Yüksel Koptagel

Who is Yüksel Koptagel?

Yüksel Koptagel is a Turkish composer and pianist. She was born in Istanbul, Turkey, granddaughter of General Osman Nuri Koptagel, a commander in the Turkish War of Independence. Her maternal great grandfather Abdul Karim Khan Tareen, a physician, had migrated from Multan and had settled in Istanbul, adopting the name Abdul Karim Bey.

Koptagel studied music with the composer and conductor Cemal Resit Rey and later with Alexander Tansman, José Cubiles, Tony Aubin, Joaquin Rodrigo, and Lazare Levy in Paris and Madrid. After completing her studies, Kiptagel took a position with the Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra and worked as a pianist and composer.

In 1960s she visited Multan to trace her maternal roots and met the descendants of siblings of Abdul Karim Tareen.