Syrian clarinet player Kinan Azmeh performed with his band, City Band, at the 50th Istanbul Music Festival by bringing the worlds of jazz and Arabic music together. Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA), Azmeh said that he is fond of playing clarinet, composing new pieces, and thus, he is blessed to be able to do what he likes as his profession.

Noting that he has had an ordinary life, Azmeh said that his life is "the story of anybody who just followed his passion."

The Damascus-born Azmeh said he started playing the violin at 5 years old and switched to the clarinet at 6. "It was additional homework in the first five years but then I fell in love with it as people do," he reminisced.

Explaining that he was moved by what he played when he started to use an instrument, he said: "When I went to university I did a double major in music and electrical engineering. When I finished both, I found myself applying to graduate schools in music only and that took me to New York. And I did my masters and my doctorate in New York."

"New York does like what beautiful big cities do – I mean similar to Istanbul. It sucks people in and so I'm now still in New York 22 years later," he said. "It is such a privilege to be able to self-express in front of strangers at first, knowing that at the end of the concert these people will no longer be strangers," he added.

Touching on Syrian artists, he said: "I am very happy to know that there are so many Syrian artists among other artists from other nationalities who are able to be onstage and use the stage as a platform to self-express. If you think of self-expression, there are so many people in the world who do not have that luxury and I feel incredibly lucky to be able to use my instrument to express what I feel."

He noted that it is hard to surprise Turkish music lovers because they are very curious and very aware of music.

"I always find Istanbul to be an incredibly open city. Its people are incredibly welcoming. I love every time I am here. I feel it is an extension of the home. Also, when I play in a place, it's like planting a tree. When you plant a tree somewhere, it becomes part of your home. Even though I'm not Turkish and I haven't lived in Istanbul, I feel some kind of homecoming," he said.