Artist description Composer and arranger with a curious but coherent blend of exotic spices, eclectic influences and other secret ingredients.

Music Style Classical, pop, jazz, funk, electronica

Musical Influences Too many to list!

Similar Artists Satie, Debussy, Gil Evans, Tower of Power, Incognito

Artist History Doruk Somunkiran was born in Ankara, Turkey. He has been actively playing and composing music since the age of seven. He entered Berklee College of Music with a scholarship based on his compositional skills. After receiving other prestigious awards, including the John Dankworth Award for Excellence in Musicianship, he graduated from Berklee, magna cum laude, in 2000. Doruk currently lives in Boston, Massachusetts, where he works as a freelance composer, producer and orchestrator.

Press Reviews "Doruk Somunkiran displays an arranging talent that comes only to a few very gifted musicians. Doruk's style of arranging is one of the most original that I have seen, in that, although he uses conventional skills with much authority, he still manages to employ some distinct 'home-grown' inner balance of harmony that can only come from a special sense of tonal awareness which I would describe as 'God-given' (Gil Evans comes to mind here).... Musical compositions by Doruk Somunkiran, when listened to, will evoke images of various scenarios or pictures in the mind of the listener and this fact compels me to suggest that he will be a marvelous composer for film if he is ever asked to do film writing.... I am honored to present to you Mr. Doruk Somunkiran." RICHARD EVANS (recipient of Grammy, Clio and Golden Reel awards; producer and arranger for Natalie Cole, Peabo Bryson, Ramsey Lewis, Noel Pointer, Ahmad Jamal, Eddie Harris, Tower of Power, Buddy Rich, Sonny Stitt and others) __________ "He has a remarkable understanding of the various elements that comprise the field of music writing, and is equally adept at using the synthesizer as well as orchestrating for different combinations of acoustic elements.... His dedication to music is matched by a talent that is obvious. He is, definitely, 'A+'". DENNIS GRILLO (performer, arranger, studio musician and/or conductor for Stan Kenton, Charlie Barnet, Buddy Rich, Freddy Martin, Judy Garland, Carol Burnett, Anne Marie Moss, Barbara Mc Nair, The Four Freshmen, Connie Stevens) __________ "His knowledge of music technology and relative processes is always impressive to me. His production style, confidence in the studio and communication skills are excellent.... In combination with his musical abilities as a writer and arranger, Doruk is able to produce excellent recordings in many genres of commercial music." MICHAEL FARQUHARSON (MCA recording artist with three solo albums; recipient of two Canada Council Arts Awards and one Ontario Arts Council Award) __________ "His work is of the highest caliber. In fact, I plan to use the music he wrote as examples for my future classes to show them what I consider to be outstanding work." ROBERT DOEZEMA (Professor at Berklee College of Music, performances with Noel Redding, Greg Bissonette, William Kennedy, Toy Caldwell, Neil Stubenhaus, Steve Smith and Tiger Okoshi)

Location Boston, MA - USA

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