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BIO
İlhan
Sami Özulu is currently celebrating his 42nd year anniversary in music. He
was born and raised in İstanbul, Turkey and started his music education in
1966 at İstanbul Municipal Conservatory of Music when he was at middle
school. After his graduation from Kültür Koleji, in 1972, he enrolled at
the University of İstanbul's School of Economics. At the same time,
he started to play guitar at various hotels, nightclubs and casinos in
İstanbul and participated in several tours in Europe and all around Turkey.
İlhan
formed his first band, "Evrim Folk Dörtlüsü", with his brother
İhsan in 1970, and recorded the first single record in 1971. In 1973
they changed their band's name to "Evrim 5", and recorded their
second single with lyrics by Ümit Yaşar Oğuzcan, and Esmeray featured on
lead vocal. With the success of this single, "Evrim 5" hit
the charts on HEY Music Magazine's Top 50 list for 16 consecutive
weeks. İlhan İrem later joined the group as a lead singer.
Among his many other accomplishments, İlhan received the TRT Best Composer
Music Award in 1979, competing with 415 other composers.
In
1978, İlhan was the leader of the professional well-known band "Grup
Evrim" between 1978 and 1991. He played viola at "Kültür
Bakanlığı Devlet Klasik Türk Muziği Korosu" until he had to serve for
the Turkish Armed Forces at General Staff Headquarters in Ankara as a
Second Lieutenant. After completion of his military service, he
rejoined his band "Grup Evrim." At the same time, İlhan was
also the Music Director of the Turkic World Research Foundation Music
Ensemble, toured Europe several times.
With
his undergraduate degree in music, İlhan started working at İstanbul
Municipal Conservatory of Music, later known as University of İstanbul
State Conservatory, as both an academician and a performer on the viola and
guitar, between 1983 and 1992. He received a Masters degree in 1991,
and following with a Ph.D. in Radio/TV Broadcasting from the University of
İstanbul, in 1995.
İlhan,
his wife Deniz and daughter İpek, moved to Washington, D.C. on July 20,
1992 and started working for the Voice of America as an International Radio
Broadcaster. His son Evrim Kaan was born in Virginia, in 1996.
After working a short period of time at the Turkish Embassy, İlhan changed
his career to Information Technology. Currently, he is working as a
Software Configuration Manager at Booz Allen Hamilton and pursuing his
second doctorate degree in Science and Technology at Virginia Tech. İlhan receıved
his second masters degree in E-Commerce from George Mason University in 2007.
Even
though he changed his daytime career, Dr. Özulu still plays all kinds of
Turkish and international music in the Washington D.C. Metropolitan
Area. He established and directed Turkish Music Choir in 2001, and
supported Turkish Folklore Troupe of Washington, DC. He also performed at several Turkish
Festivals around the United States.
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