Lawrence musicians receive unexpected international invitation
By Rick Peterson
Lawrence Today magazine, Summer 2006
Burcu
Göker, ’07, was merely looking for a musical gig, but she
ended up gaining national celebrity status.
The violinist from Istanbul, Turkey, became a media darling in her home country
last December when she and her playing partner, pianist Eric Jenkins, ’07,
of Portage, Wisconsin, performed at one of Turkey’s most celebrated national
events, the annual memorial tribute to Ismet
Inönü, who served as
that country’s first prime minister (1923-38) and second president (1938-50).
Highly revered as one of Turkey’s most important national figures for
his military and political accomplishments — he often is referred to
as “the Abraham Lincoln of Turkey”— Inönü is honored
each year in the capital city of Ankara with a state memorial service that
attracts an audience liberally sprinkled with many of
the country’s highest-ranking officials, judges, and diplomats. During
this year’s three-hour ceremony,
a movie, glowing speeches, and a panel discussion led by noted statesmen and
academics all commemorated Inönü’s enduring legacy.
And, for the first time in its history, the service included a musical component
that Göker and Jenkins had the unprecedented privilege of performing.
Their hour-long concert included works by Mozart, Ravel, and Beethoven and
ended with one of Göker’s own compositions, “Liberty,” a
violin solo that incorporates parts of Turkey’s national anthem.
“This would be like going to Washington, D.C., and performing at the
White House for the president,” says Göker, who, since last September,
has led the Lawrence Symphony
Orchestra as concertmistress.
“It was such an honor. I was filled with so much pride to be able to
play one of my compositions in front of my country on such an important occasion.
It
was a challenge and an important responsibility to have my performance make
a connection with everyone, not just the musicians. Words aren’t enough
to express the emotions that I was feeling. It was truly an amazing experience.”
Held on the Ankara campus of the University of Baskent, Inönü’s
memorial service is regarded as such an important event that it is broadcast
live on national television not only throughout Turkey, but in other parts
of Europe as well. While Göker’s parents were guests in the audience,
her older sister watched her perform on television back in Istanbul.
Highlights from the service, including portions of Göker and Jenkins’ concert,
were featured on that day’s TV newscasts, leading to a whirlwind of post-concert
interview requests. Following the ceremony, Göker and Jenkins met with
Meta Akyol, one of Turkey’s most prominent journalists, who interviewed
them for a story that will appear this summer in Bütün Dünya,
the Turkish edition of Reader’s Digest.
“It was all so hectic. There was a lot of rushing around while we were
there,” said
Göker, who left her family in Istanbul as a 14-year-old to study the violin
at the Paul Dukas Conservatory in Paris.
“People were stopping me on the street and asking for my autograph. It
was both exciting and extremely gratifying to know I touched people with my
music and
made them feel good about being Turkish in a nationalistic way.”
For Jenkins, the trip to Turkey transcended all his expectations.
“Who would ever think something this significant would basically fall
into your lap?” says Jenkins, a piano
performance major. “The opportunity
to play at the presidential memorial service enabled me to experience a completely
new cultural perspective that was rewarding beyond my imagination.”
There are no official statistics kept on the percentage of pre-dawn phone calls
that actually deliver good news. But when Göker was startled awake at
6:00 a.m. in late November by an incessant telephone ring, she could not have
been more shocked — pleasantly.
Several weeks earlier, she and Jenkins had gone searching for playing engagements
for the summer of 2006, submitting audition CDs to several international music
festival organizers in Turkey hoping to land an invitation or two. One of those
CDs found its way into the hands of the dean of Baskent
University, which was
coordinating Inönü’s service.
The early-morning phone call with the unexpected offer came the week before
final exams and a mere three weeks before the ceremony. Juggling 11th-hour
visa paperwork and airline schedules with final exams made an already stressful
time all the more so. Yet, three days after Term I ended, Göker and Jenkins
found themselves in Istanbul rehearsing feverishly for the concert of their
young lives.
“When Burcu asked me about it, I was quite honestly a bit apprehensive,” says
Jenkins, who shares a personal as well as musical relationship with Göker. “At
first I said no. I thought it would be too difficult to pull everything together
on such short notice, but she prodded me into it. After the fact, I thought
to myself, ‘How could I have almost turned this down?’
“It seemed so bizarre, even a bit surreal at the time. I wondered why
we would get selected for this great honor instead of someone more prominent,
not to
mention more local.”
Given the fact the Göker and Jenkins had only performed publicly together
twice, including once in Jenkins’ hometown of Portage, it seemed a reasonable
question.
Whether fate, fortunate timing, or pure serendipity, the unexpected invitation
was the latest in a string of musical accolades for Göker, a violin performance
and composition major. She was the 2004 winner of the state-wide Concord Chamber
Orchestra concerto competition in Milwaukee and performs regularly with the
Fox Valley Symphony.
“These successes are the clear rewards of a serious musician,” says
Assistant Professor of Music Stéphane Tran Ngoc, Göker’s
violin teacher. “Burcu’s
devotion to music and her sense of accuracy make her an outstanding player.
She has acquired a remarkably reliable technique along with a beautiful sound
that allows her to shine under any circumstance.
“The opportunity to play in her native Turkey for such an event as President
Inönü’s memorial service is a testament of her abilities,” Tran
Ngoc adds. “Needless to say, this kind of honor is usually given to well-accomplished
and recognized personalities. It will undoubtedly lead her to perform again
on the international scene.”
Göker and Jenkins arrived in Turkey eight days before the concert amid
star treatment. A chauffer-driven ride awaited them at the airport and provided
a tour of the capital city. They stayed at a five-star hotel that was teeming
with a list of “who’s who” in Turkish social, political,
and musical circles.
“Everyone we met was interested in us,” Jenkins says.
They wanted us to talk about our experiences as students at Lawrence. They
wanted to know all about the school and what we were studying. One of the governors
we met invited us to come stay at his villa this summer. I felt so honored
to be there. I just tried to be the best ‘ambassador’ I could.”
In addition to a healthy dose of notoriety, Göker and Jenkins’ appearance
at the memorial service also produced their initial intended result: invitations
to play. Since their state performance, they have
received numerous offers and have accepted two engagements in Turkey for the
coming year. They will travel to Istanbul for a music festival at Bogazici
University in August and perform again in Istanbul this December at the request
of the Austrian Embassy.