Berkant
Berkant | |
---|---|
Birth name | Berkant Akgürgen |
Born | December 31, 1938 Ankara, Turkey |
Origin | Turkey |
Died | October 1, 2012 Istanbul, Turkey | (aged 73)
Genres | Anatolian rock, türkü |
Occupation(s) | Singer, composer, songwriter, musician, |
Berkant Akgürgen (December 31, 1938 – October 1, 2012) was a Turkish singer.
Life
[edit]He was born in Ankara, Turkey on 31 December 1938 to Cahide Akgürgen. His father Hasan Akgürgen [1] was a teacher in Hasanoğlan village institute. During his high school education in Ankara and Denizli, Berkant took piano lessons and after his compulsory military service he also learned saxophone.
Career
[edit]In 1957, he began his music career as an instrument player in Ankara . In 1960, he transferred to Istanbul and in 1965 he began singing. He also released several 45 rpm records. In 1967, he sang Samanyolu, a song composed by Metin Bükey with lyrics by Teoman Alpay. The record was an unpredicted success and earned him a gold record. (This song was later on covered by Dutch singer David Alexandre Winter with French lyrics.) After this success he continued singing and also composing.[2] He married Serpil Örümcer in 1971, but they divorced in 1972.
Death
[edit]He died in Istanbul due to cancer on October 1, 2012.[3] He was survived by his wife Engin, daughter Fatma Fulya and two sons Ovgü and Öykü.[1]
Legacy
[edit]In Mersin where he lived most of his last years, a street in Yenişehir intracity district is named after Berkant.[4]
Albums
[edit]In addition to his 44 records, he also released 3 albums:
- Ah Kızlar
- Berkant Midi LP
- Berkant Samanyolu [5]