Yusuf Gençay

YUSUF GENÇAY

He was born in Istanbul in 1970. In 1991 he graduated from the viola class of Prof. Betil Başeğmezler at the Ankara Hacettepe University State Conservatory. During his student years, he took part in concerts of the Presidential Symphony Orchestra, the concerts and tours of the Mediterranean Youth Orchestra held in France, the master courses of Max Rabinovich held again in France, the Balkan Music Festival held in Athens, and the concerts and tours of the orchestra conducted by Gürer Aykal held at Bilkent University. He performed many solo and chamber music concerts.

In 1991 he joined the Anadolu University State Conservatory as an Artist Faculty Member.

He held administrative positions at the same institution. In 1993 he completed his Master’s program with Prof. Koral Çalgan. As the viola section principal of the Anadolu University State Conservatory String Chamber Orchestra, he performed many concerts and tours at home and abroad and took part in festivals. With the same orchestra he performed G.F. Telemann’s viola concerto as a soloist.

He performed baroque music concerts with pianist Çağdaş Alapınar Gençay and Prof. Hazar Alapınar (violin).

He served as a jury member in the establishment phase and in later artist recruitment exams of the Eskisehir Metropolitan Municipality Symphony Orchestra.

With the “Yunus Emre Quartet,” and with the participation of Prof. Zöhrab Adıgüzelzade (piano), he gave chamber music concerts in Vienna, Moscow, St. Petersburg and many cities at home. He pioneered the making of the sister-conservatory agreement between the Moscow Tchaikovsky State Conservatory and the Anadolu University State Conservatory.

In January 2005, he performed a concert with pianist Ferit Adıgüzelzade at the Moscow Tchaikovsky State Conservatory.

In 2008, within the scope of the “Erasmus Teaching Staff Exchange Project,” he was invited to Cesena, Italy (Conservatorio Maderna), and in 2013 to Fermo, Italy (Conservatorio Pergolesi), to give master classes and concerts. Serving as viola section principal in concerts of the Anadolu Symphony Orchestra, Gençay performed works by Hummel, Britten and Benda as a soloist with the same orchestra and took part in international tours.

He took part in CD recordings of the Mersin University Academic Chamber Orchestra. As a founding member of the viola section of the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra, he took part in concerts and tours for 15 years.

He composed the music for many plays of the professional group Tiyatro Anadolu. He made the musical arrangements and compositions for the shows titled “Kerem and Aslı” and “The Dance of Tymbris” of the Anadolu University professional Folk Dances ensemble. He made the musical arrangements and original music compositions for many theater and stage shows.

He performed an orchestral concert version of works by TV series and film music composer Toygar Işıklı. With the Mersin State Opera and Ballet Orchestra, in the October 29 Republic Concert, he performed a “Turkish Tangos” concert with the opera’s distinguished soloists.

He made musical arrangements for the Eskisehir Tepebasi Municipality Children’s Symphony Orchestra and presented them to the children as a gift for a special April 23 concert.

He composed the children’s musical titled “Pamira and the Cicada” to be staged for the State Opera and Ballet.

In the “Turkish Tangos” project, he made the symphonic orchestrations of the most important tangos of our Republic’s history and realized an album as a first. He carried out the symphonic orchestrations and music direction of the album titled “Symphony of Love” consisting of works by composer Can Atilla.

On April 23, 2025, the concert for which he made the orchestrations of children’s symphony orchestras and choirs was broadcast worldwide by TRT.

Gençay, a founding faculty member of the Eskisehir Anadolu University State Conservatory, where he trained students and took part in artistic activities for more than 30 years and from which he retired in 2022, carries out the duties of composing and arranging music for various artists and groups, membership of the board of the Eskisehir Symphony Orchestra, and planning jazz and chamber music concerts. He continues his musical journey by giving concerts in the format of romantic love songs performed by jazz vocalist Eylül Ergül, who plays piano and sings, together with a string quintet, a group he founded and arranged.

Mobile: 0.532.4221585

E-mail : gencayyusuf@gmail.com

Instagram : @yusufgencaymusic