Today we’d like to introduce you to Ali Tolga Demirtas.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Ali Tolga. So, let’s start at the beginning, and we can move on from there.
As an artist, life is a journey, and every experience is as important as the notes. My name is Ali Tolga Demirtas. I am a pianist, composer, singer, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and conductor. I have been playing music since five. I was born and raised in Ankara/Turkey till university. In my Ankara years, I was dealing with classical music.
Music was a big spirituality for me to reach the freedom, it was a good friend who never betrays, never complains or never wastes my time. In the beginning, I was playing my father’s keyboard in our home. We used to play some Turkish arabesque songs and classical Turkish music songs by ear. I’ve begun playing by ear, and that helped me to feel music through my heart.
Until the age of eight, I had no knowledge about western music and western genres. One day, my uncle gave me a tape of Beethoven five as a gift, and I literally fell in love that music, and my passion, admiration, so my story has started. After that moment, nothing could stop me to follow my dreams in music. These years are full of beautiful remembrances.
After my education in music, I worked as a producer in Istanbul. I produced a lot of hit songs in Turkish and Middle-East music industry. Then I have moved to LA to make worldwide projects with worldwide artist.
Has it been a smooth road?
Sure, it was not a smooth road. Like every musician’s story, it was full of disappointments, arguments, challenges, indecisions, troubles, struggles, etc. and these are still pursuing, life means struggling, fighting, sometimes even with myself. It is not easy to be a musician and eventually raising yourself as an artist. Making my family, relatives, and surroundings accept my decision in a music career, was the hardest thing that I had to deal with.
Because my soul was flowing into music, but nobody understood that until they saw my real talent and passion about music. That took a long time. Their persuasion had begun when I was accepted to CODARTS Rotterdam Conservatory. Until that moment, they had only sent me to TRT Ankara Children Choir, had got me some private lessons so, I had no academical work about music, and that was just for fun and a hobby for me.
These were just in the beginnings. After that, I studied Conservatory a while but then I realized that academic music was not my way. My opinion about music education was parallel with life. That meant it was so boring to play Bill Evans or Mozart. Their music was so beautiful, I was being inspired from all the composers but still seeking for somewhat I still didn’t know. So, I didn’t want to play Mozart’s, Chopin’s, Charlie Parker’s or Bill Evan’s music anymore.
I had to create something from inside of me, from my soul and I had to express myself in my own notes. Even Mozart’s or Rachmaninov’s attitude to music was this way, otherwise, they couldn’t be a great composer. After that, I was deeply inside of improvisational music world. It has started with jazz and its relatives. That process kept going with my interests in music production, electronic music, film scorings, symphonic works, searching richness of music of east, etc. It was like a hole which opens into the eternity when I dive in.
While I was making that kind of works, I was deeply inside of colorfulness of Anatolia and East. I was used to playing violin and oud in some Classical Turkish Choir such as TRT Izmir etc. Monophony was a different taste, and it was so excited for me to play it. Sometimes I used to like to create east-west mixtures in music. Ottoman music culter was so spiritual and different story like its cuisen.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with ATD Productions – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
My company was founded by me in 2013 in Istanbul/Turkey. I used to release some productions that I produced for the singers. I have produced a bunch of hit songs in Turkish and Middle-East Music Industry. My specialize is that a customer comes to my studio to produce a song, I firstly check him/her out in appearance, voice range, sound, style, behaviors, intelligence, vision, music knowledge, and ability, etc.
Then we make conservations about the genre and production. I find the right lyrics and compose according to the artist’s desire and market request, then start to produce for him/her. I work so fast inefficient way that people like it. As a multi-instrumentalist, I can play piano, guitars, bass, drums, percussions, trumpet, trombone, saxophones, flute, oud, violin, viola, cello, clarinet, baglama, cumbus, etc. That means I don’t need to wait for session musicians and pay a bunch of money and waste time for them.
That is also a benefit for the customer too because the result is always fast, efficient and fine. On the other hand, I can produce not only acoustic productions, but also electronic, EDM, top 40 sounds. There are just a few producers in the world who can produce all genres in the desired way. That is a big advantage for both me and my customers. I can produce jazz, classical, pop, RnB, funk, symphonic, latin, rock, Turkish, Arabic, etc.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I think music in business depends on nowhere in this internet-based world. I think new starters can create a well-designed website and search for new talents via YouTube and other platforms. I guess we will no longer need an agency building in the future.
Instead of wasting time for unsolicited jobs, producers must focus on finding new ideas for productions. That task basically can be done even at your home. Whenever and wherever you work, talents, music, productions are everywhere.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.alitolgademirtas.com
- Phone: 201-658-0391
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alitolgamusic/?hl=tr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alitolgamusic
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/alitolgamusic
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
