First conceived in 2017, the album was inspired by the famous cartographer, admiral Piri Reis, and his stunning works: The World Map and Kitab-ı Bahriye.

The artist did the entire work’s compositions, including saxophone, live electronics, and choreography. The project is aimed to be executed by an ensemble of six musicians: vocal, violin, saxophone, electric guitar, electric bass, and drums, and joined by a choreography of three dancers. In addition to the on-stage crew, ‘PiRi’ production team includes an audio-visual artist.

The album is considered Jazz-related Contemporary Music. The performance is one hour and fifteen minutes long, consisting of seven different pieces/works that combine into an overarching story.

“PiRi” can be defined as an “abstract astral journey.” The idea is formed in Rotterdam, where the artist excels; the harbor city that became an inspirational bridge between Marmaris (where the artist initially comes from) and Gelibolu ((Gallipoli )(where Piri Reis was born)).

The story starts at his birth,‘ Born to Be Mediterranean,‘ which is the album’s essential piece. The artist’s fourth piece concerns his hometown ‘Marmaris,’ sea life, and Piri Reis cruises.

Close to the end, -a death sentence- a sixth piece called’ Execution’ appears. The last work is ‘Requiem for Piri’, which told the story audio-visually and ended delightedly.

The album was recorded in Istanbul in July 2019. It is released in the Netherlands on all digital platforms in the middle of 2020. The “Custom-made limited edition vinyl” are printed in the Netherlands as well in 2021.

“PiRi” is granted by Fondspodiumkunsten, NL (2021).

P i R i  Team:

Meriç Çalışan: (Vocal), Çisem Özkurt: (Violin), Adam Taylor: (Guitar), Selçuk Karaman: (Electric Bass), Domen Cizej: (Drums), Adem Gümrükçüler: (Art Director), Sinan Çoban: (Stage & Costume Designer), Yiğit Yeşildağ: (Mixing & Mastering), Şeyma Türk: (Cover Art), Adnan Dura: (Compositions, Saxophone)