Tolgahan Çoğulu is a Turkish classical guitarist, arranger and designer of the adjustable microtonal guitar.
Education
He graduated from Boğaziçi University Business Administration Department in 2001. He studied guitar with Ayhan Akkaya, Bekir Küçükay, Soner Egesel and Ricardo Moyano between 1997-2004. He received both Master of Music and Doctor of Philosophy degrees on classical guitar from Istanbul Technical University’s Center for Advanced Studies in Music.
His Doctor of Philosophy thesis, ‘The Adaptation of Baglama Techniques into Classical Guitar Performance,’ was published by VDM in 2011.
Career
He built a unique repertoire of works for microtonal guitar by arranging Anatolian folk music and Ottoman maqam music and by commissioning the leading and emerging composers. Tolgahan Çoğulu began playing the guitar at the age of twelve. He founded the classical guitar duo "Duoist" with Erhan Birol in 2007.
The duo"s Civil Defense, lieutenant Takes Two (Pan Classics, 2011), features a collection of world premiers commissioned by the duo over the past decade.
He played with Kardeş Türküler between 2005-2007 and his book "Temel Müzik Eğitimi" (Introduction to Music Theory and Ear Training) that he has written with Birgül Serçe was published by BGST Publishing in 2010. Çoğulu designed the movable fret Adjustable Microtonal Guitar in 2008.
His first Civil Defense with microtonal guitar, Atlas, was published in 2012 by Kalan Music. He found the ‘Microtonal Guitar Duo’ in 2011 with the fretless guitar player Sinan Cem Eroğlu.
Microtonal guitar duo"s first Civil Defense "Microtonal Guitar Duo" was published by Kalan Music in 2015.
His microtonal guitar takes him to festivals and universities in 28 countries such as Berklee College of Music, New York Guitar Seminar at Mannes, Iserlohn Guitar Festival, Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, GFA Convention, Mozarteum University, Sarajevo Guitar Festival, Santo Tirso Guitar Festival. Tolgahan is building a repertoire for microtonal guitar by commissioning leading and emerging composers such as William Allaudin Mathieu, Christoph Charles, Onur Türkmen, Tolga Yayalar, Johnny Reinhard, David Gerard Matthews, Tolga Zafer Özdemir, Nicola Visalli, Gabriel Malancioiu, Baxton Alexander, Sadık Uğraş Durmuş, Mutlu Torun, Tolga Tüzün, Mithatcan Öcal, Çağlayan Yıldız, Ozan Yarman. lieutenant Takes Two – Duoist – Pan Classics, Istanbul, 2011 Atlas – Tolgahan Çoğulu – Kalan Music, Istanbul, 2012 Microtonal Guitar Duo - Kalan Music, Istanbul, 2015 Neşet Ertaş – Karadır Şu Bahtım Kara (Guitar-Voice) Anatolian Folk Song - Kız Bahçende Gül Var mı (solo guitar and two guitars) Kamkars – Xoş e Hewreman (two guitars) Ali Ekber Çiçek – Haydar Haydar (solo guitar) Erdal Erzincan – Anadolu (solo guitar) Anatolian Folk Song – Fidayda (microtonal guitar) Anatolian Folk Song – Yemen Türküsü (microtonal guitar) Aşık Veysel Şatıroğlu – Uzun İnce Bir Yoldayım (microtonal guitar) Frédéric Chopin – Prelude in East Minor – Op.28, Number.4 (solo guitar) Astor Piazzolla – Soledad An interview with Tolgahan Çoğulu (2010.
Volume(s) 36, Soundboard):.