This 93-year-young jazz pianist from Istanbul still dazzles the world with his tunes

When you enter the Pera Palace, set in the heart of the city of minarets – Istanbul – and push through a wooden turnstile door, you are greeted by the old-world charm of century-old chandeliers, high arching domes and gilded mirrors. If you're lucky, you may also hear smooth piano jazz drifting from the hotel's Kubbeli Lounge. Follow the music and you are sure to find one of Pera Palace's most treasured secrets.

This 126-year-old hotel has played host to many royals, and houses the first electric elevator in Turkey – second in Europe after the Eiffel Tower, which acts as a time machine with its antique floor indicator dial. But more enchanting than the stories of this small, yet regal hotel is the 93-year-old jazz pianist, İlham Gencer, who dazzles guests with his wit and talent every day at tea time.

Gencer, considered to be one of Turkey's music legends, has been playing at the Pera Palace since 2012. While he became a fan of the piano from the ripe age of five, the maestro admits he isn't formally trained and doesn't even know how to read notes. So all his playing and singing, he claims, is done extemporaneously. "My teacher is God," he says, flashing a charming smile, while sitting at the piano, snug in a red velvet cravat necktie scarf and grey suede vest.

Gencer is known to regale diverse audiences by playing and singing numbers in several other languages. So, for Hindustanis, he will play a version of Raj Kapoor's 1951 classic Awara Hoon on the piano and expect you to sing along.

This tea-time music sounds even more melodious when you help yourself to a feast of multi-coloured macaroons, a plethora of delicious pastries, mini cupcakes and donuts, that the Kubbeli Lounge spreads out each day.

Apart from his performances for guests at the hotel, Gencer is a frequent performer at Istanbul's Nardis Jazz Club. He also takes to the stage at other venues and is invited to play at local as well as international jazz festivals.

Gencer is also renowned for forming a local jazz band in the 1940s and has performed through the '60s, '70s, '80s and even the '90s. "He is very gifted and was raised during the best times of jazz," adds Ilgaz Şaşmaz, Director of Sales and Marketing at the Pera Palace. The multilingual pianist even has his own album titled Bir Yaşayan Çınar, complete with covers of famous songs like Besame Mucho, La Vie En Rose and What a Wonderful World.

“I want to make music till I die,” Gencer solemnly states. But even at 93 Gencer is still young at heart and if you fail to catch this passionate pianist performing anywhere else, you can be sure to find him playing the keys uninterrupted at the Kubbeli Lounge of Pera Palace.