A native of Turkey, Ahmet is an accomplished folkdance teacher, and performer, as well as a researcher of Anatolian folk culture. From 1974 to 1985, he taught in several excellent ensembles in Ankara, Istanbul, Eskisehir and Bursa. For nearly five years prior to his departure for North America in 1985, Ahmet also served as Director of Dances for HOY-TUR, long considered one of Turkey's leading folkdance associations.

Ahmet is currently the Artistic Director of a Boston based group called Collage International Dance Ensemble. He is also a recent winner of Dance Umbrella's “Boston Moves 2001” best choreography award.

Since the age of eight he has danced with numerous school ensembles and private associations, many of which won outstanding awards in citywide and national-international competitions. Between 1973 and 1985, he participated in international dance festivals and competitions throughout Western and Eastern Europe. In edition, his ensembles appeared in more than 60 programs broadcast nationally in countries such as Turkey, France, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Germany.

His college major was music, specializing in voice. Just as his love of folksongs guided him toward academic study of music, Ahmet's fascination with folkdance led him to conduct scholarly research into the historical, social and cultural background of the costumes and spoon dances from Turkey's Mediterranean coast. His efforts resulted in an exhaustive, 400 page study for which he was awarded First Place in the 1985 national competition in research on the folkdances of Turkey by the Turkish ministry of Youth, Sports, and Education. In 1997 Ahmet completed a second degree in Fine Arts specializing in Graphic Design.