 The formerly divided German capital is special in many ways. For example, Berlin provides a remarkable example of the coexistence of different international cultures, among other things with its the annual, colorful parade "Carnival of Cultures". Among other things, the reason for this lies in the high share of Turks and people of Turkish origin, who enjoy living in Berlin. Defne Sahin is one of these Berliners. Luckily, Defne Sahin does not limit herself on her debut album Yasamak to exploring the apparently logical points of contact between two cultures. Instead, she proves that she is really multicultural against the background of her home town. Whoever fears another world music project called "Türkiye meets Germany" can rest at ease. The music is more a pleasant mixture of jazz and pop, spiced with oriental sounds and rhythms as well as a touch of Bossa Nova. However, the musical rapprochement of cultures is only one side of the coin. In the beginning, there was the word. This can remain so, because the singer with Turkish roots, who lives in Berlin, used the poems of one of the most important Turkish poets on this album. Still, it is difficult to classify Nâzim Hikmet solely as part of Turkish cultural heritage, since Turkey in its present form was only founded in 1923 when Hikmet was already an adult. Hikmet was born in the Greek city of Thessaloniki in 1901 or 1902 and grew up in Syrian Aleppo and in Diarbarkir. He remained attached to his native place his whole life, although he was expatriated due to his active membership in the forbidden communist party, among other things, and consequently lived many years in Moscow, i.e., until his death in 1963. The lyrics of Yasamak, the title song, correspond to the last verse of Hikmet's famous poem Davet: "To live like a tree in solitude and free and like a forest in solidarity, this yearning is ours." However, you hear this and all lyrics on the CD in Turkish. Defne proves with this how beautiful this language can sound, especially with her strong but touching voice, which clothes Hikmet's words in fine vestments, so that wonderful creations become recognizable, even for those who do not understand the language. Defne Sahin studied at Berlin University of Art and at Escola Superior de Música in Barcelona. She took lessons from David Friedman, Judy Niemack and Carme Canela. She had additional encounters, which influenced her, with Theo Bleckmann, Jay Clayton and Lauren Newton. She received a scholarship from the Heinrich Böll Foundation during her studies. Matti Klein also studied in Berlin at the Jazz Institute there. He is a musician much in demand as pianist, and he is responsible for the special sound of the band Mo´Blow (ACT) playing Fender Rhodes. Ofer Wetzler on bass is responsible for the foundation, on which the musical structure rests. Born in Israel in 1983, he has lived in Berlin since 2006 and also studied at the Jazz Institute there. He plays in several bands with various styles, and this openness can be heard clearly on these recordings. Lucia Martínez from Galicia – she also studied at the Berlin Jazz Institute and lives in Berlin – is part of the still rare species of "female drummers." She has already proven her sensitive skill and fantastic technique in her band "Azulcielo", and she provides uncanny precision and rhythmic fantasy on Yasamak.
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