Psychologist DJ Cenk Erdem offers songs that heal

A graduate of Boğaziçi University's department of psychology and guidance and psychological counseling, Erdem has been active in the music sector as a DJ for the last decade. Having worked as a DJ since turning 17, he did not stop even during his time at the university, performing on many radio programs. “While my friends studied, I was presenting Sting and Madonna,” Erdem told Today's Zaman in an interview.

After completing graduate studies at Bilgi University's department of cinema-TV, Erdem worked at the oncology unit of the Cerrahpaşa Children's Clinic for four years. “It was a period of social support during which I [helped] children and shared their feelings [through] games.” Erdem continued to host radio programs during this time. “The children wanted songs from me in the evenings,” says Erdem. “I was in fact combining music with psychology.”

 In 2004, he was sent by the hospital to the Texas Children's Hospital in the US to receive training in game therapy. “I continued working with children with cancer when I returned,” explains Erdem, “but there were so many losses that I could no longer bear it. And so I left the hospital.”

“At the beginning, I had no intention of making something like this, but I saw that music and psychology are always intertwined,” Erdem notes. “I can observe the [emotions and reactions of the] audience. Besides, music is also a means of relaxation for me, too.”

What voice heals what?

Erdem says he's not a composer but a psychologist. He is a good observer and thus can choose good voices or good music for people to feel better. “The Turkish tradition, the Islamic tradition and the Western tradition all use beautiful voices to heal people,” Erdem explained. “I specifically took beautiful voices into consideration. I tried to bring together these voices. I wanted people to feel good while they listened to songs, like quenching [their thirst with] herbal tea. I thought, how can I adapt methods we use in clinics to songs? For example, if you are using the encounter method, we can listen to songs which have lyrics recounting an encounter. Or if you are using group therapy for people to share their problems, you can listen to songs which share your feelings in this sense.”

Erdem also tried to establish a theoretical background for his album. “According to the psychodynamic theory, the happiest period of a human being is the period when he is in the womb. Since we are subject to the sound of the heart beating during this period, swinging songs make us feel better. That's why the last song of the album is of that kind.” Erdem also made an observation about being misunderstood. “This is never a recipe. This album is only a work in which a psychologist offers songs that can have a positive influence.”

Erdem, however, warns that although there are beautiful voices out there, there are also bad ones. “There are very bad voices,” Erdem says, “and, as a nation we get used to these people, who have voices like space mice, and forget the others. People say these singers entertain them, but we don't need to bear these voices to be entertained.”

“[Emotional] songs are good,” Erdem says, speaking of the depressing songs that are quite popular in Turkey. “If you don't listen to anything else, these songs will depress you, but it's good to listen to them sometimes because they share your problems. Though there is no good in listening to songs that lead us to cut ourselves,” Erdem notes. “Doing so will only make the line at the Bosporus Bridge [to commit suicide] even longer!”

Erdem is not the only one to see this power of music. “There are now ‘relaxation albums' on the market that feature sounds of nature. These albums are prepared in accordance with the psychodynamic theory and use the curing character of the sound of water, for example,” Erdem says. “But if I listen to the sounds of whales and birds, I get upset, so I personally prefer a nice song sung by a singer with a beautiful voice.”

Erdem is quite content about the feedback he has received on his album. “The album now tops the best-seller list of compilation albums,” he says. “As for criticism, the only criticism is about Amy Winehouse; namely, that she is a psychological mess. But ... the album doesn't focus on the singers' [lives]. It focuses on their voices.” Speaking about Winehouse, Erdem says, “While requesting permission from artists to include their songs, one of the first to respond was Winehouse.”

Erdem intends to continue working on this project. “I'm thinking of including Turkish songs and trying to choose nice ones with unforgettable vocals. Among those being considered are ‘Haram Geceler' by Nilüfer, ‘Rüzgar' by Leman Sam and ‘Gülümse' by Sezen Aksu. I want to compile an album of singers with good voices, of singers who make us dance, not crow-voiced singers who make people stomp and jump.” But this is as much as he's willing to say. “As [Mevlana Jelaluddin] Rumi says, hide the seeds in the ground and let them shoot forth in spring; otherwise, they will wither,” he adds.

The album also has a special meaning for Erdem's family. “My brother Can prepared the album's cover in Canada. I told him about the album and he drew this. The two of us dedicated the album to our aunt Semiha, whom we lost very early. So, seeing my family happy about this album is much more important than selling it.”