Musician Jülide Yalçın will give a special concert at AKM for International Women's Day: 'My priority is my country'

You will be performing as a soloist in a special concert for International Women's Day on March 7. Can you tell us about the content and details of the concert?

This concert has two special features. March 7, 2025, coincides with the 150th anniversary of the birth of French composer Maurice Ravel. Therefore, I will be performing M. Ravel's Tzigane in the concert. The theme is women, as March 8 is International Women's Day. The conductor of the concert is Michal Nesterowicz. I dedicate this concert to the memory of our state artists, great violin virtuosos Suna Kan and Ayla Erduran, whom we lost recently. I am the first female concertmaster (chief violinist) of the Presidential Symphony Orchestra, the first official orchestra of Turkey. It is not easy to be a woman and struggle, no matter what the platform.

March 8th is a day for me to remember my determination in my life and art as a woman and a violinist in these struggles. I want to feel it inside me as a day when the women of the world and the Turkish women are reminded of the value that Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and the Republic of Turkey give me.

A LIFE DEDICATED TO MUSIC…

You represented our country at the 79th United Nations gala night not too long ago. Could you share that process, the concert, your feelings and thoughts with us?

I graduated from Hacettepe Ankara State Conservatory with honors. I worked with very famous violin teachers in France and Germany through cultural collaboration. Jean Estournet, Veronique Riou in France. Wilhelm Melcher, Rainer Kussmaul in Germany. I completed my master's degree with our state artist Suna Kan at Bilkent University with a full scholarship upon the special request of İhsan Doğramacı. I started working in the Presidential Symphony Orchestra and later became the first female principal violinist of this orchestra. I completed my art proficiency and artist diploma with Eric Rosenblith, the world's most famous violin pedagogue and a student of Carl Flesch, at the New England Conservatory in the USA. I have worked with many important artists such as Seiji Ozawa, Bernard Haitink, Yo-Yo Ma, Steven Isserlis, Michael Tilson Thomas, Leon Fleisher, Ligeti, Herman Weiss, John Tavener, Eugene Lehler, Louis Krasner, Benjamin Zander, or more precisely, with the most important conductors, soloists and composers of the 20th century.

After my education, I kept my promise to my father upon his sudden death and his greatest wish: to go and study, learn, and come and serve your country.

MUSIC ABROAD

So you didn't choose to stay abroad. How did your journey here progress?

If I had stayed there instead of accepting many job offers in the USA and Germany, I would have had a different and more interesting career. However, I wanted to offer my knowledge to my country and I returned. When I returned, I was offered a position as a soloist by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. However, I did not accept the position as a soloist, I preferred to be an orchestra member. Of course, my teachers and friends in America did not forget me during this whole process. My nickname at school was the Turkish violinist. When I went to a concert at the United Nations General Assembly, I stopped by my school and everyone said that a Turkish violinist had come, and we got together with many of my friends and teachers. Of course, such a great past is not forgotten there. The name Jülide Yalçın is a special name in many institutions and organizations in America. This invitation did not surprise me, but what made me proud the most was that in my concert career, only a Turkish artist performed the opening ceremony at the 79th anniversary gala night of the United Nations, right after the speech of the United Nations president. The fact that my name was mentioned there as a Turkish violinist made me very proud on behalf of my country. Can you imagine, a violinist appears before representatives from all over the world and the fact that this person is Turkish represents Turkey's stance. Believe me, if another Turkish artist played there instead of me, I would have felt the same pride. That's why I'm so happy. Otherwise, I go to America for many important concerts and I don't have to worry about announcing them in the press. The main thing is that a Turkish violinist plays there in front of the eyes of the world, that's enough for me. Also, it was a great pleasure for me to be accepted to this special night where many famous artists took part in Carnegie Hall and Stern Auditorium, which are considered to be among the best concert halls in the world and where I've played many times before.

DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL CONCERTS

Do you have any new projects?

There are concert offers from America next year. This summer I have been invited to teach at a two-week international festival in Italy where the world's most important artists will participate. In the past few years I have received offers from well-established orchestras in Europe as a principal violinist, but my current priority is the Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra, where I work. I am the first principal violinist of this orchestra. Istanbul is one of the world's most important orchestras, and as long as I do not neglect my duties, I try to go to these concerts and continue my work. My priority is my country.