'In the Songs for our Land mini-tour, we are performing a live concert adaptation of the score from 'BBC Our World: Turkey's Earthquake: Those Who Stayed'.  This is a documentary I created which was broadcast in February 2024, on the one year anniversary of the earthquakes. After I composed the music to the film, I had the honour of arranging and recording the music with Entropies which we are incredibly proud to present to you this evening. 

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The Turkey-Syria earthquakes happened in February 2023, killing over 50,000 people and displacing millions of families. In March that year, I decided to volunteer in one of the campsites in the city of Antakya. I ended up spending over four months in the region across the year, documenting how the earthquakes had impacted the lives of women and children. ​When I first went there, the community was suffering with grief and facing the immense consequences of not having homes, hospitals, or schools. As time passed, their problems began to grow, when detrimental rebuild plans were releasing deadly toxins into the air, harming both the locals and their agricultural produce.

Despite the severity of the conditions, the people were full of hope and resilience. I was lucky enough to meet powerful women who let me spend time with them as they rebuilt their homes, schools, and agricultural land. During the time I spent with them, I was inspired by this resilience, particularly those who had decided not to leave, but to stay and oversee the rebuild of their city. 

Sadly, I had never visited the city before the earthquakes. But from all the stories I heard over a glass of homemade wine, I feel like I can imagine the spirit of the ancient city. Antakya (historically called Antioch) was home to a diverse mixture of faiths such as Orthodox Christians, Syriac Christians, Sunnis, and Alevis. Every street was home to mosques, churches and synagogues. It was a place often celebrated for its coexistence of multiple cultural and ethnic groups living in harmony, and also known for its traditional regional products including olive oil, soap, and fine silk.

Despite all of the destruction, you feel the weight of this history in every street or home you visit. Every person I met welcomed me with tea and delicious food, let me stay with them, and were more than happy to share their stories and recall their past. The collective fear was, and still is, that the magic of the city would somehow disappear. Everyone would be scattered or forced to leave, and the city would never be rebuilt with its true harmony and culture.

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This mini-tour tells the stories of people I met along the way, highlighting the two main characters, Meryem and Ayfer. We will play their musical themes from the film, which are 'cinematically' adapted to lyrical performances for this evening. Some pieces will feature Turkish lyrics.  

We are hoping to do a larger concert with the local Hatay Academy Orchestra next year, following the release of a new British Film Institute ( BFI) funded film I am currently directing. ​For now, I hope this provides you with a glimpse of the true resilience and beauty I experienced in the region. Amongst all of this, there is still a desperate need for action. 

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Thank you so much for coming and supporting the cause. 

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Sheida​ Kiran 

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