Turkey at the Three Cultures Foundation: Sinan Ayyıldız and Tolgahan Çoğulu in Concert
The Three Cultures Foundation dedicates its October cultural programme to Turkey. Within the framework of this project, on Monday 25th at 20:00 there will be a performance by Sinan Ayyıldız and Tolgahan Çoğulu, two renowned musicians who dedicate their lives not only to performance but also to musical research.
Sinan Ayyıldız, born in Ankara in 1980, is a multidisciplinary artist who, despite his university training as a chemist, decided to dedicate his life to music, completing a Master's degree in Turkish Music at the İTÜ State Conservatory of Turkish Music.
After many recognised musical projects, in 2009 he participated in the album Stereognosis Hybrid, a project that brings together musicians from several different countries released in the United States. In addition to multiple awards and projects, he has performed solo recitals at festivals such as Ronda Guitar Festival, Berlin Guitar and Mandolin Festival and ITU Bağlama Days.
Sinan Ayyildiz continues his musical work in his own recording studio in Ankara and is in the process of recording four albums, which he combines with his work as an associate professor and vice-dean at the Faculty of Performing Arts, Ankara University of Music and Fine Arts.
For his part, Tolgahan Çoğulu is an artist with an extensive and recognised track record in musical innovation. He was the first prize winner at Georgia Tech's Margaret Guthman Musical Instrument Competition in 2014. He designed his "Adjustable Microtonal Guitar" in 2008. His first recorded work with this instrument, 'Atlas', was released by Kalan Music in 2012. He has performed at many festivals and universities in more than 34 countries. Tolgahan is composing a repertoire for microtonal guitar with more than 40 composers involved at the moment.
He has been a professor since 2013 at the Turkish State Conservatory of Music, Istanbul Technical University, where he founded the first microtonal guitar department in 2014.
Since 2016 he has been organising the world's first Microtonal Guitar Competition. His book 'Microtonal Guitar' was published in 2018 by Mojo Roots Music, co-authored with Fernando Perez. His latest album 'Microtonal' was published in 2018 by Ahenk Music. Currently, he is a professor at the Turkish State Conservatory of Music, Istanbul Technical University and at the Centre for Advanced Studies in Music.
