Kutlu Payaslı

Kutlu Payaslı was born in Amasya in 1936. After graduating from Haydarpaşa High School, he began working for Ankara Radio as a trainee in 1955. He became chorus master in 1963, and conducted many concerts in Turkey and abroad. Payaslı received a Merit Medal from King Hussein of Jordan in 1968. The same year, he played an active role in the TRT auditions, which was held to introduce new voices to Turkish music. In 1971, Payaslı received “the best Singer of the Year” Award from the Istanbul Express Newspaper, and his songs were laureate in the Millet newspaper’s competition in 1977. From 1977 to 1979, Payaslı was a member of the TRT Central Repertoire Committee in Ankara. In 1979, he settled in Izmir, and taught for 6 years at the Aegean Universitys′ Turkish Music Conservatory. He was the producer of the “Melodies from the Heart” program at the Ankara Television. Payaslı has been a member of the TRT Central Audit Committee since 1995. In 1998, he received the title of State Artist from the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism. He has 13 songs and one instrumental work in the TRT repertoire. In 2002, he retired from TRT. Currently, he resides in Bursa.

Reference: ozarpat.net, tr.wikipedia.org, google.com.tr/images