MAHiR CAN KÜÇÜK
Composer / Arranger / Vocalist-Instrumentalist /
Music Educator / Music Director
MAHIR CAN KÜÇÜK
PAMUKKALE YOLLARI (Berklee Music Video)
The Roads of Pamukkale ( A dedication to activism, tolerance and secularism )
As an old Turkish folk tradition, this piece begins with the hometown statement of Pamukkale (A UNESCO world heritage site in the city of Denizli). The theme of the song is prejudice, extremism, and apathy. The music features East Mediterranean traditions of odd meters and microtonality, performed by Berklee students with diverse cultural backgrounds.
Pamukkale Yolları //
Lyrics, Music, Arrangements: Mahir Can Küçük, Piano/Guitar Intro: Michael Stapleton
(English Subtitles Available)
Neyleyek (Azerbaijani Jazz) / Cover
Too Young (Jazz) / Cover
Hidden Stars (Synthwave / Retro Electro)
I'll Call You Mine (Disco-Pop)
-Matthew Nicholl , Executive director of Mediterranean Music Institute of Berklee College of Music
"His writing, in both traditional Turkish and contemporary styles, is fresh and creative."
- Steven Santoro, Berklee Vocal Faculty, Artist, Arranger, Producer "Soul of the Night"
"He has brought in quite a few traditional Turkish pieces as well as Western and Turkish Hybrid arrangements. I think he does a wonderful job in bringing the music of the two cultures together."
BIO
Mahir Can Küçük was born in Denizli, Turkey. His private teachers in Turkey were Timur Selçuk and Randy Esen. After receiving a degree in industrial design, he began his studies at Berklee, studying contemporary writing and production, and graduated with "Summa Cum Laude" honors.
Küçük performed at and arranged for seven Berklee Performance Center concerts, with both his
Turkish and Western music background. He also performed on campus recitals with
his organic world fusion and Turkish music band "The Çay Party". The Çay Party represented
Berklee and Turkish music in several different Northeastern University festivals and Turkish
Consulate of Boston's receptions between 2015 and 2018. He was the leader of ""Music of Turkey" sections at Berklee International Folk Music Festival in 2016 and 2017.
Mahir won "Best Website Award" for his versatile portfolio and his presentation of it in 2017,
and he received "Mediterranean Music Institute Achievement Award" in 2017 on the night of the
Aynur Dogan concert in which she performed 3 of her songs arranged by him.
In Berklee's Commencement Concert 2017, he was one of 10 student arrangers and 3 male
backing vocalists in front of 7000 people including honorary doctorate recipients such as Lionel
Richie, and the Grammy President Neil Portnow. Additionally, he had the honor of being chosen
as the student to introduce Lionel Richie on stage.
Besides being a writer, arranger and producer, Küçük is a vocalist who features Western contemporary music, Turkish classical, traditional, and contemporary music in his repertoire. He is able to sing microtonally, with knowledge of Turkish and Egyptian microtonal traditions. He plays baglama, fretless guitar, bass guitar, piano, electric guitar, and hand percussion.