BÜLENT GÜNERALP
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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 voice expert and teacher, the creator of the trailblazing Vocathletic System for Voice, Singing & Speech, a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing, a multi-instrumentalist, and a former drummer of Istanbul State Theater Orchestra. He has been officially recognized both by the Massachusetts State Senate and Thomas Menino, former mayor of Boston.
Also an athlete, a health and nutrition coach, and an animal rights activist, he was voted PETA Prime’s Most Beautiful Vegan Over 50 in 2020. Most recently, in addition to his longtime collaboration with great pianist Eunyoung Kim, he started an artistic activism collaboration with acclaimed pianist, speaker and author Dr. Joanne Kong.
Mr. 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 main male voice categories; tenor, baritone and bass. His long and arduous vocal journey of finding his true baritone voice gave rise to the trailblazing Vocathletic System, debunking many longstanding and widespread vocal, athletic and nutrition-related myths. Also, his surprising athletic development as the by-product of his vocal journey doing functional bodyweight training on the Thrive diet of Canadian Ironman triathlete Brendan Brazier 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 (more at The News & Interviews).
Mr. Güneralp's most recent 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.
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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