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BARIS
MANÇO: "One who does not possess a good
understanding of his past,
can not comprehend his present and,
thus, can not build his future."
Author, Composer, Singer, Producer
and TV Personality
by Savas MANÇO
A Man of the Turkish People who successfully put his
name to many firsts and records
Baris Manço was born in the maternity ward of
Zeynep Kâmil Hospital in the Üsküdar
district of Istanbul, during
the night that linked the 1st to the 2nd of January
in 1943. No doubt, his parents wanted to express the
longing of all humanity that had been living through
an infernal and devastating war for almost 5 years,
and in a cry of hope they named their little baby "Baris!" Baris means 'peace' in Turkish and
this occasion marked the first time ever a baby was
given this name in the country. Their son certainly
did not disappoint the
family: by
the time he had rejoined his Creator in Heavens, he
had left behind a series of important work that was
prepared and crafted with the aspiration that it may
serve as a guide for 'humanity
to live in peace.'
Baris Manço, after successfully completing his
secondary education at the Galatasaray Lycée
(enrolment number: 1018, nickname: Small Bear) in Istanbul,
he graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine
Arts in Liège, Belgium, in 1969. As a manifestation
of his interest in languages of the world, he was fluent
in Turkish, French, English and Japanese, and could
comfortably carry a conversation in German, Arabic,
Dutch, Spanish and Italian.
The wealth of knowledge and culture that Baris Manço
retained from his family, his nation, his education,
his lifetime experiences and, especially, from the gifts
with which nature had blessed him at birth, provided
him with the ability to forge direct, warm and mutually
enriching communications with countless people from
all walks of life in more than sixty countries.
The first time Baris Manço performed on stage
was at a small town wedding party in 1958. He quickly
attracted attention with his band Harmoniler
(Harmonies) that he had formed with his classmates during
the festivals held at Galatasaray Lycee's Tevfik Fikret
conference hall [named in dedication to a great man
of Letters who also
had been one of the school's former directors]. During
a long career of 41 years that ensued, Baris Manço
shared his particular music with many musicians, some
of whom were international performers who admired the
music created by him and his bands Mogollar and Kaygisizlar
. From
the time he finished his military service as a Lieutenant
in the artillery division of the Turkish Army until
his passing on January 31, 1999,
his musical career was identified with that of his band,
Kurtalan Ekspres; the latter was named after
a modest train that leaves Istanbul's Haydarpasa Train
Station every evening for a 3-day journey across
Anatolia, from
Northwest to Southeast, that fulfils a not-so-modest
task of connecting the largest city of Turkey, once
the capital of the Eastern Roman and Ottoman Empires,
to the ancient Mesopotamian town of Kurtalan.
"Peace at Home - Peace
in the World"
Baris Manço composed more than 200 songs including
both the music and lyrics. He has not given to me the
task of appraising his work but it certainly is popular
since many of his songs were translated into Greek,
Romanian, Bulgarian, Arabic, Persian, Kurdish, Japanese,
Hebrew, French, English and Dutch, and were a part of
the repertories of artists singing in those languages.
Proverbs and sayings (Atasözü in Turkish, literally
'words of ancestors') flourished in the songs of Baris
Manço, which were written in simple forms using
an 'almost childish' language. Thus, the work seems
very easy to understand though, paradoxically, gives
rise to quite deep thoughts and emotions. In fact, Baris
Manço patiently embroidered not only his songs
but also his 2 television programs during the last 11
years of his life, 'From 7 to 77's' and 'Full
Gallop',
around the double axis that constitutes the Principle
of Kemalism:
"Peace at Home - Peace in the World." On
one hand, he addressed the Turkish people as a whole
with themes touching upon the Republic of Turkey, national
unity, solidarity and brotherhood among people and World
peace; on the other hand, the messages were clearly
designated to the individual, the Citizen of Earth,
provoking him to think about subjects such as honesty
and excellence at work, equality, justice, modesty,
respect for the nature and for others, love for his
offspring, importance of family, importance of education,
knowledge and understanding of the past. Baris used
to say: "One who does not possess a good understanding
of his past, can not comprehend his present and, thus,
can not build his future", trust in himself
and others, internal peace and personal freedom. Here
is an example of his attempt to keep his messages simple
and consistent: one of his songs is named, with a pinch
of humour, 'Let me see you read: B-e-a-r!'. The
4th page of the Turkish daily
Milliyet's Sunday edition, which he directed between
1992 and 1994, was also entitled 'Let me see you
read!'.
Curiously, the first foreign publication that printed
a picture of Baris Manço, heralding him as 'Turkey's
rock idol' was the National Geographic Magazine,
on page 380 of its March 1973 issue. During the years
that followed, Manço appeared in hundreds of
international newspapers, magazines and broadcasts over
five continents, including Italian sports daily (and
thus not musically-oriented) 'Corriere dello Sport'
which sells more than a million copies a day. As a result,
on his long list of Copyrights and royalty receipts
one can come across the names of countries as distant
and diverse as Venezuela, Congo or Malaysia.
