Burak is a composer, bassoonist, choreograph and director. He studied historical performance and composition at The Juilliard School, University of the Arts Berlin and at the Istanbul Conservatory. In 2008 he founded Musica Sequenza in New York; an ensemble which stands for the innovation of baroque music and intercultural production. In 2010 Burak moved back to Berlin, where he practices new performance modalities through self-developed methods. Burak has created internationally renowned productions such as “The New Four Seasons” and “Bach : The Silent Cantata” as well as the immersive sound installation series “Transmute”.

Burak’s musical activities have been seen in Europe, North and South America and Asia, in spaces such as Elbphilharmonie, Peter J Sharp Theater, Berghain, Berlin Philharmonic, Concertgebouw, Staatsoper Vienna, Teatro Colon of Buenos Aires. As a soloist he has appeared with the Istanbul Philharmonic, L’arte del Mondo, Juilliard Symphony Orchestra and Les Arts Florissants and collaborated with Sting, Matthew Herbert, Magdalena, Werner Ehrhardt, N’to, Fazil Say, Rodriguez Jr, Andreas Scholl, Rias Kammerchor, Hernan Cattaneo, Rundfunkchor Berlin and Edita Gruberova.

In recent years Burak applied the language and tools of contemporary performance to vitalize and explore historical operas and sacred baroque repertoire. With “Fuga” (2010), “Opera del Futuro” (2015) and “Enigma” (2020) and established the genre of the electro-baroque. In 2015 Handel Festspiele Halle commissioned his production “Sampling Baroque”, which became the first electronic album release of Deutsche Harmonia Mundi. The following episode of “Sampling Baroque” was commissioned by the International Bach Festival Schaffhausen and premiered in Kammgarn, Switzerland in 2016. Shortly after it’s creation, “Sampling Baroque” has become an internationally touring program and visited festivals and spaces such as Istanbul Music Festival, Bach Akademie Stuttgart, Berghain, Radial System V, Oranjewoud Festival and broadcasted on Arte Concerts, Deutsche Welle, Swiss National Television and Radio Berlin Brandenburg.

In 2014 Burak received a commission by the Grand Palais Museum Paris to compose music for the “Diego Velazquez” world tour exhibition. The work was curated and filmed by Karim Ainouz, which later became an international DVD release on Arte Edition France.

Burak is currently focusing on the intensification of collaborative processes, such as the dialogic development of choreography and music. In 2013 he collaborated with the Sasha Waltz & Guests company at the Festival d’Avignon for the performance of “Dialoge”. He composed original music for this production, using his sound recordings from various Gezi Park demonstrations in Istanbul. The performance took place in the Opera Avignon including Burak’s free improvisation. In 2016 Burak wrote music and performed live for Sasha Waltz’s interdisciplinary and open exchange platform “Zuhören” at Radial System V. Following year he joined Sasha Waltz for the choreographic installation “Figure Humaine” for the inauguration of the Hamburg Elbphilharmonie.

In 2018 Burak was commissioned by the Stadttheater Schaffhausen for his choreographic oratorio “Atlas Passion”; an interdisciplinary Bach production for voice, baroque orchestra, modern dance, video sculptures and light- and costume design. Over hundred artists performed in this production.

Istanbul born sound artist Burak appears with his live sets in clubs such as Berghain, Sisyphos, KitKat, Kammgarn, Wagenhallen, Radialsystem and Bomontiada Istanbul to name a few and records for Sony Music, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi and Neue Meister labels together with Grammy awarded producer Da-Hong Seetoo, German recording engineer Christian Jaeger and Swedish DJ & Producer Van Rivers. Burak coaches educational workshops at universities and festivals around the world for soloists, ensembles and electronic musicians.

LIVE

6 June 2022 – MORPHINE, Händel Festspiele Halle, Germany (World Premiere)
2021 – INFERNO, TBA
1 November 2021 – DEVAS, Borusan House Istanbul, Turkey
15 May 2021 – OPIUM, Bach Festival Schaffhausen, Switzerland (World Premiere)
1-30 May 2021 – LOCKED DOWN, Chretzeturm Foundation, Switzerland
2021 – DEVAS, Mardin Biennale, Turkey
4 December 2020 – DEVAS, Record Release, Worldwide
1-2-6 August 2020 – ON AIR, Borusan Klassik Radio, Turkey
8 January 2020 – DEVAS, Christus Church Berlin, Germany
7 January 2020 – DEVAS, Christus Church Berlin, Germany
6 January 2020 – DEVAS, Christus Church Berlin, Germany
16 November 2019 – HERMES, Borusan Museum Istanbul, Turkey
1 September 2019 – FELIX FESTIVAL, Club Domhof Cologne, Germany
31 August 2019 – STILL SEMELE, Kölner Philharmonie, Cologne, Germany (World Premiere)
8 June 2019 – HERMES, Karavaan Festival, The Netherlands
7 June 2019 – HERMES, Karavaan Festival, The Netherlands (World Premiere)
1 June 2019 – LYRE, International Music Video Awards Berlin, Germany
7 April 2019 – BACH MOTETTEN, Heilig Kreuz Kirche Berlin, Germany
6 April 2019 – BACH MOTETTEN, Heilig Kreuz Kirche Berlin, Germany
4 April 2019 – HERMES, Record Release at Silent Green KulturQuartier Berlin, Germany
1 February 2019 – BACH MOTETTEN, Heilig Kreuz Kirche Berlin, Germany
4 January 2019 – MAROF PROJECT, Marof Winery, Slovenia
30 November 2018 – KORERO, Pera Museum Istanbul, Turkey (World Premiere)
23 October 2018 – ATLAS PASSION, Stadttheater Schaffhausen, Switzerland
22 October 2018 – ATLAS PASSION, Stadttheater Schaffhausen, Switzerland
21 October 2018 – ATLAS PASSION, Stadttheater Schaffhausen, Switzerland
20 October 2018 – ATLAS PASSION, Stadttheater Schaffhausen, Switzerland
19 October 2018 – ATLAS PASSION, Stadttheater Schaffhausen, Switzerland (World Premiere)
8 June 2018 – SAMPLING BAROQUE, Oranjewoud Festival, The Netherlands
22 March 2018 – SILENT CANTATA, Darmstadt Stadttheater, Germany
1 February 2018 – SAMPLING BAROQUE, Factory Studios New York, U.S.A.Past Shows

Past Shows

ALBUMS