Yüksel Uzel (read Turkish version here)
Introduction
Yüksel Uzel is an artist who was active on the Turkish Art Music scene in the 1980s and left a memory as one of the witnesses of Istanbul's cabaret culture. The artist, whose real name is Yüksel Katmer, was born in Istanbul but settled in the Republic of South Africa in the later years of his life and ended his life there. Throughout his career, he performed at Büyük Maksim Gazinosu, participated in cinema projects such as "Islak Sokak" alongside Tarık Tarcan, and realized record works with works like "Bir Seni Bir Gülü Öptüm", "Al Aşkını Ver Gönlümü". Uzel, coming from a Rize-origin family of Circassian-Georgian roots, although his life story and artistic career contain elements reflecting the cultural texture of the period, current records lack clarity on some important details.
There are differences in chronological data such as the first album release year, exact dates of cinema productions, and the period of settlement in South Africa among different sources in the archives. In addition, there is no verifiable detailed information about the awards the artist received or his complete discography. Uzel, who is known to have stopped stage activities at the end of the 1990s and made this decision due to health problems, passed away in Johannesburg in 2024. Although he met with listeners during the period he performed works with love and longing themes, presenting a definitive and contradiction-free summary of his life and career remains limited due to the limitations of current reliable sources because of inconsistencies in biographical data. Nevertheless, he left a trace that cannot be fully illuminated in the archives in Turkey's music and cinema memory of the 1980s.
Biography
Yüksel Uzel, real name Yüksel Katmer; was born in Istanbul on 19 April 1950, and lost his life in the city of Johannesburg, Republic of South Africa on 7 January 2024. Circassian from mother, Georgian from father and Rize origin, the artist presented works within the Turkish Art Music tradition.
Information regarding the artist's career background contains inconsistencies in current sources, making it difficult to establish a clear chronology. While the year 1975 when he started his career as a choir singer at Istanbul Municipality Conservatory and the information that he had his first stage experience at Büyük Maksim Gazinosu in 1978 merge, there are contradictions regarding dates in the subsequent process. There is a dominant view that his first album was published in 1983 by Yavuz Plak, although some sources state this date as 1979 and it was labeled Kervan Plak. It is known that he published albums containing works such as "Bir Seni Bir Gülü Öptüm", "Yıllar Yorgun Ben Yorgun", "Al Aşkını Ver Gönlümü", "Benden Artık Bu Kadar" and "Sensiz Bu Yaz" through companies such as Sembol, Bayşu and Yaşar Kekeva Plak between 1983 and 1993, but it is not possible to create a complete discography.
In addition to his music career, Uzel who was also present in the cinema sector played the lead role in the film "Islak Sokak" shot in 1987 or 1988 along with Tarık Tarcan. He was operated on for an aneurysm by Swiss brain surgeon Gazi Yaşargil during the treatment process. There are also disagreements on when he stopped stage activities due to health problems; some sources relate this process to the years 1987-1988, while others point to the date 1997.
The artist who is stated to have settled in South Africa in the 2000s appears in different sources with dates that could be 1995, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2004 or 2019. He lived in South Africa with his wife İhsan Börekçioğlu, daughter Arzu Uzel and grandson Nur Kemal. There is no information in the sources about the awards the artist received, and all details on this subject remain missing. Existing data is not sufficient to create a reliable profile to detail the artist's life and career, but the known ones remain limited to conflicting data compiled from various sources as mentioned above.
Style
Yüksel Uzel stood out as a vocal artist who mostly took place within the Turkish Art Music tradition throughout his career and witnessed the period where record publishing was intense with the cabaret culture of the 1980s. Upon examining his repertoire and the names of the songs he represented; it is seen that traditional Turkish music motifs such as love, separation, longing and fatigue are at the forefront. Titles such as "Bir Seni Bir Gülü Öptüm", "Yıllar Yorgun Ben Yorgun" and "Al Aşkını Ver Gönlümü" show that the themes handled by the artist generally follow an emotional and introverted line.
However, detailed and reliable critical data regarding the artist's vocal character, voice tone, technical interpretation style and musical personality does not exist in current sources. Inconsistencies in career chronology and discographic uncertainties cause the basic information required for a stylistic analysis not to be clarified. Therefore, Yüksel Uzel's musical interpretation and vocal identity are generally defined as part of the Turkish Art Music movement of the period, but there is not enough information in the sources regarding his individual stylistic features and performance style. For this reason, the artist's original stylistic analysis cannot be fully made without more documentary evidence.
Songs and Discography
Yüksel Uzel's musical legacy is remembered with the songs he performed within the Turkish Art Music tradition and record works spanning from the 1980s to the 90s. Among the recordings performed and published by the artist throughout his career, names such as "Bir Seni Bir Gülü Öptüm", "Yıllar Yorgun Ben Yorgun", "Al Aşkını Ver Gönlümü", "Benden Artık Bu Kadar" and "Sensiz Bu Yaz" stand out. These works were published at different periods between 1983 and 1993 with labels such as Yavuz&Burç, Sembol, Bayşu and Yaşar Kekeva Plak respectively.
However, there are significant inconsistencies between sources regarding exact dates regarding Uzel's discography. There is conflicting information between 1979 (Kervan Plak) and 1983 (Yavuz Plak) regarding the first album release year. Similarly, although album names such as "Yalnızlığın Türküsü" or "Bir Göz Yaşı" are encountered in some sources, it is observed that these recordings cannot be confirmed in other databases. In addition, the date when the artist left the professional stage due to health problems is also stated as the range 1987-1988, as well as the year 1997.
