Tülay German

Tülay German (born 27 January 1935 She began singing Turkish classical music at the age of four and during her primary school years performed Franz Schubert's Ständchen ( Serenade) and Abends unter der Linde on radio.

Belkıs Aran, a well-known soprano of that time, secretly took the young Tülay to a German music teacher, who declared her an exceptional vocal talent. Although she did study piano formally for five years with Ferdi Statzer, her parents did not wish to send her to conservatory; instead she attended Üsküdar American Academy in İstanbul, from which she graduated in 1956.

Having been named "Best Singer" by the critics for her performance at the 1964 Balkan Melodies Festival held in Yugoslavia, German earned an appearance on the cover of the magazine "Arena". works considered subversive in the Cold War climate of the time. Fleeing political repression, Buri and German emigrated to France, settling permanently in Paris.

Embarking on a new phase of her career as an expatriate artist, German adopted the French stage name "Toulaï". She recorded ten singles in French, gave numerous solo concerts, as well as appearing alongside renowned artists such as Charles Aznavour, Léo Ferré and The Moody Blues. She also hosted radio and television programs in France, Germany, Poland, Tunisia, Morocco, Netherlands and Brazil. Since the death of her partner Erdem Buri on January 2, 1993, German has retired from public life.