Zeki Müren

Zeki Müren — Biography

Zeki Müren (2 January 1931, Bursa – 24 September 1996, İzmir) was a Turkish singer, composer, lyricist, actor and poet, counted among the leading figures of Turkish classical music. He became known for blending the classical repertoire with contemporary song on the same stage, for the control he exercised over his voice, and for his immaculate diction. The public hailed him as Sanat Güneşi — the Sun of Art — while his admirers affectionately addressed him as Paşa.

His childhood and youth unfolded in Bursa, where his passion for music first stirred during his school years. Moving to İstanbul in the early 1950s, he studied in the advanced decorative arts department of the State Academy of Fine Arts (today Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University), and even while attending classes he set about building a career in music, singing regularly for the city's radio station of the period. His debut record appeared in 1951.

Throughout the 1950s his fame spread across the whole country, and he became the first artist in Turkey to be honoured with a gold record award. Over the span of his career he cut upwards of six hundred records and cassettes and signed his name to more than three hundred compositions; these recordings found new life in durable compilations such as Zeki Müren Taş Plaklar, Zeki Müren Klasikleri and Pırlanta. He also wrote poetry and collected his verses in a volume entitled Bıldırcın Yağmuru. In recognition of everything he gave to the arts, the title of State Artist was conferred on him in 1991.

Cinema, too, occupied a significant share of his working life: from the 1950s through the mid-1970s he acted in some eighteen Yeşilçam pictures, frequently taking charge of their musical direction and composing their scores as well. The films in which he carried the leading role include Beklenen Şarkı, Son Beste, Berduş, Altın Kafes, Kırık Plak, Hayat Bazen Tatlıdır, Hep O Şarkı, Düğün Gecesi, Hindistan Cevizi, İnleyen Nağmeler, Rüya Gibi and Deli Deli Tepeli. In 1996 he also appeared in the television series Aynalar.

His presence on stage defied the conventions of the era; particularly in his later years, the lavish costumes he designed himself — studded with stones, fashioned from glittering fabrics and matched with abundant jewellery — turned into an inseparable element of his public image. His private life and sexual orientation remained subjects of public discussion for many years, yet he never offered an open statement about them. On 24 September 1996, in İzmir, he suffered a heart attack while on stage for a programme being prepared for TRT, and died as a result.