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The 2011-2012 World Music & Dance Series presents...

Turkish Music & Dance

Sunday - Tuesday, February 12-14, 2012
Concert and three Dance Workshops
Harrisburg

Ahmet Lüleci

Ahmet Lüleci

Hasan Isakkut

Hasan Isakkut

Collage Dance Ensemble - Balkan Blues
on vimeo from Ahmet Lüleci.

Presented in cooperation with the Capital Area Folk Dancers, the Unitarian Church of Harrisburg, and World Dance Lancaster.

Ahmet Lüleci's appearance is made possible in part by American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius, a major initiative to acquaint Americans with the best of their cultural and artistic legacy. It is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

This multi-day event features a return visit from Boston-based Ahmet Lüleci, joined by kanunist/violinist Hasan Isakkut and his ensemble.

Details below:
Concert/Workshop
Intermediate Turkish Dance Workshops
Turkish Choreography Workshop

Ticket Info:

  • Prices vary.

    See individual sessions below.
  • SFMS Member discount on most events.

    SFMS Members Save!
  • Admission is at the door. No advance registration required.
  • For more information, call Bart at 717-234-3844
    or email bart.carpenter (at) sfmsfolk.org

Concert & Workshop

Sunday, February 12 — 2:00pm — UCH City Campus

Unitarian Church of Harrisburg
1508 Market Street (at 16th St), Harrisburg, PA 17103 Directions

A matinée concert of traditional Turkish music and Middle Eastern jazz by Hasan Isakkut Ensemble, followed by basic Turkish dancing with instruction by Ahmet Lüleci. Appropriate for all levels.

  • $10 General Admission

Intermediate Turkish Dance Workshops

Turkish folk dance for intermediate-level dancers.

  • Sunday, February 12 — 6:30pm — The Movement Center

    2134 N Second St, Harrisburg, PA 17110 Directions

  • Monday, February 13 — 7:00pm — Mulberry Art Studios

    21 N Mulberry St, Lancaster, PA 17603 Directions

  • Each Class $16 General Admission

    , $12 SFMS Members, $10 Students (to age 22)

Turkish Choreography Workshop

Tuesday, February 14 — 7:30pm — The Movement Center

2134 N Second St, Harrisburg, PA 17110 Directions

The evening will focus on the "Fanny" segment of Ahmet's "Balkan Blues" choreography (see video). Prior dance experience is required. Participants will also receive an MPG file of the dance itself.

  • $25 General Admission

    , $20 SFMS Members, $10 Spectators and Students (to age 22)

About Ahmet Lüleci

Turkish-born folklorist Ahmet Lüleci is an accomplished dance teacher, choreographer and performer. From 1980 to 1985, he served as dance director for Hoy-Tur, a 24-person music and dance ensemble long considered one of Turkey’s finest. Since 1985 he has worked in the U.S. with major dance ensembles, including Aman (Los Angeles), Brigham Young University International Folk Dance Ensemble (Provo), Mandala (Boston), Les Sortilèges (Montréal), and Vinok (Edmonton).

Currently he is artistic director of Boston-based Collage International Dance Ensemble. Working with Collage, he has won several awards in this country and abroad. The Boston Globe said:

The internationally acclaimed Collage is a hard act to follow. Under the visionary leadership of Ahmet Lüleci, the company’s choreography infuses traditional movement with contemporary flair, and the first-rate dancers perform with vibrant energy, impressive precision, and heart. In the rousing "Eastern Tides," fusing dances from Spain, Hungary and Turkey, the dancers' terrific technical facility shone not only in the crisp footwork of high kicks and swivels, but also in seamless glides, gentle hop turns, and deep bends, arms stretching upward to the sky.

Lüleci gives the moving "Balkan Blues" a theatrical context, with dancers gathering as a community for a wake. He fluidly melds dance styles from different traditions while evoking a sense of ritual mourning and celebration.

Learn more about Ahmet and about Turkey — including folk dance traditions, musical styles and instruments, history and culture — at Ahmet’s fascinating website.

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Funding Acknowledgments

logos: Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Cultural Alliance of York County logo: National Endowment for the Arts

The Susquehanna Folk Music Society (SFMS) is supported by our members and many generous organizations.

Funding is provided by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, administered locally by the Cultural Alliance of York County.

Additional funding comes from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

logo: National Endowment for the Arts logo: Pennsylvania Council on the Arts logo: CUltural Alliance of York County