Fazıl Say was born in 1970. He was a child prodigy, who was able to do basic arithmetic with 4-digit numbers at the age of two. At the age of three, Say started his piano lessons under the tutelage of pianist Mithat Fenmen.
Say wrote his first piece – a piano sonata – in 1984, at the age of fourteen, when he was a student at the Conservatory of his home town of Ankara, Turkey.
It was followed, in this early phase of his development, by several chamber works for violin and piano and a guitar concerto. He subsequently designated as his opus 1 one of the works that he had played in the concert that won him the Young Concert Artists Auditions in New York.
Mr. Say’s personal style as a composer features a rhapsodic, fantasia-like basic structure; a variable rhythm, often dance-like, though formed through syncopation; a continuous, vital driving pulse; and a wealth of melodic ideas that may often be traced back to themes from the folk music of his native Turkey.
Today I heard him play the Sonata #10, KV 330 by Mozart. I was immediately impressed by his great sensitivity and his total adherence to dynamics. I am now sharing this music with you so can enjoy it, as well:
