A musical, cinematic, narrated journey through 50 years of immigration in Germany. Berlin author İmran Ayata and Munich theatre maker and musician Bülent Kullukçu collected and researched songs from the early 1960s to the early 1990s by musicians who came to Germany from Turkey. With Songs of Gastarbeiter Vol. 1, they released a compilation of 16 tracks in 2013 – a blend of Anatolian disco-folk and spoken word, once heard at celebrations, weddings, and political gatherings. These include workers’ songs, pop songs and songs about ‘Almanya’ as a ‘bitter home’. They speak of being outsiders, of feeling foreign – and of experiences of exclusion and racism. These songs not only offer sharp insights into German society but also present new images of the country, directed at the majority population. But it didn’t listen.

İmran Ayata and Bülent Kullukçu released two albums together, Songs of Gastarbeiter Vol. 1 (2013) and Vol. 2 (2022). İmran Ayata is a cultural activist and author. He studied political science in Frankfurt am Main, was editor of the magazine Die Beute. Politik und Verbrechen and is co-founder of Kanak Attak. Ayata publishes literary contributions in magazines and anthologies in Germany and Turkey. His first book, Hürriyet Love Express (Kiwi Verlag), was published in 2005, followed by the highly acclaimed novel Mein Name ist Revolution (Blumenbar Verlag) in 2011 and Ruhm und Ruin (Verbrecher Verlag) in 2015. Bülent Kullukçu is a director, visual artist, composer, curator and gallery owner. He works with analogue and digital media, realizing exhibitions and projects in public spaces in Germany and abroad. As a director, he has realized over 80 theatre and performance productions. As a musician and producer, he has led numerous national and international music projects in the field of club and festival culture. He composes for theatres and independent productions, has created film music and radio plays (including for BR and WDR), sound installations for museums and various vinyl and CD releases worldwide.

The music lecture by İmran Ayata and Bülent Kullukçu is part of Dr. Gürsoy Doğtaş’ QuiS Research Fellowship at the Städelschule throughout the winter semester 2024/25 and summer semester 2025, which explores the history of migrant labor in Germany and the cultural, activist and artistic practices associated with it. This semester, the focus is on how social power structures can be challenged through a politics of listening. The program of the QuiS Research Fellowship is made possible by the generous support of the Hessian Ministry of Science and Research, Art and Culture.

The Music Lecture will be held in English.