Remembering Barış Manço: Turkey’s music legend

Turkey commemorated Barış Manço, one of the most prominent figures in Turkey who had a great cultural influence, on Jan. 31, 21 years after his passing.

Suffering a heart attack, Manço, one of Turkey's most beloved figures, died on Jan. 31, 1999 at the age of 56. His death came just before the release of his album "Mançoloji" which marked his 40 years of experience in music.

Millions of people gathered together in Istanbul for his funeral.

With his long hair, silver jewellery and authentic stage costumes, he was best known as a great musician, but he was also a television programmer, a traveler, and the cultural ambassador of Turkey.

Beside his wonderful career, Manço was fond of Victorian furniture and an important collector of Japanese and Chinese porcelain, 19th-century Orientalist paintings and Art Deco and Art Nouveau glassware.

Early life

Manço was born on Jan. 2, 1943 in Istanbul during the Second World War. His parents named him "Barış" ("Peace" in English) to celebrate the end of the war. Rumor has is that he is the first person in Turkey to be named after peace.

Manço received his early education at Galatasaray High School in Istanbul and graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Belgium in 1969, where he studied graphic and textile design.

In 1978, he married Lale Çağlar and had two children, Doğukan Hazar and Batıkan Zorbey.

Career

His interest in music began during high school where he formed a band named 'Kafadarlar', meaning 'Buddies'.

The father of Turkish rock recorded his first single in the early 60s with his next band, Harmoniler, (The Harmonies), which is one of the first examples of the Anatolian rock genre combining...