Album Notes

Yurdal Tokcan is considered one of the finest oud players in the world today by many music authorities. His style combines older traditions with many new stylistic innovations, which are also present in his playing of the fretless guitar. His many new compositions combine traditional rich melodies with polyphonic textures performed on Turkish classical instruments.

Tokcan was born in Ordu on the Black Sea cost of Turkey in 1966. He is a 1998 graduate of Istanbul Technical University’s Turkish Music Government Conservatory. While completing his masters program there, he joined the faculty as an oud instructor. Tokcan continues to teach, sharing his knowledge, experience, and technique with Turkish and foreign students.

In 1990, he joined the Culture and Tourism Ministry’s Istanbul Government Music Ensemble under the artistic direction of Tanburi Necdet Yasar. As a member of this ensemble, Yurdal performed in France, Holland, Belgium, and Spain. He is a member of the Istanbul Fasil Ensemble and the Istanbul Tasavvuf Music Ensemble, and a founding member of the Istanbul Sazendeleri (Musicians of Istanbul), a group dedicated to presenting Turkish instrumental works. Tokcan has participated in many recording sessions and has performed internationally, in Germany, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Spain, Greece, Japan, Turkmenistan, Israel, Tunisia, Lebanon, Bosnia, and Northern Cyprus.