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Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mehmet ŞİMŞEK was born in Burdur. Following his primary education, he completed his secondary studies at the Music Department of the Antalya Anatolian Fine Arts High School, to which he was admitted through a special aptitude examination. In 2005, he gained admission to the Department of Basic Sciences at the Istanbul Technical University (ITU) Turkish Music State Conservatory. He earned his bachelor's degree in 2011 with an undergraduate thesis titled "The Usage Characteristics of the Kemane in Contemporary Music." He commenced his graduate studies in 2011 in the Turkish Music Master's Program at the Haliç University Institute of Social Sciences, culminating in 2013 with his master's thesis titled "Regional Playing Techniques of Local Kemane Performers in the Burdur Province of the Teke Region." In 2018, he was accepted into the Music and Performing Arts Ph.D. Program at the Yıldız Technical University Institute of Social Sciences.
He served as a guest kemane artist at TRT Istanbul Radio and the State Turkish Folk Music Choir of the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism. During his tenure, he performed as a kemane artist in the "Folk Songs with Symphony" project concerts. These were organized under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism by the Çukurova State Symphony Orchestra in Adana, and by the Izmir State Symphony Orchestra at both the Aizanoi Ancient City in Kütahya and the Kibyra Ancient City in Burdur.
Between 2008 and 2016, he served as the musical director for the ITU Folklore and Arts Club Folk Dance Ensemble and the Turkish Folklore Institution Folk Dance Ensemble at numerous international music and folk dance festivals. These included the "XII. Mohács International Folk Dance Festival" (Hungary), "Warsfolk International Folk Dance Festival" (Poland), "Červený Kostelec International Folk Festival" (Czech Republic), "Zemplén International Folk Dance Festival" (Hungary), "Cheonan International Folk Dance Festival" (South Korea), "Mezinárodní Folklorní Festival Písek" (Czech Republic), "XXXIV. Festival Folclórico Internacional de Extremadura" (Spain), "Summerfest International Folklore Festival" (Hungary), "46. Międzynarodowy Festiwal Folkloru Ziem Górskich w Zakopanem" (Poland), and the "CIOFF International Folklorefestival of Westerlo" (Belgium).
In 2016 and 2017, he performed as a kemane artist at distinguished artistic events, including the "International Bağlama Festival" in Ghent, Belgium, and the "ITU Bağlama Days." In 2017, he performed with the ITU Turkish Music State Conservatory Orchestra in the collaborative project concert "From Tango to Folk Song, From Opera to Küy," organized by the ITU Conservatory Directorate and the Kazakhstan "Sazgen Sazy" Orchestra.
In 2019, he delivered a kemane concert and conducted a workshop as part of the "Acoustics" series within the "Grad Students Meetings" at Ibn Haldun University. Later that year, he performed as a kemane artist in the "Neşet Ertaş Commemoration and Cultural Arts Event," realized with the joint contributions of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Ankara Music and Fine Arts University.
In 2022, he successfully defended his doctoral dissertation titled "An Investigation of Bowed String Instruments in the Sociocultural Life of Yörük Turkmens of the Teke Region" in the Music and Performing Arts Ph.D. Program, affiliated with the Department of Art and Design at Yıldız Technical University. Consequently, he was awarded the title of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in the field of Music and Performing Arts.
Between 2020 and 2025, he served on the academic faculty as a Lecturer and an Assistant Professor at Ankara Music and Fine Arts University. During this period, he also held administrative roles as Vice Dean of the Faculty of Music and Performing Arts and Vice Chair of the Department of Instrument Education.
In 2024, he performed a kemane recital titled "Yay'la Yaren." As of 2025, his method book titled "Kemane Repertoire 1" was published. In the same year, he delivered kemane recitals titled "Yörük Turkmen Melodies" and "Melodies from Anatolia"; additionally, his solo kemane album titled "Hazan" was released on digital streaming platforms.
His academic publications include peer-reviewed articles such as "The Iklık Instrument Among the Yörük Turkmens of the Teke Region," "Bowing Applications in Kemane Performance: Détaché and Legato Techniques," and "An Actor in the Interaction Between Traditional and Contemporary Music: MIAM." Furthermore, he has presented numerous academic conference papers, including "A Nearly Forgotten Instrument Among the Yörük Turkmens of the Teke Region: Iklık," "Left-Hand Techniques Used in Kemane Performance," and "The Classification of Afyon Folk Songs Within the Framework of Musical Analysis."
He currently maintains his artistic endeavors, accompanying numerous artists in domestic and international stage and studio productions. He actively performs as a kemane artist in culture and arts programs on the TRT Müzik television network, radio broadcasts, film and television soundtracks, and various collaborative project concerts.
In 2026, he was awarded the title of Associate Professor in the scientific and artistic discipline of Turkish Folk Music Performance.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mehmet ŞİMŞEK currently serves as a faculty member in the Department of Instrument Education at the Istanbul Technical University (ITU) Turkish Music State Conservatory, where he continues his artistic and academic research.
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