Young musician Ozan called the ‘future of Native American music’

The young musician, whose compositions and performances are heard on the radio, in solo concerts and as scores for independent films, is portrayed by music critics as the future of Native American music.

A southern California resident, Evren, who was born in 1993 to a Turkish father and a Native American mother, transmits the Native American music tradition to other generations through his albums.

"Evren was 6 years old when he discovered the cedar flute on a cross-country road trip. At the first stop, the Grand Canyon, Evren went straight to a native musical instruments counter and picked out a cedar flute. He paid for it with all of his trip allowance and has been playing the flute ever since. One day, a group of Japanese tourists stopped to listen to Evren while he was playing his flute sitting on a wall in our garden. They were fascinated, and Evren was playing as if he had known how to play since the day he was born," said Evren's mother, Faith Ozan, a member of the Native American Osage tribe.

Evren was mentored by Native American musician and instrument maker Guillermo Martinez and studied at the Berklee College of Music and in Stanford University's EPGY (genius children) program. He continues to study both native flute and classical silver flute in addition to playing the drum. His recent music style is more reminiscent of jazz.

Evren was featured along with others in National Geographic's World Magazine only when he was 9 years old and later in News from Indian Country, Students News Network, Scholastic Magazine, New Age Journal and Body and Soul magazine. Evren started working on his first album, "Images of Winter," when he was 7, and it was released in the summer of 2001. A few months later Evren was a featured performer at the Native American Music Awards and recognized as a "rising star."

Evren has been featured in numerous TV news shows and in the press with coverage on CNN's "Inside Edition."

His second album, "As Things Could Be" was released when he was 9 and received a second "rising star" award from the Native American Music Awards, where his album also won in the Best Instrumental and Best New Age categories.

In 2005 he was invited to give concerts in Alaska and the United Kingdom. The next year, Evren gave full solo concerts in Belgium's Heusden-Zolder and in Berlin.

Evren’s music triggers rise in flute sales

Evren, who earned the opportunity to share the stage with world-class performers at a very young age, fascinates listeners from all walks of life and has created a significant rise in the number of cedar flute sales in the US. He now receives gifts from renowned flute makers all across the country. It is possible to hear to his music in scores for dance performances and award-winning independent films.

Despite all his fame and success in music, Evren does not spend all his time in recording studios; he likes skateboarding, flying radio-controlled model planes and spending time with his friends. He may not be fully aware of his success at the moment, but experts see him as the "future of native American music."

Awards conferred on Evren Ozan: 

* 2007 Best Instrumental Album -- "Alluvia" (Native American Music Awards)

* 2005 Rising Star Native American Music Award

* 2005 Davidson Fellow

* 2001 Rising Star Native American Music Award