FERİD DEMİREL

İSTANBUL (DİHA) - Koma Gulê Xerzan is uttering to their fans with a new album 'Rûkena Min (My Cheerful)' they released 7 years after 'Ji Bîr Nabe (Unforgettable)' and 'Sonda Me (Our Promise)' albums. They are loyal to troubadourship tradition and harmonize it with contemporary sounds and instruments; hence, attempt to reveal the rhythm and melody in the line of legendary Kurdish troubadours. Album 'Rûkena Min' involves 15 songs including a mixture of Sorani and Kheldani and an Armenian composition.

The 3rd album of Koma Gulê Xerzan, a band working under the roof of the Mesopotamia Culture Center (MKM), has been released after a long wait of 7 years, which they think no singer or artist would desire to keep away for 7 years from their society. 'Rûkena Min (My Cheerful)' seems to be a production of a more professional endeavor and dragged the band into the field of arrangement. Koma Gulê Xerzan's member Alaettin has arranged the new album and contributed to it with his 4 compositions. All members of the group think that the 3rd release has a number of novelties and will bring Kurdish music to new artistic styles, answering DIHA's questions.

* You have returned the world of music with "Rûkena Min" that was released 7 years after the 2nd album. Is a period of 7 years not too long for a band?

Rojda: It seems to be like a life span too long, but this length of time did not only depend upon us. There were some economical problems besides our will to think about the new performance. The artist keeps him/her alive with art, songs and albums. We would not want to keep away from the realm of music for 7 years.

*What have you been doing along that time?

Rojda: We had a go on the 3rd release and did some research over the regions from which our melodies would be chosen. Moreover, we studied on arts and culture from time to time and tried to spend 7 years productively. Each of us worked his field of profession; I composed my own songs, Çiya worked on regional songs, Alettin arranged our melodies.

* How did the concept of album form?

Alaettin: Besides the troubadours' songs, we have 4 compositions out of 15 and used digital rhythms. What is crucial in troubadours' songs is harmony.

Çiya: Love, heart and heroism determined the center in selecting the songs. We prepared a compilation with wide content songs; We created an album just we have wanted.

*Did you sing the song "Rûkena Min", which named the 3rd release, for Poet Hogir? What meaning does Poet Hogir express for you?

Rojda: We and Poet Hogir were friends. I feel indebted to him as well as appreciating the great troubadour for his unique art. I eat my heart out when he died. Song "Rûkena Min" uncovers what I feel for him. I wrote and composed it 4 years ago. Poet Hogir used to laugh much along his life and that was the reason why called the 3rd release 'Rûkena Min (My Cheerful)'; so, we dedicated this song and albume to him.

*What made you choose Sorani-Kheldani and Armenian songs?

Rojda: While we were carrying on the album, said altogether 'let's search some songs in other languages. After making a great deal of search on ethnic songs, we chose this Sorani-Kheldani melody "Seltene" recited with a wonder sound of a crooner. We liked it much when listening to it first, but did not in which language it is chanted. One of my friend told it had been a mixtures of Sorani and Kheldani languages. I studied on it more that a year. And we listened to "Nino", an Armenian song when we went to Armenia to perform a concert. We decided to involve it in the album. We selected these to quite emotional songs, which added a different colour and taste to the new release.

*Meanwhile, you made two videos. For which songs did you make them?

Çiya: We put two chants "Elo Dino" and "Memet Kani" forward in "Rûkena Min". The first is from the vicinity of Botan and the latter of Yerevan. We decided on making videos for this 2 and completed them with the help of Cizre Municipality. The 2 videos were sent to a number of local TV stations in the region and have been broadcast for a week. It will also be broadcast in the south, so will on Roj TV.

*Have you sent them to national TV stations in Turkey?

Çiya: We are going to do. We do not whether they are authorized to air the videos or not, and some of them demand too much money; yet, we are going to send all of them nonetheless.

Rojda: This is not related only to economy, depends upon your company's power and ability to cope with such problems.

* I want to ask in connection with advertisement and promotions. The singers who do Kurdish music have been experiencing this problem much. How are your advertising works been going?

Rojda: You sing in Kurdish, work hard to improve Kurdish music's culture and art, have been working for 7 year so as a beautiful production may come on the scene and you succeed in realizing your ideal. You give it to a firm for being spread to all over the world and listened to by millions of people. Unfortunately, advertisement and promotion affairs in the realm of Kurdish music marketing are not carried out well. Namely, if an album is not distributed well, advertised in newspapers and its videos are not broadcast on TV channels, it does not sell well. These are our problems. If remove these questions we, Kurdish singers and musicians, will at higher levels; however, Kurdish music and singers cannot advance if those problems are exceeded. The people should claim Kurdish music and singer.

*You say you have played with a new manner, method and concept. Do you believe that you will be able to open a new door in Kurdish music?

Rojda: That is our aim. 7 years is a long term and required a strict and determined endeavour. What kind of music and of performance we have been creating is on the map. We thought to form a novelty by reinterpreting troubadours' art, but no one is willing to listen to poets. Their value has been disappearing day by day. That is the reason why we wanted to create with mixture of the old and new; we used digital rhythms, which is a new application of course. We would not desire a single instrument to be played and the performance to be completed in an hour. What we desired was novelty. We hope we will be able to draw the new generation's attention to troubadours. No one is desired to listen to them any more.

*You say put rhythms forward as well as melodies. Could you talk about this?

Alaettin: It was being said that there is no harmony in troubadours' songs save a mere sound. Nay! It is not so. There is an inevitably beauty in those song and we have evidenced it. While we were trying to uncover the troubadours' songs, we brought harmony to light, and used digital music as well. Other kinds of music were either not sufficient or not fit to harmony; therefore, we tried a new style.

* Will we have to wait 7 years more for a new album of Koma Gulê Xerzan?

Çiya: Our 3rd release became a good experiment for us. Our 4th work will be released 1.5 years later

*You, Rojda, are preparing to make a solo album. How are the preparations going on?and when it will be released?

Rojda: My aim was to carry out my own work after the group's performance completed. By the end of summer my solo album will have been prepared. It will be different from group's work and will bear my colour and soul. I hope what I will sing and perform will be understood.

*Will it include troubadours' art?

Rojda: Yes, it will, but there will be a few differences in the album; e.g, its substructure will be highly strong. I have been known by them. There few female Kurdish troubadours. Troubadourship is my soul, even if I leave it, it does not quit me.

(ma/mç)