Firdevs Eke

Piano and Musicianship Tutor

Firdevs Eke is a pianist and composer, with a distinctive style that combines her Eastern roots with classical music, jazz and flamenco. She was strongly influenced by Andalusian folk music rhythms and harmonies, growing up in Seville, Spain. Her trio, Buhara Ensemble, has played throughout Europe.

A native of Istanbul, Firdevs Eke begins her music studies in Seville (Spain) where, at an early age she developed her own compositional style. She obtained her Professional Diploma in Piano at the Conservatorio Profesional de Musica “Francisco Guerrero” in Seville (Spain), studying with Ignacio Rodriguez Tuñas, and received her Master in Arts in Composition graduating with honours from the Conservatory of Ghent (Belgium), where she studied with Frank Nuyts, Leon Lhoëst and Dirk Brossé.

Firdevs has written many pieces for piano and for other solo instruments, chamber music, orchestral and vocal pieces, as well as arrangements of well known pieces from the Turkish traditional music repertoire. Some of her most outstanding works include “Loopy Grooves” (2007) for piano solo, premiered by the Belgian pianist Marc Masson; and “Intermezzo” (2008) for Symphony Orchestra, premiered by the Orchestra of the Conservatory of Ghent, conducted by Mr. Michel Tilkin.

Firdevs says, ” my first concert was the Jacques Loussier Trio playing Vivaldi’s ‘The Four Seasons’ and Ravel’s ‘Bolero’. I still love this pianist and his jazzy arrangements of famous classical works are supreme.”

Favourite piece: (one would be) Erik Satie’s Gnossienne No.3.