Bülent Ortaçgil

Biography

Bülent Ortaçgil (born 1 March 1950) is a Turkish composer and singer.

Biography

He was born in Ankara, Turkey in 1950. He moved to Istanbul after starting elementary school which he finished at Sultanahmet Elementary School in Istanbul. He completed his middle school and high school education at Kadıköy Anadolu Lisesi which is also commonly known as Kadıköy Maarif College. He graduated from the University of Istanbul, Faculty of Chemistry.

Musical career

He started playing guitar while at Kadıköy Maarif Koleji. Another popular composer and singer Mazhar Alanson (from the band MFÖ) was concurrently a student at the same school, and says that Ortaçgil was a guitar player that he admired back in school. He played with some groups, including Damlalar (Drops). His music has been influenced by various artists, including The Beatles, Cat Stevens, Donovan and Bob Dylan. His first long play was called "Anlamsız" (Meaningless), which he published while in college.
In 1974, his first album was released under the title "Benimle Oynar Mısın×Benimle Oynar mısın1974 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracksA1GünaydınA2KedilerA3Olmalı mı Olmamalı mıA4AnlamsızA5Herşey Sevgiyle BaşlarA6Suna AblaA7Bahar TürküsüB1Benimle Oynar mısınB2YağmurB3Sen VarsınB4Yüzünü Dökme Küçük KızB5Şık LatifeB6Dört Kişili DüşB7Günaydın II?" (Will You Play with Me?), considered to be a classic. Onno Tunç and Ergun Pekcan were among those who helped the recording and mastering of his albums.
He took a ten-year break from music after he got married. During this time, he worked as a chemical engineer at companies like Pfizer and Netaş Telecom. During 1985, Ortaçgil played with Fikret Kızılok at "Çekirdek Müzikevi"; this performance yielded to a non-published copy album "Bizim Şarkılarımız …".
The album "Pencere Önü Çiçeği×Pencere Önü Çiçeği17 June 2008 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 8 tracks1Olmasın Varsın3:592Değirmenler3:503Güneş Aynasında5:134Uyusun da Büyüsün3:185Bir Nihavend Yalnızlık3:106Pencere Önü Çiçeği3:277Entellektüel4:278Şarkıdaki Maymun4:49" (Windowsill Flower) was published in 1986. The song Pencere Önü Çiçeği was another classic, criticizing an intellectual, isolated life against a life "outside the window."
In 1991 came the album called "Oyuna Devam×Oyuna Devam26 August 1991 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Aşk Nereye Kadar4:302Yasak2:323Bütün Sokaklarım5:214Zamana Sıkışmış4:235Kızıma Mektup4:226Bu Su Hiç Durmaz5:367Duyuyor musun?3:518Yalnız3:519Oyuna Devam2:3310Kaptan (Yolculuk Ne Zaman)3:50" (Let the game continue). The album gathered some of his old band friends such as Erkan Oğur, Cem Aksel and Gürol Ağırbaş, who had been playing together for over 10 years.
In 2000, a tribute album called "Şarkılar bir Oyundur" (Songs Are a Game) was published, featuring performances from 22 different Turkish singers and bands, spanning a wide genre of music among them.
He frequently uses the theme "game"/"play" in his songs.

Singles

1971: Anlamsız / Yüzünü Dökme Küçük Kız
1974: Olmalı mı, Olmamalı mı? / Şık Latife

Studio albums

1974: Benimle Oynar Mısın?
1990: 2. Perde
1991: Oyuna Devam
1994: Bu Şarkılar Adam Olmaz
1998: Light
2003: Gece Yalanları
2010: Sen
2022: Elli Buçuk

Other albums

1976: 3 Masal (Masal album)
1984: Rüzgara Söylenen Şarkılar (live album)
1985: Biz Şarkılarımızı.. (recorded live with Fikret Kızılok)
1986: Pencere Önü Çiçeği (with Fikret Kızılok)
1999: Eski Defterler (Contains new versions of his earlier works)
2007: Teoman-Bülent Ortaçgil Konser (live with Teoman)
2007: Büyükler İçin Çocuk Şarkıları (recorded with Fikret Kızılok in 1987 and released 20 years later)
2017: Senfonik Ortaçgil (Concert DVD)