Although these uncertainties make it difficult to create a complete and exact discography list for Uzel, the traces he left in the context of 1980s cabaret culture and Turkish Art Music record listening traditions are embodied in these songs. However, due to the limitations of current sources, more archival information is needed to clarify all works and work details produced by the artist.
Context
Yüksel Uzel is a vocal artist who was present on the culture scene from the late 1970s to the late 1990s within the Turkish Art Music tradition. Uzel, born in Istanbul in 1950 and carrying Circassian and Georgian heritage with his Rize-origin roots, started his career as a choir singer at Istanbul Municipality Conservatory, and then gained stage experience at Büyük Maksim Gazinosu, one of the most vibrant music venues of the era, in the late 1970s. This period coincides with the years when the influence of Istanbul's cabaret culture and cabaret repertoire on Turkish music performance peaked.
Uzel, who gave weight to sound recordings in the 1980s and early 90s, met with listeners with works such as "Bir Seni Bir Gülü Öptüm", "Yıllar Yorgun Ben Yorgun" and "Al Aşkını Ver Gönlümü". However, there are significant inconsistencies in current sources regarding the artist's discographic history; for example, it is not clear whether his first album was published in 1983 with the Yavuz Plak label or in 1979 via Kervan Plak. Similarly, the artist's name in the cinema world is also mentioned via the film "Islak Sokak", and there are differences of opinion between 1987 and 1988 regarding the release date of this production.
The final period of his career, in which he is stated to have stopped stage activities due to health problems, is also not fully clarified in the sources; some records show the years 1987-1988 while others indicate 1997. Although there is information that he settled in South Africa at the beginning of the 2000s, different years (varying from 1995 to 2019) have been recorded regarding the exact date of this settlement. Yüksel Uzel, who passed away in the city of Johannesburg, South Africa in 2024, differs regarding his lifespan in some sources as 73, and in others as 74. Known in general lines with songs handling themes of love, separation, longing and fatigue, Uzel's complete discography and life story could not be fully confirmed in sources, therefore he is among the figures who reflect a certain period in Turkish music history but whose chronological details could not be fully fitted.
Legacy
Yüksel Uzel is remembered as one of the voices that left a unique mark in the colorful cabaret culture of the 1980s and Turkish Art Music record archives. Born in Istanbul and whose real name is Yüksel Katmer, the artist presented works within the Turkish Art Music tradition for the majority of his career. Albums published through companies such as Yavuz Plak, Sembol, Bayşu and Yaşar Kekeva, with songs like "Bir Seni Bir Gülü Öptüm", "Al Aşkını Ver Gönlümü" and "Sensiz Bu Yaz", became part of the popular repertoire of that period.
Not limited only to the music stage, Uzel also signed a page from the 1980s period of Turkish cinema. The film "Islak Sokak", in which he starred alongside Tarık Tarcan, stands as one of the most concrete evidence of the artist's non-musical works. However, inconsistencies between sources in the chronological data that clarify the artist's career require a cautious language in evaluating his legacy. Whether the first album date is 1979 or 1983, whether stage activities ended in 1987 or 1997 due to health problems, such details are not fully clarified. These uncertainties indicate that Uzel's legacy is shaped more in the memories of that period's atmosphere rather than exact dates, within the works themselves.
Uzel, who settled in the Republic of South Africa in the 2000s, lost his life in Johannesburg on 7 January 2024. The artist, who spent his final years in South Africa with his wife İhsan Börekçioğlu and family, does not have details about the years he spent here supported by clear sources. The lack of any record about awards and the inability to verify some discographic details in different sources, although it causes Uzel's name to remain in the shadow of an era that could not be fully illuminated; he continues to preserve his presence in Turkish music archives thanks to existing sound recordings and works remaining in the memory of that period.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Yüksel Uzel's real name and birth and death information? The artist's real name is Yüksel Katmer. Uzel, born in Istanbul on 19 April 1950, lost his life in the city of Johannesburg, Republic of South Africa on 7 January 2024. By origin he is Rize-based and Circassian from mother, Georgian from father. Some sources state 73 years of life span, others state 74 years of life span.
Is there inconsistency in sources regarding Yüksel Uzel's first album release date and discography? Yes, there are significant differences between records in the archives. There is conflicting information between 1979 (Kervan Plak) and 1983 (Yavuz Plak) regarding the first album release year. Although works such as "Bir Seni Bir Gülü Öptüm", "Al Aşkını Ver Gönlümü" are present in albums published between 1983 and 1993, a complete and verifiable discography could not be created. Album names such as "Yalnızlığın Türküsü" mentioned in some sources could not be confirmed in other databases.
With which project is the artist remembered in the cinema sector? Yüksel Uzel played the lead role in the film "Islak Sokak" shot in 1987 or 1988 along with Tarık Tarcan. However, there are also different opinions between sources regarding the shooting and release year of this production.
Is the final period of his career and the date of settling in South Africa known with certainty? No, there is no exact information regarding these periods. The date when he stopped stage activities due to health problems (he was operated on by Swiss surgeon Gazi Yaşargil due to an aneurysm) is stated in different sources as 1987-1988 or 1997. The date of settling in South Africa has been recorded with varying intervals from 1995 to 2019.
Is there reliable information about Yüksel Uzel's musical style and awards he received? Detailed and reliable critical data about the artist's vocal character, voice tone and technical interpretation style are not present in current sources. Similarly, there is no record regarding the awards the artist received throughout his career, and all details on this subject remain missing.