Turkish Pop Music Culture

Turkish Pop Music Culture

Erol Büyükburç, one of the most famous Turkish pop singers in the 1960s and ’70s, has made quite a reputation with his extraordinary stage attire.


Some of those unusual costumes had long collars, some sported huge flower designs and others had pictures of bugs. Büyükburç is also famous for the unusual stage designs he used in his concerts. Once he had a sultan’s throne on the stage and another time he decorated it with a replica of a space station.

The veteran artist, who has kept his costumes since the day he set foot on the stage, rented a two-bedroom house in İstanbul’s Kartal district two years ago where he now stores part of his wardrobe. Büyükburç pays regular visits to this “personal museum” and takes care of his stage costumes on a regular basis. He even talks to them.






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Claiming that his name will not be forgotten because he has brought down numerous taboos in Turkish music, Büyükburç explains how he made his first stage costume:

“I used to make unusual designs that defined me. Then I decided to order fabrics from abroad and looked for an exclusive tailor who would sew my designs for me. Back then, there was a famous tailor whose shop was located in Galatasaray. I took a look at his craft: one-button or two-button suit jackets; that was it. When I went to him and put my drawings on the table, he was shocked: ‘You’re crazy, are you going to wear these?’ he told me. I said, yes, I am crazy. I opened up my bag and took out the colorful fabrics; yellows, reds… His amazement grew further. But then he conceded and agreed to make the suits according to my instructions. I drew the sewing patterns for him. The audience went wild when it saw the costumes. When I went there again for a second time, he shouted at me: ‘Now everybody wants what you are wearing on stage!’ Well, I then became sure I was doing the right thing.”


Büyükburç, who still wears similar costumes in his concerts, reserved one room of his apartment for his tailors. He made a deal with three female tailors and asked them to sew an exclusive costume for each concert. Let’s say he was to appear in a concert in Ankara; he would have at least 15 costumes ready for the event. “I started a costume revolution in the Turkish music scene,” Büyükburç now recalls.

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