Ayten Alpman (1930–2012), a Turkish singer who was active in the fields of jazz and pop music in Türkiye. She began her musical career in the 1950s and recorded works across various genres, primarily focusing on jazz vocals. Throughout her career, she participated in live performances, album recordings, and numerous music events.

Life

Ayten Alpman was born on 10 October 1929 in Yeşilköy as the daughter of State Theatres inspector Fahrettin Alpman. She received her education at Nişantaşı Girls’ High School and Erenköy Girls’ High School. After her parents separated when she was young, she developed an interest in music through İlham Gencer, whom she met while studying at Nişantaşı Girls’ High School. Initially singing English songs, Alpman moved to Istanbul to live with her maternal grandmother after spending a month in Malatya due to her stepfather’s work.

After high school, she began performing on Istanbul Radio in 1949 following a soloist offer from İlham Gencer. She later met Arif Mardin, who encouraged her to sing jazz songs. Her first song performed on radio was the English-language track “You Are Always In My Heart”. Ayten Alpman made her stage debut at a medical ball held at Taksim Municipality Gazino. Under Arif Mardin’s guidance, she began performing jazz songs professionally in 1952 at the Yeşilköy Deniz Park Hotel, and three months later moved to the Kervansaray Night Club.

Art and Personal Life

Ayten Alpman married İlham Gencer, whom she met during high school, in 1953. Their children, Ayşe and İlham Gencer, both became musicians.^【1】 After her husband founded the Çatı Night Club, Alpman began performing there. Her first record, “Sayonara / Passion Flower”, was released in 1959. In 1960, she separated from İlham Gencer and continued her musical career with the İsmet Sıral Orchestra. In 1963, the artist performed in Sweden with the İsmet Sıral Orchestra for two years and then for another year with a different jazz ensemble.

Upon returning to Türkiye, a trend emerged of adapting foreign songs with Turkish lyrics. Although she continued singing jazz songs for a while, under the persistent encouragement of Fecri Ebcioğlu, who pioneered Turkish-language adaptations in Türkiye, Alpman began performing Turkish-language songs in this style. Her 45 rpm single “İnan Bana/Ayrıldık Yalnızım” gained popularity among music lovers. She recorded several 45 rpm singles with Sezen Cumhur Önal, but it was her collaboration with Fecri Ebcioğlu on the song “Sensiz Olmam” that brought her first major recognition.

In 1968, the artist married Ümit Aksu, the pianist of Süheyl Denizci’s ensemble. The song “Yalnız Kadın”, composed by Aksu for her, was considered one of the notable songs of that era.

The song “Bir Başkadır Benim Memleketim”, with lyrics by Fikret Şeneş and sung by Alpman in 1972, did not initially attract attention. However, after being played frequently on TRT during the 1974 Cyprus Operation, it was re-released as a 45 rpm single and achieved high sales. The original composition, performed in French by Mireille Mathieu, became closely associated with Ayten Alpman through her Turkish-language version.

The artist appeared in the films “Aşk Izdırabtır” (1953) and “Tek Başına” (1974). She also recorded songs such as “İstersen”, “Sensiz Olmam”, “Tek Başına”, “Yanımda Olsan”, “Ben Varım”, “Ben Böyleyim”, and “Yaz Yağmuru”.

Ayten Alpman recorded two longplay albums and gave her final professional stage performance in 1990 at the Yeniköy Bilsak Club in Istanbul. In 1995, she underwent surgery for nodules on her vocal cords. In 1999, Ada Müzik released an album featuring her most beloved songs; however, she did not resume professional stage performances, only occasionally giving jazz concerts. The 2007 album “Bir Başkadır Ayten Alpman” was her final studio album, recorded after a 30-year gap from her previous recording.

In an interview, Ayten Alpman said: “Music is life, existence, in short, everything. A life without music is impossible. Whether I am sad or happy, I listen to music. Just as eating and drinking are necessities, music is an endless need, something essential for life to continue.”^【2】 

Awards

In 2007, the artist received the “Lifetime Achievement Award” from the Istanbul Culture and Arts Foundation (İKSV) at the Istanbul Jazz Festival.

Songs

• Sayonara / Passion Flower
• Tomorrow (Özleyiş) / Manha De Carnival
• İnan Bana
• Ayrıldık Yalnızım
• Seni Unutmak Senden Kaçmak İstiyorum
• Kim Demiş Aşk Yalandır Diye
• Bu Sana Son Seslenişim
• Sevmedim Hayatı
• Hakkın Yok
• Beni Unutma
• Hayal
• Çağırdın Sana Koştum
• Sevince Her Şey Başka
• İstersen
• Ölünceye Kadar
• Ben Yürürüm Yana Yana
• Iraktır Yolların
• Yaz Yağmuru
• Sesini Duyur
• Erkekler Ağlamaz
• Pencere
• Her Yaşın Ayrı Bir Güzelliği Var
• Herkes Kendi Yolunda
• Seninleyim
• Söyleyemedim
• Son Bir Defa
• Neden Sanki Dünya Dar Gelir İnsana
• Yaşamak İçin
• Bir Başkadır Benim Memleketim
• Ve Tanrı Aşkı Yarattı
• Ömrüm Senindir
• Aynalar Aynalar
• Sensiz Olamam
• Arkadaş
• Tek Başına
• Ben Varım
• Ben Böyleyim
• Unutsana
• Yanımda Olsa
• Birazcık Umut
• O Sabah
• O Gün
• Hani Bazen (Cem Adrian ile düet)

Ayten Alpman'ın Cenaze Töreninde Çekilmiş Bir Fotoğraf (Anadolu Ajansı)

Death

Ayten Alpman died on 20 April 2012 at the age of 83 at Şişli Osmanoğlu Hospital in Istanbul due to respiratory failure.

A funeral ceremony for the late Ayten Alpman was held at Teşvikiye Camii. At the ceremony, her former husband İlham Gencer, her sons İlhan Gencer and Bora Gencer, and her daughter Ayşe Gencer Demirer received condolences. After the ceremony, Alpman was buried at Ulus Cemetery.