Begüm Aslan

Begüm Aslan completed her double bass training under Gunars Upatnieks and Nabil Shehata. She participated in courses with Daniel Barenboim, Michael Barenboim, Michael Wendeberg, Emmanuel Pahud, Esko Laine, Franco Petracchi, Bozo Paradzik, Dorin Marc, Duncan McTier, Artem Chirkov, Miloslav Gajdos, Dan Styffe, Kaspar Loyal, and many others. In addition, she was a participant in masterclasses by Mikhail Gotsdiner and Yuri Gandelsman in 2015. With her double bass playing, she won various prizes and competitions at an early age, including 1st prize at the International Dittersdorf Competition. As of the summer semester of 2024, she began her singing lessons as a coloratura soprano with Anna Samuil (Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler). As a self-taught composer, she attended courses with Jörg Widmann and Zeynep Gedizlioglu. Due to her double bass music, she is described by figures such as Lisa Streich and Jörg Widmann as a »composer with poetic charm«. Begüm Aslan actively collaborates with contemporary composers who have dedicated many pieces to her, such as the extraordinary piece ›Haiku‹ for voice and double bass by Stephen Mulligan. Begüm Aslan started her Master's studies at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München as well as the Hochschule für Musik Frankfurt am Main and attended the Academy of the Ensemble Modern from 2024-2025. In October 2024, she gave her first masterclass upon invitation by the Bavarian Bass Days in Germany. Begüm Aslan's scholarship is funded by grants from the GVL, the Crespo Foundation, and others.