Meet Cemre Kutlu

We were lucky to catch up with Cemre Kutlu recently and have shared our conversation below.

Cemre , so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.

As a musician, self-confidence and discipline are essential. The way you stand on stage, the efficiency of the concert and the way you feel good about yourself are all built on these cornerstones. As the daughter of an academic mother and father, it was my luck that they instilled this confidence in me at a very young age. Playing the violin is as difficult as everyone thinks, but it is a perfect example of the combination of talent and practice. Every time I felt insecure and inadequate, I reminded myself that if I could progress on such a difficult instrument and had the courage to choose it, I could do anything. Thanks to my family, I have always stood upright on stage and proudly represented my country in various tours.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

When I was little, I always knew I was interested in music. My family discovered this and directed me to the conservatory exams in a nice way. With my talent, I joined the choir at the age of 7, and later I started playing violin and piano. When I started conservatory at the age of 11, I had a disciplined and strict teacher. My teacher always made me feel the importance of practicing. I had learned that talent develops up to a certain point and when it is combined with work, the perfect combination emerges. I was able to use my artistic and creative power. Since my family had strong means, I had the chance to give concerts in many parts of the world and get to know the field of music in various cultures. Traveling to various countries gave me a new perspective for both my hobby and my profession. By the age of 18, I had seen 20 countries and these trips had opened my horizons. My dreams and goals had developed. When I graduated from university, I immediately started my master’s degree and decided to teach. Working with children makes me feel more energetic and loving. I am still actively teaching and participating in concerts as a guest artist. I have just finished my master’s degree, now I have a PhD process ahead of me and I am very motivated by the development of my academic career. It makes me happy to contribute to the literature and to promote my own music. My biggest characteristic is that I can look at everything positively and approach everything with love.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

I advise everyone who is involved in music to be psychologically strong and to develop themselves in every field. Creativity doesn’t come from being a professional in only one field, on the contrary, it limits you. But taking up different hobbies, setting goals and organization will improve you. When I look back, one of the things that influenced me the most is that my sister has been taking me to every event in the city I live in since I was little. I live in Eskişehir, Turkey and there are art organizations that compete with big cities like Istanbul and Ankara. Since I was 5 years old, I was a child interested in various theaters, exhibitions and musicals. Introducing such events to children at a young age and planning them as activities is one of the factors that will increase the cultural accumulation of people.

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?

When I feel overwhelmed and overloaded, I try square breathing techniques and counting internally. Counting has always relaxed me and I think it has something to do with rhythm. As I count the numbers, my heart gets back to the normal speed it should be at and this relaxes me and always works. At the same time, diaphragmatic breathing maintains normal blood pressure and blood sugar balance in your body. These are the hidden secrets of classical yoga and meditation. Before every concert, I spend 5 minutes alone and practice these techniques. It is very important to go on stage calm and confident. You cannot convince the other person of anything that you are not convinced of yourself.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @cemroloji
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/ckutlu98/

Image Credits

It’s all my friends taken 🙂