Şebnem Paker
Şebnem Paker was born in Istanbul in 1977, and still lived at home with her parents and her sister when the 1996 Eurovision Song Contest took place. She is a guitarist, singer and music teacher.Şebnem studied the guitar at the Istanbul University Conservatory, and took classical ballet classes for seven years. Besides her interest in music, she enjoys reading, travelling and going to the theatre. Later on, Later, she studied singing at Marmara University Music Department.
Paker represented Turkey also in 1997 with the song Dinle placing 3rd. She released her only album, Dinle, in August that year. She went on to become a teacher at a high school in Istanbul and also coauthored a textbook that is used in art high schools in Turkey.
The composer and conductor
Levent Çoker, born in Izmit in 1958, is a Turkish musician, arranger, conductor and composer. He graduated in 1971 from Ankara State Conservatory, having studied musical performance with emphasis on playing the trombone. He joined the Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra in 1979 and has composed music for opera and ballet as well as for symphony orchestras and instrumental bands. Levent Çoker has won usic awards in several national music contests.
