Sonia Tamar Seeman

She graduated from İstanbul Technical University Turkish Music State Conservatory Department of Instrument Training, specializing in Kanun in 1986. During her music education in this institution she studied Kanun with pioneer of Kanun Prof. Erol Deran. Between 1986 and 1989 she studied harp with Uğurtan Aksel, a prominent member of Istanbul Symphony Orchestra, and applied some harp playing techniques to her own instrument Kanun. In 1988 she received her Masters degree in Turkish Art Music from ITU Institute of Social Sciences, her thesis topic was "Practice and performance of Kanun with eight fingers".

In 1994 she completed her DMA thesis of "Analysis of Sultan Selim III. period with respect to music and the musicians. During 1987 and 1988 she became a member of Turkish Music Ensemble of Ministry of Cultural Affairs. In this ensemble she had the opportunity of working with prominent musicians. Between 1991 and 1993 she established "Lale Ensemble", a women's group and given a series of concerts in England and in Turkey. Since 1993 she has been invited regularly by New England Conservatory of Boston to conduct workshops, summer schools and teach classes about the Ottoman and Turkish music. She has also given lectures and participated in seminars at the Harvard University, Berkley Collage of Music, Tufts University, MIT, University of Massachusetts, Northeastern University, Princton University, Hunter Collage University of Chicago, Arabic music Retreat with Simon Shaheen and Bologna University

in Italy, Higher Music Institute in Damascus. 1995, she has been attended Historical Harp Society, SEM, BFE, ICTM, MEHAT, MESA, AMIS conferences. In 1996 she performed at Killian Hall of M.I.T Ağa Han Program, in a concert of Turkish music. She also performed with “Eurasia Ensemble” and “Romeiko Ensemble” She performed with Ud player Mehmet Emin Bitmez in Darül’Esad Opera House in Damascus. She established a group named “Cantemir Ensemble” and made two CDs for Yalçın Tura’s book titeled "Kantemiroğlu Edvarı" published by Yapı Kredi Kültür Sanat Yayınları. In 1999, As Visiting Scholar at Harvard University Center for Middle East Studies she worked on a project with History Prof. Dr Cemal Kafadar. Topics of this research were; “the cultural manifestations affecting musical life in the Ottoman Empire especially during the emergence of the empire and just after the conquest of Constantinople by Mehmet II.”, and musical instruments of Middle East and Central Asia, North India. Since 1986 she has been teaching Kanun performance at the Instrument Training Department at ITU State Conservatory of Turkish Music. 1994 she started to teach musicology, ethnomusicology, systematic Musicology, organology, music history, world music cultures, seminar. She also teaches Ottoman-Turkish Music, Music in Turkey, Music and Gender, Music in Mediterranean Cultures at ITU Social Science Institute Dr. Erol Üçer Center for Advance Studies in Music. Her approach to music education and performance of Kanun is highly influenced by Tanburi Cemil Bey and by her teachers Niyazi Sayın, İhsan Özgen and Erol Deran.

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