Mehmet Kaya

Rock vocalist in Nikolo Kotzev's Nostradamus, Mehmet Kaya sang in the world-premiere staged performances at State Opera Ruse in November 2016 and in those that followed in Veliko Tarnovo, Plovdiv and Sofia in 2017 — a piece that puts rock singers beside opera soloists, orchestra, chorus and ballet. Kaya moved to Istanbul for university and began singing in bands there, drawn to Bruce Dickinson, Ronnie James Dio, Jorn Lande and Jeff Scott Soto. From 2005 he worked with the producer Cem Köksal, singing two of the five songs on an album whose other three went to Mats Levén, and for ten years he held the Friday nights at the Dorock heavy metal club in Taksim. In 2010 he joined the Turkish band Saints 'N' Sinners and sang on its first album; that year the band played the Scorpions farewell concert at Küçükçiftlik Park in Istanbul, and afterwards festivals in Sofia and Kazanlak. He has since worked with the Turkish rock band Pert. In Nostradamus his part is King Henry II.