Well-known jazz pianist Burak Bedikyan says he was refused entry to Azerbaijan after being subjected to ill treatment at the airport because of his Armenian descent and denies Azerbaijani claims that he was to address thousands during a two-day performance last week together with Sertab Erener, Turkey's winner of the 2003 Eurovision song contest.

"I went to Azerbaijan not to give an outdoor public concert attended by 10-15,000 people but to perform on two special nights at Baku's Gulustan Palace attended by only a VIP audience," Bedikyan told the Turkish Daily News in an interview.

Turkey formally sought information both from the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry and the Azerbaijani Embassy here with regard to Bedikyan's allegations. Ankara's move came after the young pianist filed verbal and written complaints with the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

"It's really ridiculous that [Azerbaijani authorities] give the lack of a visa as a justification for their refusal to grant me entry, but everyone knows that a passport is sufficient for all citizens of the Turkish Republic to enter Azerbaijani territory," Bedikyan said.

Azerbaijani Embassy officials here were not immediately available to comment on Bedikyan's charges, but news reports earlier said Azeri officials refused to issue a visa to the pianist, arguing that Bedikyan's name being announced during a concert attended by 10-15,000 could have sparked an incident because Azerbaijan and Armenia were in a state of war.

Azerbaijan and Armenia, both ex-Soviet republics, are at loggerheads overNagorno Karabakh, an Azeri territory occupied by Armenian troops. The region's final status remains unresolved, and years of talks under the auspices of international mediators have brought few visible results.

Turkey has close ties with Azerbaijan, with which it shares an ethnic and linguistic heritage, but it severed diplomatic relations with Armenia due to Yerevan's unsettled dispute with Azerbaijan.

Bedikyan, a Turkish citizen, accused Azerbaijani authorities at Baku Airport of mistreating him and refusing him entry upon arrival for a concert on Dec. 19. He was forced to return to Istanbul and could not join his band, insisting that he was singled out and mistreated despite his Turkish citizenship.

"We were taken to the VIP section upon our arrival at Baku Airport and waited for passport checks. Erener was given priority in her entry procedure and then sent to her hotel. Azerbaijani authorities called me, demanded my identity card and then asked for my surname. I answered them but later they again asked my surname. I again told them my surname was Bedikyan, and they asked my nationality. I said I was a Turkish citizen as set out in my passport and identity card and that I was of Armenian descent. Later they talked to one another, and the only words I could make out from their conversation were ‘Christian and Armenian'," he said.

"Almost 15 minutes later three Azerbaijani officials took me from the airport," continued Bedikyan, "and made me get on a bus and took me to another part of the airport. They did not answer my questions, though I asked calmly and respectfully, and they rebuked me when I continued to insistently seek an explanation. They even threatened me. I waited for almost three hours. I was not allowed to drink water or make a call. They approached me in a very unfriendly and hostile way. In fact, I was sent back to Istanbul before realizing what had happened."

Bedikyan said he was refused entry without reason after being mistreated, just like an enemy, despite the efforts of production manager Serkan G?ney, who was also threatened by Azerbaijani officials with being taken to the police station if he insisted on objecting.

"It took me two to three days to get my luggage after arriving in Istanbul. I later informed the Foreign Ministry both verbally and in a written complaint, and thankfully the ministry took up the incident," he added.

Despite the absence of Bedikyan, Erener gave her concerts in Baku. The pianist says more could have been done and that Erener could have stood up for him, but he declined to elaborate further to avoid a battle of words.

"I'm a jazz musician. I am not the only pianist in Erener's band. I'm accompanying Erener in her concerts together with another pianist, Tulug Tirpan; however, if I were the only pianist, the incident in Azerbaijan could have been more serious because it would not have been possible to perform the concert with only Erener and a guitar," he said.

Bedikyan, who shares the same stage with Turkey's leading jazz musicians, said he was not planning to travel to Azerbaijan again for a concert unless Azerbaijani authorities offered an official apology.

"First of all, I certainly don't take the incident personally, but I see it as disrespect and a mistake against the Turkish Republic, of which I'm a citizen," he said.

But Bedikyan said he harbored no hostility against Azerbaijan, adding that he could go again after everything was settled amicably. Turkish Daily News