Turkish artists on Nova: from Aylin’s guitars to Doran Tan’s solo piano
A guide to the Turkish side of Nova: Aylin, Thavernia, Avlu, Doran Tan, Lalin Tan, Çatlak Motor, Düz Gitmiyor and others, with the albums to hear first.
Lodos Nova is operated from Istanbul, and it shows in the catalogue. A dozen of its 70 artists are Turkish, and together they cover a surprising range: psychedelic rock, solo piano, instrumental folk, pop vocals, funk and a music project written for an imagined world. This article introduces them, with an album to start on for each, so that listeners outside Türkiye can find them and listeners inside it can see how much is here.
Nova Sounds: the archive
The largest Turkish name on Nova is also the largest name full stop. Nova Sounds is the official audio archive of the service, 437 instrumental pieces organised into themed albums: the Lo-fi Sessions series, the Bossa Atmosphere trilogy, Morning Coffee, Elegant Strings and journeys further afield such as Japanese Journeys and Mizizi Na Midundo. It is the backbone of most Nova playlists and of the radio stations, and we profile it separately in our spotlight on Nova Sounds.
Aylin: ambient and electric guitar
Aylin has five albums on Nova, and they move between ambient stillness and electric guitar with a restless edge: Karantina, Yüzümdeki Yabancı, Karanlık Oda, Yerimi Bulamadım and the earlier Buradayım Hala, which also exists as a public playlist, Buradayım Hala - Aylin. Start with Karantina, six tracks that show both sides.
Thavernia: music for an imagined world
Thavernia is an original tabletop role-playing world, and its music, 73 tracks across nine albums, is written as if from inside it: strings, saxophone and new age colour, often melancholy, with titles such as Of Inns and Hearths, After the Banners Fall and Ways of the Wanderer. Songs of Many People is the gateway. It is a close cousin of Eldrvættir's Norse cycle, which we describe in its own article, and both suit long evenings of reading or games.
Avlu: instrumental warmth
Avlu is a four-piece instrumental group inspired by the warmth and stillness of traditional Middle Eastern music, played on bass, piano and violin with ambient space around it. Two albums, Akşam Nefesi (Evening Breath) and Sabahın İlk Işığı (First Light of Morning), are named for the hours they suit, and both work beautifully in a café or a hotel lobby.
Doran Tan: solo piano
Doran Tan builds a plain, elegant, inward sound world from modern solo piano. Solo Piyano 1 and Solo Piyano 2 are eight pieces each and belong on the piano page next to Aurelion. They are among the most used calm records on Nova Business, for reasons explained in our guide to ambient and new age music.
Lalin Tan: pop with restraint
Lalin Tan is a pop vocalist who carries emotion with strength and restraint, over flamenco guitar, saxophone and sad, slow arrangements. Düğüm (Knot) and Yankı (Echo) are seven tracks each; Düğüm is the better introduction.
The rock bands
Two Turkish bands carry much of Nova's rock. Çatlak Motor play psychedelic rock that questions the stream of consciousness, with Psychedelic Dreams and Faultline Machine from 2025. Düz Gitmiyor (the name means It Doesn't Go Straight) mix progressive rock with synths and electronica on Gri and Adı Yok. Both appear in our tour of rock on Nova and on the Rock FM station.
Smaller catalogues worth knowing
- Nevra: ambient, rock and voice on Gölge Dili (Shadow Language).
- Çekirdek Kadro: funk, brass and drums with a soundtrack feel on Gül Geç.
- Karanlık Hat: voice and violin on Gölgelerin Çığlığı.
- Nightforge: brass, saxophone and guitar on A Piece of Anatolia.
Turkish on the radio and in podcasts
Two of the five Nova stations are hosted in Turkish. World FM plays every kind of song with warm, chatty Turkish DJs between tracks, and Lo-Fi FM slows the day down. Two of the three podcasts are Turkish-language as well: Yapay Zeka Sohbetleri, more than thirty conversations about artificial intelligence, and DataCast, on careers in data. Both are described in our guide to podcasts on Nova.
Listening across languages
Nova itself is available in Turkish as well as English, German, French, Spanish and Italian, and the website works the same way: switch language from the menu and every artist and album page follows. For a Turkish listener, the artists page and the mood tags, sad and tender in particular, are the quickest way to find more. For everyone else, this list is a good place to begin.
Frequently asked questions
Which Turkish artists are on Nova? Nova Sounds, Aylin, Thavernia, Avlu, Doran Tan, Lalin Tan, Çatlak Motor, Düz Gitmiyor, Nevra, Çekirdek Kadro, Karanlık Hat, Nightforge and Türkmen, among others.
Does Nova have Turkish-language radio? Yes. World FM and Lo-Fi FM have hosted segments in Turkish, and all five stations play music from the Nova catalogue.
Is there Turkish solo piano on Nova? Yes. Doran Tan has two albums of modern solo piano, Solo Piyano 1 and Solo Piyano 2.
Can I use the Nova website in Turkish? Yes. The website and the app are available in Turkish, English, German, French, Spanish and Italian.
