Fazıl Say is a world-renowned Turkish composer and classical music pianist, internationally celebrated for his virtuosity, original compositions, and unique synthesis of Western classical music with jazz and Anatolian musical traditions.

Fazıl Say was born on January 14, 1970, in Ankara. His mother, Gürgün Say, was a pharmacist, and his father, Ahmet Say, was a writer and musicologist. Following his parents’ separation, he grew up with his father, who played a significant role in shaping his intellectual and artistic development.

At the age of three, Fazıl Say began rhythmic gymnastics and auditory training with Ali Kemal Kaya. He later studied piano for eight years under Mithat Fenmen. He was admitted to the Ankara State Conservatory, where he studied piano with Kamuran Gündemir and composition with İlhan Baran. At just fourteen years old, in 1984, while still a conservatory student in Ankara, he composed his first work, a piano sonata.

During his conservatory years, Fazıl Say received extensive training in harmony, counterpoint, musical form, analysis, instrumentation, orchestration, ancient modes, Turkish music modal and rhythmic systems, and jazz harmony. He also studied contemporary music styles for three years with Ertuğrul Oğuz Fırat.

At the age of seventeen, Fazıl Say won a DAAD scholarship and entered the Robert Schumann Institute in Düsseldorf, where he studied under David Levine. Between 1992 and 1995, he continued his education at the Berlin Conservatory.

In 1994, Fazıl Say achieved a major international breakthrough by winning first prize at the Young Concert Artists International Auditions. This success launched his global career, leading to awards from the Radio France Beracasa Foundation, Paul A. Fish Foundation, Boston Metamorphosen Orchestra, and the M. Clairmont Foundation. Following these achievements, he settled in New York and rapidly expanded his international presence.

Throughout his career, Fazıl Say has performed with some of the world’s most prestigious orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. He has appeared at leading international festivals, making debut performances during the 2003–2004 season at the Salzburg Festival, Lincoln Center Festival, Harrods Piano Series, and World Piano Series. Among the musicians he collaborated with during these concerts were Yuri Bashmet and Shlomo Mintz.

In 2004, Fazıl Say toured Europe and the United States with Maxim Vengerov, performing at renowned venues such as Carnegie Hall, Vienna Musikverein, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Barbican Centre, and the Salzburg Festival.

Driven by his passion for jazz and improvisation, Fazıl Say collaborated in 2000 with ney master Kudsi Ergüner. Together, they formed a jazz quartet and performed at major festivals including Montreux Jazz Festival, Juan-les-Pins Festival, Istanbul Jazz Festival, and venues in Saint-Denis, Paris, and Montpellier.

In 1991, Fazıl Say premiered his concerto Reflections, written for violin, piano, and orchestra, with the Berlin Symphony Orchestra. In 1996, he premiered his second piano concerto Silk Road in Boston. In 2001, he presented the premiere of the Nazım Oratorio, composed in honor of Nazım Hikmet, in Ankara. In 2003, he performed the Metin Altıok Requiem before an audience of 5,000 at the Istanbul Festival.

He also created piano adaptations of major works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Niccolò Paganini, presenting these arrangements in a concert in Vienna in February 2006.

In May 2005, Fazıl Say composed the soundtrack for the film Ultima Thule, directed by Hans Ulrich Schlumpf.

The year 2012 marked an exceptionally productive period for Fazıl Say. In March, the premiere of his concerto Hezarfen, composed for ney and orchestra with Burcu Karadağ as soloist, was conducted by Dan Ettinger at the Mannheim National Theatre Orchestra Academy. In June, his second symphony Mesopotamia Symphony, commissioned by the Istanbul Music Festival, premiered in Istanbul under the baton of Gürer Aykal with the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra.

Later that year, his cello and piano sonata Four Cities, commissioned by the BBC, premiered at the City of London Festival performed by Nicolas Altstaedt and José Gallardo. In September 2012, audiences at the Konzerthaus Dortmund heard the premiere of the orchestral version of his song Panther, based on a poem by Rainer Maria Rilke. In October, the premiere of his third symphony Universe was conducted by Ivor Bolton with the Salzburg Mozarteum Orchestra, receiving standing ovations.

In 2014, world premieres of several commissioned works took place, including Gezi Park 2 (Vienna Konzerthaus), Sait Faik (Istanbul Music Festival), Hermias – The Child on the Dolphin (D-Marin Turgutreis International Classical Music Festival), Gezi Park 3 (Musikfest Bremen), and Overture 1914, commissioned by the Belgian National Orchestra and conducted by Andrey Boreyko.

Fazıl Say continues his international career, performing concerts and recitals worldwide with leading orchestras and conductors. His works are published and distributed globally by Schott Music.

In his personal life, Fazıl Say married cellist Gülyar Balcı in 1997; the marriage ended in divorce in 2004. He has a daughter named Kumru Say, born in 2000. He later married architect Ece Dağıstan in Milan on January 25, 2019; they divorced on November 30, 2022. On October 16, 2025, Fazıl Say married flutist Aslıhan And in a private ceremony.

Selected Works – Compositions
Preludes (1985)
Suite (1986)
Black Hymns (1987)
Silk Road (Piano Concerto)
Reflections (1991)
Nazım Oratorio (2001)
Metin Altıok Requiem (2002–2003)
Piano Concerto No. 3 (2001)

Books
Flying Notes (1999)

Albums
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
George Gershwin
Igor Stravinsky
Johann Sebastian Bach
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Franz Liszt

Awards
European Union Piano Competition (1991)
Young Concert Artists Competition – Europe First Prize (1994)
Young Concert Artists Competition – World First Prize (1995)
Diapason d’Or (2000)
ECHO Award – Deutsche Phono Akademie (2001)

Source: Biyografiler.com