MACAHEL ELDERLY CHOIR (Polyphonic Singing Tradition)
Macahel songs are polyphonic songs sung by people of Georgian origin living in the mountainous regions of Artvin province near the border with Georgia. It is believed that the tradition has a history of about 1500 years.
The Macahel Elderly Choir was founded in 2001 under the leadership of İberya Özkan and Bayar Şahin in order to keep alive the traditional polyphonic folk songs that are disappearing in the Camili (Macahel) village of Artvin province's Borçka district. The choir consists of Hamdi Ertürk, Nevzat Ertürk, İsmail Ertürk, Muhammet Balcı, Kazım Balcı, Cemal Karadeniz, Şükrü Cesur, Muhittin Gökdemir, Medeni Altın and Ali Kemal Şimşek.
The members of the choir, who did not receive professional music education, learned the tradition of polyphonic singing performed at village gatherings, weddings and ceremonies from their elders.
With its concerts and album works, Macahel Elderly Choir fulfills an important mission to keep this tradition alive, which is about to be lost. The young members of the choir are Ahmet Özcan, Altan Gülbin and Hayrettin Kös.
