REORIENT:

December in Konya, however, is bitterly cold, and the warmer period of late September – certainly a more appealing time for visitors – sees another celebration, the Mystic Music Festival, which ends on the 30th of the month each year, falling on Rumi’s birthday. The most recent edition, which ran from the 22nd till the 30th of September, was the 11th, and included performing artists from Iran, Tajikistan, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Comoros, Bolivia, and Spain. ‘Rumi used to love music and uniting people; the Mystic Music Festival [brings] these together’, said organiser Feridun Gündeş. The concerts are free, and take place in a concert hall seating around 750 people, which is usually full. ‘Many of the most enthusiastic listeners [of] this music are in Europe and the US, and we want to create that [sort of] audience here’, he further remarked.

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