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World-renowned Turkish pianist and composer Fazil Say has denounced Israel’s attacks on Gaza, calling the assault a “genocide” and urging Western classical musicians to speak out.
In a post Tuesday on X, Say blasted major Western classical music institutions for what he described as their “pro-Israel” stance.
“The main classical music institutions in Western countries are so pro-Israel that it is a source of shame for me. I feel very alone in an environment where I make music, even while sharing emotions,” he wrote.
Say said institutions were “manipulative” in branding Palestine supporters as anti-Semitic. “They will feel shame. They will not sleep peacefully,” he added.
“This is a genocide being carried out in Gaza, period,” Say said. “We must not remain silent to this murder, my colleagues. Come to your senses, music world! Be human, please … Do not remain silent to this despair, to this extent of injustice. Now you can cancel as many of my concerts as you like. I want to live the rest of my life with my honor.”
Say’s comments came as a U.N. inquiry concluded Tuesday that Israel’s war on Gaza amounts to genocide. “It is clear that there is an intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza through acts that meet the criteria set forth in the Genocide Convention,” said Navi Pillay, chair of the U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Israel is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice.
Born in Ankara in 1970, Say began playing piano at the age of four and studied at the Ankara State Conservatory. At 17, he won the European Union contest and later studied at the Robert Schumann Institute in Dusseldorf on a scholarship. He was named a “Cultural Ambassador” by the EU in 2008.
Say has composed several works, including "Black Hymns" at age 16, and premiered his Concerto for Piano and Violin in Berlin in 1991. His second piano concerto, Silk Road, debuted in Boston in 1996.
The U.N. commission’s finding came as Israeli forces launched a new phase of their ground offensive in Gaza City, where nearly 1 million Palestinians remain trapped under heavy bombardment.
The Gaza Health Ministry says Israel’s military campaign has killed nearly 65,000 Palestinians—most of them women and children—since October 2023. More than 100 were reported killed on Tuesday alone.
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