Barbaros Erköse was born in 1936 to a family who had emigrated from Thessaloniki to Bursa. His romance with his instrument began when he started playing traditional dance music at a young age. At the age of 12, Barbaros Erköse took lessons with Saffet Gündeğer and a clarinettist Osman Öztabak and learned Western clarinet technique from them. Erköse collaborated with many esteemed musicians from Turkey such as Nesrin Sipahi and Zeki Müren as well as many other musicians from all over the world to explore new ways to nurture the growth of a world music rooted in many soils. Not content to rest upon his laurels as a respected classical Turkish and Rom musician, Erköse sought out projects that dissolve boundaries of nations and genres with many precious musicians such as New York born and bred jazz trombonist Craig Harris and his band, Tunisian oud artist Anouar Brahem and Peter Pannke. Barbaros Erköse is still actively continuing his music life with Erköse Brothers, the band founded with his son and grandson.