Show of Hands Festival was originally ideated by the Iranian composer/producer Ramin Sadighi who was Founder and CEO of Hermes Records. Its first three editions (2017-2019) took place in Teheran before the pandemic took hold, with a roster of international guest musicians, many of them associated with the ECM label.
Post-pandemic – and also in response to the worsened political situation in Iran – Sadighi floated an idea to Kerim Selçuk – an experienced producer and organizer, who currently co-runs the AK Muzik label and the Opus3a record shop – that the event could be moved to Istanbul. Kerim not only loved the idea but also found a supporter in Melih Fereli, who was director of the prestigious Arter art centre, newly opened in Dolapdere, a densely populated Istanbul neighbourhood slightly off the beaten track.
So, in 2023, the second series of the festival in Istanbul began, and in April 2025 the 6th edition took place despite the recent deterioration of the political situation in the city, which is still reeling from the arrest of its very popular mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, and from the earthquake that shook the city the day of the festival opening, forcing the organizers to re-arrange the program due to cancellations by some of the guests.
The megalopolis by the Bosphorus, with an official number for its population of 16 million,is a major centre of international business and travel, not to mention the ever-increasing quantity of tourists visiting its vast heritage.
Istanbul has two major jazz festivals each year, one in July and one in September. It has two very active clubs in the Beyoglu area (Nardis and Bova). The main concert hall regularly presents jazz concerts, and while the jazz-alternative music scene has been chased away from the more touristic centre, on the Asian side in the Yeldegirmeni neighbourhood one finds excellent food and art galleries with experimental music.
The 2025 SOH festival included two sets each evening (solos and duos), artists’ talks, panel discussion and the showing of !Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda”, the 2017 documentary film directed by Stephen Nomura Schible. The panels discussed many issues of today’s musical life, from distribution of recordings to the impact of AI, with international experts; the rather sparse attendance of these events possibly points to a need for closer collaboration with conservatories and the local improvising scene whose absence from these proceedings was noticeable and to be regretted. This does need to be looked at and other ideas put into practice.
On the opening night Iranian clarinettist and bass clarinettist Soheil Peyghambari presented an evocative set with a judicious usage of electronics, a fresh set of ideas where some flashes recalled memories of Iran traditional phrasing. Solo performance is of course a serious challenge for wind players, but Peyghambari’s starting material had a lot of variety and was also well organized into a succession of soundscapes that kept the interest of the listeners alive. Büşra Kayıkçı is an experienced sound artist, who also studied architecture and whose projects often mix everyday sounds with soft melodies and ostinatos: in her most recent project Weaving the rhythm
of the real looms mixed with the piano programmatically evokes the women’s stories weaved in the textiles. In the SOH set, birdsong and voices echoing in the Jerusalem Mosque were mixed with prepared piano
sounds but more dynamic variety was needed, and the continuous operation of the electronics seemed to impede the flow of the music.
Dutch jazz and improvised music Han Bennink, 83, performed with another bassclarinetist, Joris Roelofs, in an irresistible set that included Misha Mengelberg compositions as well as originals, with Bennink showcasing undiminished energy, indomitable swing, and his trademark humour. His artist’s chat with the audience ranged from Fluxus to Italian cycling, from exhilarating tales about life in music to the history of European Free Improvisation. It was a joy to witness.
The Dutch duo was a tough act to follow but French pianist François Couturier successfully managed to create his own acoustic soundworld, with carefully chosen sounds, use of silence, and small fragmented melodies moving across the range of the keyboard.
All things considered, the top concert of the festival for me was the duo set by two more Frenchmen the following day: Michel Godard on Tuba and serpent with Louis Sclavis on clarinet and bass clarinet. Experienced but full of energy, these two are absolutely at the top of their game, tossing out idea after idea with total ease and confidence. Sclavis does not need any electronics to coax the instrument to create altissimo range, percussive as well as lovely rounded colours from his woodwinds, while Godard alternated between the arcane timbres of serpent to an uncanny agility on the tuba. Humour, invention, back and forth conversation between two masters of their trade who are still on the edge of exploration.
Håkon Kornstad on tenor saxophone used an ancient loopstation to create polyphonic soundscapes on top of which he placed not only his horn lines but also his cultivated operatic voice. His rendition of a Norwegian lied by Edvard Grieg was sheer emotion, and for a skilled instrumentalist to show himself on stage with his naked voice is a true act of courage and honesty with the audience.
Due to the cancellations and thanks to the exquisite availability of the musicians, the final night saw a percussion/electronic solo by Berke Can Özcan followed by his duo with Håkon Kornstad. Berke used recorded conversation and sounds in a dialogue with his flowing, rich drumming, but again at some times the electronics seemed to be an obstacle more than a help to the flow of improvisation; the totally improvised duo – they never even met before – was an act of mutual exploration and had some very successful moments, as well as the expected stumbling here and there.
Sadighi and Selçuk are to be congratulated for having overcome the additional hurdles – organizing such a festival in Istanbul is not an easy task to begin with, and the political and geological earthquakes made things even more complicated this year. Here’s to many more editions of this extremely valuable addition to the Istanbul contemporary music scene.
Francesco Martinelli was a guest of the festival, and also chaired one of the roundtables.
One Response
Francesco Martinelli has responded to a criticism: part of his original text has been interpreted as a wish on his part to criticise some of the audience.
He wishes to point out that this was not his intention at all, but has sent me an edited text, in order that the confusion can be lifted.