On Being a Musician in Istanbul

Western-style music in this city is played almost exclusively by those in the upper strata of society. There is a very good reason for this: gear is vastly over-priced. For example, a Microkorg, which sells for $399 on Amazon, and considerably less on e-Bay, goes for $673 here. There is a single second-hand guitar shop in this city, SRV Music, run by Özlem, a very cool lady. One second-hand guitar shop in a city of 15 million people. Also, Özlem does not sell keyboards, but she does have an Alesis SR18 – for $100 more than you would spend at Musicians Friend. Every musician I know complains about the prices in this city.

Ordering gear form e-Bay is not a realistic option: anything that costs more than $100 or is too big to be carried by a postman immediately goes to the Customs Office. This is a place you do not want to visit: took a friend three months to get some posters. Posters, which we all know are a serious threat to national security. (Well, they are Kramer posters, which could be considered subversive, if anyone at the Customs Office had an idea who Kramer is). Personally, I’ve been waiting two months for a Punk Console from e-Bay to arrive, and have little hope of ever seeing it.

Is this description bleak enough yet?

One option, available to few, is waiting for someone from overseas to visit. This is fine if you want a relative/friend to bring a guitar: you don’t have to plug it into the wall. However, with synths, you have to think about different electrical currents. As I write this, I am also constantly refreshing Hotmail in hope that Spaceman Music in Ottawa will tell me that their Roland XP-30 at can be switched to run on European 220V. (Just found a current converter kit for $35, which could mean that this is less of an issue than I thought). I am also failing to pay attention to the seven hour time zone difference, which means they are just opening shop & haven’t turned their computer on yet. One of us is an idiot, & I think it’s the blonde. I would dearly love to have my sister bring me something bigger than a piece of cheddar cheese when she visits this summer. I still want the cheddar, though.

Peace

TJ

UPDATE: Due to Air Canada regulations, the Roland XP-30 is off. Always someone raining on your parade.