THE SUFI CEREMONY OF RUMI

Sufi Music Concert and a Whirling Dervish Performance

INVITE:

Music at St. Paul’s and Middle East Institute present:

THE SUFI CEREMONY OF RUMI:

Sufi Music Concert and a Whirling Dervish Performance

by Ahmet Erdogdular Ensemble

Tuesday March 24th 2009 at 6:00pm

ST. PAUL’S CHAPEL

Located on 117th Street and Amsterdam Avenue

Columbia University, New York, NY

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

The Ottoman Mevlevi Sufi order of Mevlana Jelaleddin Rumi has over the centuries developed a sophisticated ceremony that integrated compositions on Rumi’s poetry with specific symbolic movements. A unique symphony accompanied by the remembrance ceremony of the

whirling dervishes comprises the Ayin, reenacting the divine message of unity.

AHMET ERDOGDULAR started studying music at an early age with his father, neyzen Ömer Erdoğdular, and continued his musical development with the guidance of the renowned musicians Niyazi Sayın, Necdet Yasar, Kani Karaca and Alaettin Yavasca. He participated in various concerts as a lead singer while still a teenager. Ahmet completed his Master’s degree in Turkish Classical Music at the Istanbul Technical University State Conservatory specializing in voice improvisation technique. Studying the great masters, Ahmet learned Ottoman Turkish

classical singing and the ways in which poetry is matched to the music so that the literary substance and the musical composition are equally represented when performing vocal improvisation. He also studied and performs Sufi musical repertoire that over centuries integrated spiritual practice and artistic expression. Ahmet participated in various festivals in Europe, Asia and the Untied States and gave lectures, seminars and taught workshops on singing and music theory. He recorded a number of music TV and radio program series as well as CD albums. In addition to his career as a vocal soloist, Ahmet  also plays tanbur, oud and percussion. He is currently a visiting scholar at Columbia University.  www.ahmeterdogdular.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJIofU-0jC0