from Livaneli's best-seller novel. The film, reviewed by New York Times as a consistently gripping, visually intoxicating film and standing as a landmark of contemporary Turkish cinema.
Ilgin
Ilgın is a town and district of Konya Province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. According to 2000 census, population of the district is 75,681 of which 26,698 live in the town of Hadim.-Etymology:...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
) is a popular Turkish
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
folk musician (singer and composer), a novelist, newspaper columnist
Columnist
A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....
and a film director who has been highly popular for decades. He is also a prominent left-wing and social-democrat politician and was a member of the Turkish parliament for one term.
He is most known for his fusion of Turkish folk music
Turkish folk music
Turkish folk music combines the distinct cultural values of all civilisations that have lived in Anatolia and the Ottoman territories in Europe and Asia...
with contemporary music, in much the same way as Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
and his contemporaries in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. His 1997 Ankara concert was attended by no less than 500 thousand people. His collaborations with Mikis Theodorakis
Mikis Theodorakis
Mikis Theodorakis is one of the most renowned Greek songwriters and composers. Internationally, he is probably best known for his songs and for his scores for the films Zorba the Greek , Z , and Serpico .Politically, he identified with the left until the late 1980s; in 1989, he ran as an...
of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
have been noted as a gesture of bringing together the two countries. Livaneli has been a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador
UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador
UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors are celebrity advocates of UNESCO who use their talent or fame to spread the UNESCO ideals, especially attracting media attention...
since 1996.
Livaneli has composed some three hundred songs, a rhapsody –recorded by London Symphony Orchestra–, and a ballet. His compositions have reached cult status nationwide and have been performed by internationally renowned artists such as Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
, María del Mar Bonet
Maria del Mar Bonet
Maria del Mar Bonet i Verdaguer is a Balearic singer from the island of Majorca.-Early life and career:She studied ceramics in the school of arts, but eventually she decided to dedicate herself to song. She arrived in Barcelona in 1967, where she began to sing with the group Els Setze Jutges...
, Udo Lindenberg
Udo Lindenberg
Udo Lindenberg is a German rock musician and composer.-Career:Lindenberg started his musical career as a drummer. In 1969 Lindenberg founded his first band Free Orbit and also appeared as a studio and guest musician . In 1970 he collaborated as a drummer with jazz-saxophonist Klaus Doldinger in...
, Maria Farantouri
Maria Farantouri
Maria Farantouri was born in Athens on 28 November 1947. She is a Greek singer and also a political and cultural activist. She has collaborated with prominent Greek composers such as Mikis Theodorakis, who wrote the score for Pablo Neruda's Canto General, which Farantouri performed...
, Haris Alexiou
Haris Alexiou
Haris Alexiou is a Greek singer. She is considered one of the most popular singers in Greece and has been commercially successful since the 1970s. She has worked with important Greek songwriters and composers, has performed at top musical theatres all over the world and has received several awards...
, Jocelyn B. Smith and Kate Westbrook
Kate Westbrook (musician)
Kate Westbrook is an artist following the professions of painter and musician. Her musical work centres around her career as a vocalist, predominantly with her husband, British composer and bandleader Mike Westbrook's bands...
. He has also written five plays and thirty film soundtracks. Among these soundtracks are the soundtrack for "Yol" (The Path), directed by Yilmaz Güney and winner of the Golden Palm in Cannes Film Festival, "The Herd", directed by Yılmaz Güney
Yilmaz Güney
Yılmaz Güney, was a Kurdish film director, scenarist, novelist and actor from Turkey. Many of his works are devoted to the plight of ordinary, working class people in Turkey.- Biography :...
and Zeki Ökten, and "Shirin’s Wedding" by German director Helma Sanders-Brahms
Helma Sanders-Brahms
Helma Sanders-Brahms is a German film director, screenwriter, producer and actress.She studied acting then German and English. She first worked in TV and then trained as a film director with Sergio Corbucci and Pier Paolo Pasolini making a large number of films often commissioned by German...
. His recordings have been published in the USA, Sweden, Germany, Holland and France, and he has given dozens of concerts throughout the world. He has produced albums and performed with Mikis Theodorakis
Mikis Theodorakis
Mikis Theodorakis is one of the most renowned Greek songwriters and composers. Internationally, he is probably best known for his songs and for his scores for the films Zorba the Greek , Z , and Serpico .Politically, he identified with the left until the late 1980s; in 1989, he ran as an...
and Maria Farantouri
Maria Farantouri
Maria Farantouri was born in Athens on 28 November 1947. She is a Greek singer and also a political and cultural activist. She has collaborated with prominent Greek composers such as Mikis Theodorakis, who wrote the score for Pablo Neruda's Canto General, which Farantouri performed...
, and he has also collaborated with Manos Hatzidakis, Giora Feidman
Giora Feidman
Giora Feidman is an Argentinian-born Israeli clarinetist who specializes in klezmer music.-Biography:Giora Feidman was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where his Bessarabian Jewish parents immigrated to escape persecution. Feidman comes from a family of klezmer musicians...
, Inti Illimani and Angel Parra
Ángel Parra
Ángel Cereceda Parra is a Chilean singer and songwriter, son of Violeta Parra, notable Chilean folklorist and brother of Isabel Parra. He travels abroad helping to maintain the Nueva Canción tradition in Chilean expatriate communities in Europe, North America, and Australia. His son -also named...
. Livaneli has been distinguished with the awards Best Album of the Year (Greece), the Edison Award
The Edison Award
The Edison music award is an annual Dutch music prize, awarded for outstanding achievements in the music industry. It is one of the oldest music awards in the world, having been presented since 1960.-Origins:...
