A specially designed armchair that enabled Türkiye’s second president, İsmet İnönü, to enjoy classical music concerts despite his hearing loss has gone on public display for the first time at the Pembe Köşk in the capital Ankara.
The exhibition, organized by the İnönü Foundation, was opened under the title “From Mavilim to the Yunus Emre Oratorio: The Journey of Music in the Republic’s Capital,” tracing the evolution of music in Türkiye from the late Ottoman period to the early years of the Republic following the cultural reforms by founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk to elevate national music to universal standards.
It explores the cultural institutions, artistic policies and figures who played pivotal roles in shaping the country’s musical heritage during the formative years of modern Türkiye.
Alongside photographs, documents and rare recordings, the exhibition features intimate items belonging to the İnönü family — among them the historic “listening chair” designed for İsmet İnönü and his wife, Mevhibe İnönü, in the 1930s.
The unique armchair was equipped with early acoustic technology, including side-mounted speakers, a mechanical fan and sound collectors that transmitted amplified vibrations directly to the ears, compensating for İsmet İnönü’s mixed-type hearing loss caused by otosclerosis.
With the press of a button, the system would activate, allowing him to clearly follow the music performed at Ankara’s Conservatory Hall in Cebeci, then one of the capital’s main concert venues.
After the building was handed over to Mamak Municipality in the 1980s, the furniture — including İsmet İnönü’s chair — was transferred to Hacettepe University’s new conservatory.
A passionate advocate of the arts, İsmet İnönü believed Western music could only be appreciated through familiarity and exposure. He regularly attended concerts and rehearsals, earning from one journalist the nickname “the salaried listener.”
The exhibition also displays, for the first time, the diploma awarded to composer Ahmet Adnan Saygun, whose Yunus Emre Oratorio won the 1948 İnönü Art Award — becoming the only musical work ever to receive that honor.
