Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV) has allocated funds from its 2023 budget and launched the İKSV Earthquake Region Instrument Support Fund to provide instruments to music students and instructors affected by the earthquakes that took place in February.

The project will be realised thanks to the collaboration of two major instrument suppliers in Turkey, doremusic and Zuhal Müzik, and will receive further support from Pozitif Müzik. Our aim is to expand the fund with contributions from as much institutions and organisations as possible, in order to meet the needs of all eligible applicants.

More than 800 students and teachers residing in the 11 provinces in the disaster zone, who are studying or teaching in the music departments of fine arts high schools and conservatories in the region and whose instruments had been damaged or lost in the earthquakes, who were in the region during the earthquake and are currently transferred to other schools applied to the fund, which was open for applications between 1 March and 30 May.

In 2023, 384 students and instructors had been provided with instruments such as suspended drums, baglama, cello, electric baglama, electric guitar, electronic organ, kanun, violin, clarinet, classical guitar, double bass, digital piano, oud and side flute. While the evaluation of applications and the supply of instruments continues, the project aims to provide new instruments to more than 500 students and instructors by the end of the project.

Instrument support was also provided to the Hatay Academy Orchestra within the scope of the fund.