(Holland), and Best Album of the Year (Music Critics Guild of Germany), and the "Premio Luigi Tenco" Best Songwriter Award, San Remo, Italy, in 1999, among others.
Political life
Apart from his remarkable career as an artist, Livaneli was highly influential in Turkish politics over the last thirty years. In the 2002 Turkish elections, Livaneli was elected to the Türkiye Büyük Millet MeclisiGrand National Assembly of Turkey
The Grand National Assembly of Turkey , usually referred to simply as the Meclis , is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Constitution. It was founded in Ankara on 23 April 1920 in the midst of the Turkish War of Independence...
(Grand National Assembly of Turkey) as a Deputy for Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
for the Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi
Republican People's Party (Turkey)
The Republican People's Party is a centre-left Kemalist political party in Turkey. It is the oldest political party of Turkey and is currently Main Opposition in the Grand National Assembly. The Republican People's Party describes itself as "a modern social-democratic party, which is faithful to...
(CHP). Livaneli resigned from the CHP in early 2005, however, in protest at "CHP's non-democratic and authoritarian system of politics",
During his political career in Ankara, Livaneli presented a legislative proposal for amending Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code. The amendment proposed that the concept of "Turkishness" should be replaced with that of the "Turkish nation" which would put an emphasis on the concept of "nation" which, as formulated by the Republic, unites under its umbrella people of different origins. With this amendment, there would no more be a stress on the notion of Turkish race.
Besides this, in 2006 he presented a proposal to the National Assembly demanding that a commission be established in order to investigate the reasons for increasing violence and fanaticism among the youth; his proposal was accepted.
Following his resignation from the party membership, Livaneli continued in his position in the Grand National Assembly as an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
until the end of that term. He did not take part in the 2007 Turkish elections and appears politically inactive. He has since concentrated on his art, novels, and daily column.
Livaneli is a daily contributor as a columnist in the newspaper Vatan
Vatan
Vatan is a Turkish daily newspaper.A newspaper in Turkey founded in 2002, it is increasingly becoming one of the most popular.As of March 2011, Vatan newspaper had the 15th highest circulation in Turkey at 111,489....
.
Films
Livaneli directed four feature films: Iron Earth, Copper Sky, Mist, Shahmaran and VedaVeda (film)
Veda is a 2010 Turkish biographical film, written and directed by Zülfü Livaneli based on the memoirs of Salih Bozok, which traces the life of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk...
. His film Iron Earth, Copper Sky
Iron Earth, Copper Sky
Iron Earth, Copper Sky is a 1987 German-Turkish drama film, written, produced and directed by Zülfü Livaneli based on the novel of the same name by Yaşar Kemal, featuring Rutkay Aziz as a simple villager elevated to sainthood status while still alive...
was screened in the Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's Official Selection. It is run at the Salle Debussy, parallel to the competition for the Palme d'Or.This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob...
section at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival
1987 Cannes Film Festival
- Jury :*Yves Montand*Danièle Heymann*Elem Klimov*Gérald Calderon*Jeremy Thomas*Jerzy Skolimowski*Nicola Piovani*Norman Mailer*Theo Angelopoulos-Feature film competition:...
. Veda
Veda (film)
Veda is a 2010 Turkish biographical film, written and directed by Zülfü Livaneli based on the memoirs of Salih Bozok, which traces the life of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk...
that based on the life of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....
is the last film written and directed by Zülfü Livaneli.
One of the most acclaimed Turkish films of the decade – and one of the first narrative films to tackle the highly charged subject of honor killings – Bliss
Mutluluk
Mutluluk is a 2007 Turkish film directed by Abdullah Oğuz, and starring Özgü Namal, Talat Bulut, and Murat Han. It was chosen to open the 2007 Asian Film Festival in Mumbai and the 2007 Medfilm Festival in Rome...
was originally adopted from Livaneli's best-seller novel. The film, reviewed by New York Times as a consistently gripping, visually intoxicating film and standing as a landmark of contemporary Turkish cinema.
Partial discography
- Chants Révolutionnaires Turcs - 1973
- Eşkıya Dünyaya Hükümdar Olmaz - 1975
- Merhaba - 1977
- Nazım Türküsü - 1978
- The Bus (OST) - 1978
- Alamanya Beyleri - 1979
- Atlının Türküsü - 1979
- Günlerimiz – 1980
- İnce Memet Türküsü – 1980
- Maria Farandouri Livaneli Söylüyor – 1982
- Yol (Soundtrack) – 1983
- Eine Auswahl – 1983
- Ada – 1983
- İstanbul Konseri (Concert) – 1984
- Güneş Topla Benim İçinGünes Topla Benim IçinGüneş Topla Benim İçin, name of an album and a song of Zülfü Livaneli. Composer of the song is himself. Lyrics have written by Ülkü Tamer.-Partial translation of the lyrics:Collect Sun For MeCome up to mountains, the dawn windCollect sun for me...
– 1985 - Livaneli / 10 Yılın Ezgisi – 1986
- Zor Yıllar – 1986
- Hoşgeldin Bebek – 1986
- Gökyüzü Herkesindir – 1987
- Soundtracks – 1988
- Crossroads (New AgeNew AgeThe New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
) – 1990 - Saat 4 Yoksun – 1993
- Neylersin – 1995
- Yangın Yeri – 1996
- Janus (Symphonic Poems) – 1996
- Livaneli & Theodorakis : Together – 1997
- Efsane Konserler – 1997
- Nefesim Nefesine – 1998
- New Age Rhapsody , London Symphony Orchestra Plays Livaneli - 1999
- Unutulmayanlar – 1999
- İlk Türküler – 2001
- Hayata Dair - 2005