BÜLENT GÜNERALP
Described by The Times Herald-Record, New York, as a firm bass-baritone, by The Boston Musical Intelligencer as dramatically and musically outstanding, and by Appcompanist as an incredible singer and teacher, Bülent Güneralp is an award-winning artist, a trailblazing vocal training expert, creator of The Vocathletic System for Voice, Singing & Speech, pianist, and former drummer of Istanbul State Theaters Orchestra. He has been officially recognized by the Massachusetts State Senate and Thomas Menino, former mayor of Boston.
Bülent Güneralp is at home in diverse genres from opera to American Songbook. He has the extremely rare experience of having sung on the operatic stage all the main male voice categories; tenor, baritone and bass. His unheard-of vocal journey of finding his true baritone voice gave rise to The Vocathletic System, debunking many myths and dogmas about voice, athletics, nutrition and health. His surprising athletic development accompanying his vocal journey drew the attention of the Physicians Committee, which combines the expertise of more than 17000 physicians. He discussed his transformation in an interview on PCRM's Exam Room podcast.
Mr. Güneralp is a member of National Association of Teachers of Singing. He specializes in helping students of all ages and backgrounds discover and express their natural voice in the most efficient way possible, which they then can apply to any musical genre or vocal field. He has helped singers achieve in their first lessons things they have not been able to accomplish even after years of prior vocal training. A litany of superb and enthusiastic reviews speak for themselves. His students come from such diverse paths as rock, heavy metal, jazz, American Songbook, opera, oratorio, musical theater, a cappella, pop, R&B, gospel, country, public speaking.
Mr. Güneralp's latest singing highlights include the Turkish language premier of the role of Sultan in the Ukrainian opera Cossack Beyond The Danube with The Commonwealth Lyric Theater (Mr. Güneralp and his mother created the Turkish libretto for this role); the roles of The Master and Yefim in the US-premiere of the opera Desire To Sleep by Moshe Shulman with The Juventas New Music Ensemble; the narrator in the English language world-premiere of Expérience by Phivos-Angelos Kollias with The Juventas New Music Ensemble; the world-premieres of Missa Patri Pio by Leonardo Ciampa; the role of Jewish Man in the world-premiere of the opera The Prioress's Tale by Delvyn Case; The Omaggio al Bel Canto Best Interpretation Award at The Stelle dell'Anno Nuovo Festival in Boston (organized for the members of The Boston Opera Collaborative by The Dante Alighieri Society Italian Cultural Center of Massachusetts and The Consulate General of Italy); a feature program on CCTV; and a performance at the historic USS Salem in the inaugural maritime festival of Quincy, Massachusetts, where he sang the solos of Emile de Becque from the musical South Pacific by Rodgers & Hammerstein.
Most recently, in addition to his longtime collaboration with great pianist Eunyoung Kim, he started a collaboration with acclaimed pianist, speaker and author Dr. Joanne Kong.
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"When you think of opera, the word modern doesn't usually follow. Bulent Guneralp... is changing the way we think about this centuries-old art form. Guneralp is anything but a stereotypical opera singer... He isn't merely an opera singer, but a well-rounded musician . He has performed Broadway pieces, jazz solos, spirituals, and even contemporary pop songs, which he says inform his interpretation of even the most classical roles in opera. This approach to opera may be what draws crowds who aren't as familiar with the genre... This opera singer, who says his favorite music ranges from that of the heavy metal 80s band Cacophony to jazz pianist Chick Corea, shows that opera singers may not be what you think, and his audiences are surprisingly diverse as well... "
- Chelsea Whyte, The Somerville News