photo credit: Utku Dervent
Şimdi Ensemble (Şimdi means "now" in Turkish) is a new project in the footsteps of the Sufi tradition of Anatolia. Based in Turkey, it is an ensemble varying between three and seven players. Şimdi is co-founded by singer and composer Bora Uymaz and harpist Şirin Pancaroğlu comprising Bora Uymaz (vocals), Mehmet Yalgın (kemençe) and Şirin Pancaroğlu (lever harp).
Bora is one of the most prolific figures of the Sufi tradition in Turkey today with an edge that is bridging the past with the present. He is appreciated for his strong and unique voice in which he carries the mystical and quiet moments of the wise and dervishes. In some ways, he sings of seclusion and it is as if his voice is a vocal expression of history. Trained as a classical musician, Pancaroğlu, the leading harpist of Turkey is equally active in the realm of Turkish traditional music, improvisation, electronic music, tango and semi-staged performances as she is in mainstream harp repertoire. She has received international recognition for her work on the revival of the Turco-Ottoman lap harp, the historical "çeng", a popular symbol of sufi thinking in the medieval period.
Şimdi’s expression is based on seizing the day, the “now”. This is the philosophy behind Şimdi's music: living in the present, making the music of the present by using its natural power and enjoying the moment. Simdi reflects this approach by embracing the traditional repertoire as well as the music composed by band members. Whether they are composed hymns, songs or instrumental works, the music is strongly rooted in the creativity of the moment, accompanied by improvised forms such taksims, ghazals and odes (kasides).