Baris Manço, during his artistic career of 41
years, not only took stage thousands of times in all
the large and small cities of his home country but also in Japan, Malaysia, Australia, Congo,
Argentina, the United States, Russia, Turkish-speaking
Turkic Republics and Regions of the former Soviet Union,
Arab countries, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Bosnia, Germany, Netherlands,
Switzerland, Austria, Belgium and France; and was invited
to various radio and television shows in these countries.
Smile from one world citizen
The television career of Baris Manço began when
in October, 1988,
TRT1, the first channel of the national television
in Turkey, accepted the conception of an entertainment
program with a strong cultural and educational content,
primarily addressing children but, as its name suggested,
being mindful of a wider audience 'from 7 to 77'
while sprinkling Manço's music between segments.
The objective proposed and realised by this program
was to show that the Citizens of Earth are always capable
of smiling even when they find themselves in an environment
tainted with devastation and misery. In other words,
the program wanted to present an alternative to the
so-called 'realistic press' by remaining faithful
to truth. By the time the 378th and final
episode had aired on December 6, 1998 this program had
reached hundreds of millions of viewers domestically
and also internationally thanks to the broadcasts via
the Turkish satellite system TURKSAT. In order to produce
the episodes during the 10 years and 3 months that the
show lasted, Baris Manço travelled from the Equator
to the Poles, visiting more than a hundred countries
and regions over 5 continents, covering more than 600
thousand kilometres in search of the 'smile from
one world citizen' and brought that smile to another
elsewhere.
The second
TV program of Baris Manço was called '4X 21:
Dolu Dizgin' which may be translated into English
as '4 X 21: Full Gallop'. This high quality music/talk
show, which was brought to the TV screens by TRT1 on
52 Thursdays (on 4th day at 21 - 9pm -
between October, 1992 and the end of 1993, remains
in the annals of Turkish television perhaps as the most
memorable production for the variety and diversity of
its guests. 'Dolu Dizgin' had the distinction
of being the first in Turkey to invite artists from
the Turkic-speaking
Republics and Regions of the former Soviet Union. During
the end-of-year episode that was broadcast on December
31, 1992, it also became the only show that was able
to bring together more than 500 children and 4 leaders
of state on its stage with live participation from 5
cities that constitute the corners and the center of
the Anatolian
Peninsula, as well as from Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Cyprus.
Many achievements in Baris Manço's 41-year career
were officially recognised through more than 300 trophies
and prizes, and were rewarded with the following titles
and decorations:
- Republic of Bulgaria: Golden Orpheus of art and music, Varna (1980)
- Turkish American Society: honorary member, New York, USA (1989)
- Republic of Turkey: Ambassador of Art, Ankara (1991)
- Hacettepe University: Honorary Doctor of the Arts, Ankara, Turkey
(1991)
- Soka Gakkai University: International Medal of "Culture and Peace",
Tokyo, Japan (1991), for having put his music
in the
service of the World peace
- Kingdom of Belgium: Knight of the order of Léopold II, Brussels
(1992)
- Republic of France: Knight of the Arts and Letters, Paris (1992)
- Pamukkale University: Honorary Doctor of the Arts, Denizli, Turkey
(1995)
- Min-On Artistic Foundation: Supreme Medal of Honour, Tokyo, Japan
(1995)
- City of Liège: Honorary Citizen, Liège, Belgium (1997
)
- Republic of Turkmenistan: Honorary Turkmen Compatriote, Askabad (1998)
- University of Askabad: Honorary Professor, Turkmenistan (1998)
When
Baris left us shortly before midnight on January 31,
1999 he was the husband of Lâle (Tulip) and the father of 2 boys: Dogukan (Blood of
East) and Batikan (Blood of West).
You can find more information regarding Baris Manço,
his career and his music at http://www.barismanco.de
A final note: the gifts by which the Creator had blessed
him; the first name that his parents gave him; his life
of 56 years spent close to nature and, I believe, lived
"almost
childishly"; his terrific career
of 41 years and his conscientious work created with
a lot of love and patience but also with method and
courage; the intensity and the sincerity of the pain
felt by those who had known him, both domestically and
abroad, the day of his passing; and, the boundless growth
of the snowball of love that the "Citizens
of Earth" expressed to him already makes
me believe once more that my brother was "chosen"
and he carried out brilliantly the task which he had
received. I ask the good God to receive him with open
arms.
If there really exists a Baris Manço phenomenon
its slogan should consist of the initial letters of
his name coupled with the abbreviations of his 2 television
programs: 'from 7 to 77'
and 'Dolu Dizgin (Full Gallop)':è
BM777DD
In a world full of wars - there is no peace without
war, indeed; but, we should not forget that love is
the path to peace - sincere wishes for Peace and Love
to you all;
Savas MANÇO,
His elder brother
(Savas means "war" in Turkish: having been
born at the beginning of the Great War, I had the right
to this first name!)
Liège, Belgium April 26, 2001
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