Ahmet Samim Bilgen was a Turkish lawyer, best known for his musical career as a violinist and composer.
Education
Bilgen studied and practiced law professionally, but has also been an active musician, particularly in his youth. After finishing Haydarpaşa German Primary School and Kabataş High School, he studied law at Istanbul University and graduated in 1931. In 1961-1962, Bilgen studied international law at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America. He attended Seyfeddin Asal"s violin class in Istanbul Municipal Conservatory.
Career
His song Ilgaz (lyrics also belong to him) has become a household tune in Turkey, and is popular even in China. Samim Bilgen served as a lawyer at State Forestry Administration and in later years as a legal advisor at the Ministry of Finance. His musical life started in Istanbul during his high school years.
He learned to play the piano from his mother, and trained himself in music theory as well as playing the violin.
While he was a law student, he started playing the violin professionally, first with Istanbul City Orchestra directed by the well known Turkish composer Hasan Ferit Alnar. Later, from 1930 to 1935, he played the first violin with Istanbul Conservatory Orchestra directed by Cemal Reşit Rey, also one of the top Turkish composers of the Republican era.
Professor Eugene Borrel of the Paris Conservatory heaped praise on Bilgen"s collection entitled Turkish Folk Songs. Throughout his life, he has endeavored to increase the popularity of polyphonic music in Turkey, and since 1973, he served on the consulting board of Sevda Cenap And Music Foundation.