In the next istanbulberlin Route;Case File I

In the next istanbulberlin Route;

• Case File I: The ’61-90 Era: Meanwhile in a Parallel Universe. Feature I: ın the words of contemporary folk bards, the Predicament of Germany’s "Guest Workers": In the first article of our case file on the ’61-90 era, from 1961 to the fall of the Berlin Wall, we’ll ease into a wide-angle perspective on the music market of Germany’s “Imagined Turkey”. The work conditions and lives of contemporary bards are channelled through the #gastarbeitergroove - that is, guest worker grooves. Also included in the feature; the women stars of the day and wedding performers that transformed into disco folk the folk music familiar to all of us.
• Gurbette Esen Yeller: “Weddings Were the First Step Towards Settling in Germany for Good”: Even the name of the Gurbette Esen Yeller trio, meaning the Winds of Gurbet, suffices to explain their position. Two brothers from a family who migrated to Germany in the 70’s to work played at a wedding for the first time in 1983, accompanied by a friend. Comprised today of Hüseyin Sarıcı, Onur Olgun and Ender Sarıcı, Gurbette Esen Yeller got together with us on a holiday in a video call, and we discussed their story starting with that first wedding to span nearly four decades, their music encompassing both authentic folk music and disco folk, and what weddings mean to the estranged and homesick.

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Best wishes from Istanbul,

Sedef İlgiç