Talk and Performance:
Remembering Teoman Madra
Salt Beyoğlu
December 23, 2025 19.00
Teoman Madra, self-portrait, 1980s
Teoman Madra Archive
Teoman Madra Archive
Walk-in Cinema
Salt has launched a long-term research project on Teoman Madra (1931-2025), one of the pioneers of media art in Turkey. Carried out in collaboration with the Madra family and artist-academic Selçuk Artut, the project draws on the artist’s archive and will culminate in an exhibition at Salt Galata in 2027. The exhibition aims to shed light on Madra’s lesser-known media art practice, his work at the intersections of various disciplines such as music and performance, his relationship with the art scene in Turkey, and his efforts to preserve the cultural heritage of Ayvalık.
As part of this process, Salt is organizing a memorial evening for Teoman Madra. The program will feature opening talks by the Madra family and Selçuk Artut on the artist and his archive, followed by performances by Alper Maral, Selen Gülün, and Batur Sönmez.
In Electroacoustic Provocation!, composer and musicologist Alper Maral will present selections from a broad repertoire shaped by archaic electronic environments, spontaneity, error, and synchronicity with the moment. The program will include İki [Two] (1992), produced with an Amiga 500; Now (2012), created for the 100th anniversary of John Cage’s birth; In Memoriam İlhan Mimaroğlu (2016), dedicated to İlhan Mimaroğlu; and Onun İçin Bütün Yaptıklarım Bir Şakadır [All I Ever Did for Him Was a Joke] (2025), which is based on Madra’s words and will be performed for the first time. Composer, pianist, and performance artist Selen Gülün will improvise on themes from pieces such as For D, Liars Club, and Pia, accompanied by a video collage compiled from Gülün’s concert footage recorded by Madra. Musician and artist Batur Sönmez will perform his drone-noise project titled Multi/Radio/Space/Waves, a homage to John Cage’s Radio Music in both conceptual and performative terms.
This free-admission program is open to everyone. The talks will be held in Turkish.
Alper Maral is a composer, musicologist, and academic. After completing his undergraduate studies in political science and international relations and his master’s in composition and sound design, he earned his PhD in musicology. He has contributed to numerous publications focusing on the relationship between music, identity, and politics. He has produced over 600 programs broadcast on radio stations such as TRT3, hr2, and SWR. Maral has served as a Professor at Ankara Music and Fine Arts University and taught at various universities. He continues to work toward promoting contemporary music, raising awareness of early music, and strengthening the relationship between music and society.
Selen Gülün is a composer, pianist, and performance artist. She studied at Istanbul University State Conservatory, Mimar Sinan University State Conservatory, Berklee College of Music, and the ITU Centre for Advanced Studies in Music. She has received several awards, including the Charles Mingus Composition Award and the British Council Creative Collaboration Award. Her works have been performed in the USA, Brazil, Japan, Cambodia, Pakistan, Russia, Mozambique, Australia, and numerous countries in Europe. Performing with various ensembles around the world, Gülün continues her work in both jazz and contemporary music.
Batur Sönmez is a musician and artist. Since 1998, he has produced experimental, electronic, industrial, and noise music and performed at festivals and concerts in various countries, including Japan, Spain, Russia, and Lebanon. He continues his work in the subgenres of experimental and electronic music and develops projects focusing on multimedia, audiovisual practices, and video art.
Salt has launched a long-term research project on Teoman Madra (1931-2025), one of the pioneers of media art in Turkey. Carried out in collaboration with the Madra family and artist-academic Selçuk Artut, the project draws on the artist’s archive and will culminate in an exhibition at Salt Galata in 2027. The exhibition aims to shed light on Madra’s lesser-known media art practice, his work at the intersections of various disciplines such as music and performance, his relationship with the art scene in Turkey, and his efforts to preserve the cultural heritage of Ayvalık.
As part of this process, Salt is organizing a memorial evening for Teoman Madra. The program will feature opening talks by the Madra family and Selçuk Artut on the artist and his archive, followed by performances by Alper Maral, Selen Gülün, and Batur Sönmez.
In Electroacoustic Provocation!, composer and musicologist Alper Maral will present selections from a broad repertoire shaped by archaic electronic environments, spontaneity, error, and synchronicity with the moment. The program will include İki [Two] (1992), produced with an Amiga 500; Now (2012), created for the 100th anniversary of John Cage’s birth; In Memoriam İlhan Mimaroğlu (2016), dedicated to İlhan Mimaroğlu; and Onun İçin Bütün Yaptıklarım Bir Şakadır [All I Ever Did for Him Was a Joke] (2025), which is based on Madra’s words and will be performed for the first time. Composer, pianist, and performance artist Selen Gülün will improvise on themes from pieces such as For D, Liars Club, and Pia, accompanied by a video collage compiled from Gülün’s concert footage recorded by Madra. Musician and artist Batur Sönmez will perform his drone-noise project titled Multi/Radio/Space/Waves, a homage to John Cage’s Radio Music in both conceptual and performative terms.
This free-admission program is open to everyone. The talks will be held in Turkish.
Alper Maral is a composer, musicologist, and academic. After completing his undergraduate studies in political science and international relations and his master’s in composition and sound design, he earned his PhD in musicology. He has contributed to numerous publications focusing on the relationship between music, identity, and politics. He has produced over 600 programs broadcast on radio stations such as TRT3, hr2, and SWR. Maral has served as a Professor at Ankara Music and Fine Arts University and taught at various universities. He continues to work toward promoting contemporary music, raising awareness of early music, and strengthening the relationship between music and society.
Selen Gülün is a composer, pianist, and performance artist. She studied at Istanbul University State Conservatory, Mimar Sinan University State Conservatory, Berklee College of Music, and the ITU Centre for Advanced Studies in Music. She has received several awards, including the Charles Mingus Composition Award and the British Council Creative Collaboration Award. Her works have been performed in the USA, Brazil, Japan, Cambodia, Pakistan, Russia, Mozambique, Australia, and numerous countries in Europe. Performing with various ensembles around the world, Gülün continues her work in both jazz and contemporary music.
Batur Sönmez is a musician and artist. Since 1998, he has produced experimental, electronic, industrial, and noise music and performed at festivals and concerts in various countries, including Japan, Spain, Russia, and Lebanon. He continues his work in the subgenres of experimental and electronic music and develops projects focusing on multimedia, audiovisual practices, and video art.
