Yağmur Şimşek- Echoes of Anatolia: works by Ravel, Saygun, Bartok, and Fazıl Say
Pianist Yağmur Şimşek explores the vivid intersections of European and
Anatolian folk traditions through this programme; from Béla Bartók’s Hungarian folk songs and Ahmet Adnan Saygun’s field research into Anatolian melodies, to Fazıl Say’s contemporary reimaginings of Turkish folk music, this repertoire traces how cultural roots continue to inspire new musical languages. Maurice Ravel’s Sonatine, with its fairytale-like soundworld and the rhythmic vitality of his Basque heritage, combined with Scarlatti’s Spanish guitar–like textures, adds a radiant Mediterranean dimension to the programme.
Born in Istanbul in 1999, Turkish-Cypriot pianist Yağmur Şimşek began her musical studies at the age of four. She entered the Piano Department of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University State Conservatory in 2007, first as a part-time student before continuing full-time through secondary school, high school, and undergraduate studies.
She furthered her education through the Erasmus exchange programme at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia in Rome with Margherita Traversa, and has participated in masterclasses with distinguished artists including İdil Biret, Arnulf von Arnim, Gülsin Onay, Pascal Devoyon, David Kuyken, Gabriel Kwok, and Steven Osborne.
In 2021, Yağmur was admitted to ArtEZ Conservatoire, where she completed her master’s degree with Frank van de Laar. She later pursued the Artist Diploma at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, studying with Martin Roscoe and Fali Pavri, and graduated in 2025. Yağmur has performed solo and chamber music across Turkey, Cyprus, Italy, Austria, France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Equally devoted to solo and collaborative repertoire, she seeks to enrich her musical expression through her interests in musicology, philosophy, and art history, bringing a wider artistic and intellectual perspective to her performances.
Repertoire
Ahmet Adnan Saygun- From Anatolia, Op. 25 (1945)
Béla Bartók- 3 Hungarian Folk Songs from Csìk, Sz. 35a (1907)
Maurice Ravel- Sonatine, M. 40 (1907)
Domenico Scarlatti- Keyboard Sonata K. 27 (1738)
Béla Bartók - Selection from Improvisations on Hungarian Peasant Songs, Op. 20, Sz. 74, BB 83
(1920)
Fazıl Say- Black Earth, Op. 8 (1997)
Ahmet Adnan Saygun- Sonatina, Op. 15 (1938)