Mukaiyama rekindles Japanese-Turkish friendship through music

The two events that became a musical inspiration took place 120 and 25 years ago, respectively. Both drew the people of Turkey and Japan closer together. The famous Ertuğrul Frigate, while headed towards Japan under the directive of Sultan Abdülhamid II, sank close to the Japanese city of Kushimoto. In the second event, Turkey rescued 215 Japanese nationals who were stranded in a Tehran airport during the Iran-Iraq war. The two stories, which laid the groundwork for Japanese-Turkish friendship, serve as a strong loyalty pact between the two lands. This pact will further be solidified through an upcoming concert.

A multi-note project: ‘Friendship’

Japanese composer and orchestra conductor Seiji Mukaiyama has created musical pieces inspired by these very important events in Turkish-Japanese history. He titled his work “Friendship.”

The project comprises two songs. Mukaiyama has titled his composition inspired by the Tehran event “By a fraction of an inch,” while the other is eponymous, titled, “Ertuğrul’s journey.” His greatest desire is for people to become aware of the historical background that inspired these pieces.

The Japanese musician unveiled his compositions with the Tokyo orchestra recently and is now preparing to take to the stage in Turkey. The first concert is set to take place on Sept. 23 in Mersin, a sister city of Kushimoto. The Japanese Philharmonic Orchestra will follow suit and take to the stage in Ankara on Sept. 25. Mukaiyama and his orchestra will perform one last time on Sept. 27 in İstanbul. Mukaiyama, who says he had no previous knowledge of the history that inspired him to create his works, says he gained a wealth of knowledge through books of writer-journalists Erdal Güven, including “Ertuğrul’un Hüzün Gemisi,” (Ertuğrul’s Ship of Sorrow) and “Tahran’dan Kaçış” (Escape from Tehran), both of which have been translated into Japanese.

Mukaiyama, who shares with his listeners two historical tales featuring different groups of people and venues, is actually a businessman. He began composing songs 12 years ago. One of the reasons that pushed him to compose music was that he lived in Kushimoto. There are many memorials in Kushimoto recalling the capsizing of the Ertuğrul Frigate. The composer says he is inspired by nature, humans and history while creating his works. “By the fraction of a second,” a symphonic suite, and his second piece “Ertuğrul’s journey” are both inspired by tradition Turkish music forms. “Percussion and wind instruments are in the forefront in the piece that was inspired by the Ertuğrul Frigate. Because I’m so moved by the Janissary band, many parts of the song contain similar melodies,” Mukaiyama explains. It also contains melodies from the Turkish folk song “Yemen’den Kaçış” (Escape from Yemen). And despite his claims that he “intentionally refrained from using traditional Japanese music,” Japanese melodies make up the core of this piece.

Some images accompanying the music -- so that the listener can become part of this historical narrative -- have also been prepared. “Our concert will not comprise music alone. Music and images will accompany each other,” says the Japanese musician, who notes that the images that were shot for his song will be playing on a large screen during his concert.

‘My compositions are like pyramids’