Vokaliz: Is It A Crime to Perform on Stage With A Shoebox?

Authorities launched an investigation as Vokaliz, a group of guest-performers who played at the New Year’s concert under Antalya State Symphony Orchestra, walked up the stage with shoeboxes.  

Recently, shoeboxes have widely been used in Turkey for anti-government protests as the police found massive amounts of money stacked in shoeboxes within the latest corruption probe. 

The investigation, however, has been launched on Antalya State Symphony Orchestra - instead of guest-performer group Vokaliz members Gökçer Alp (tenore), Cihan Kurtalan (tenore), Tolga Gülen (baritone), Cengiz Ünal (baritone), Umut Durmuş (beat box). 

On the other hand, various sources claim that the aforementioned group members have been off-listed for upcoming performances with the orchestra authorities saying that they will be more selective regarding the selection of guest-performers. 

Vokaliz: We walked up with a box, not the orchestra 

After the investigation news broke, Vokaliz released a statement, saying that while their gesture of walking up the stage with shoeboxes should not concern the entire orchestra, such gesture didn’t involve any element of wrong-doing. 

The statement said the following:

“As Vokaliz, we had a guest-performace at Antalya State Symphony Orchestra New Year’s Concert on December 27 and 28. We walked up the stage with shoeboxes with our initiative and not letting the remaining orchestra members know the situation. 

“We have yet to receive any official document concerning the issue. We also follow the case through the media. We hope that such investigation doesn’t represent the truth. We hope that we will be able to perform with our symphony orchestra in the future and such cooperation will not be censured by the state. Such attempt would be recorded as putting a barrier between the people and music.  

“We are wondering what legislation in the Turkish Law System bans musicians from walking up the stage with shoeboxes? Has Vokaliz walked up the stage with an element of crime? Is there such an order not to walk up the state with shoeboxes? 

“Is there such an official order that will bar Vokaliz from guest-performing at state orchestras again? If yes, we are urging the authorities to notify this officially. 

“Vokaliz walked up the stage and played its performance after taking out music notes from shoeboxes. We would like to let the public know that nobody except our Vokaliz members were informed prior to such gesture.  

“We absolutely deny press allegations saying that the entire orchestra walked up the stage with shoeboxes. 

“While we are expecting a response to our inquiries, we are also following the government’s statements on the ‘abolition of art institutions’ with great anxiety. We are urging the public to be sensitive on the issue in the light of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk’s quote “A nation deprived of art has likely lost one of its life veins”. (EKN/BM)