Mustafa Itri, more commonly known as Buhurizade Mustafa Itri, or just simply Itri (1640 - 1712) was an Ottoman- Turkish musician, composer, singer and poet. With over a thousand works to his name, although only about forty of these have survived to this day, he is regarded as the master of

Turkish classical music Ottoman music () or Turkish classical music (, or more recently ) is the tradition of classical music originating in the Ottoman Empire. Developed in the palace, major Ottoman cities, and Sufi lodges, it traditionally features a solo singer wi ...

. In 2012, due to the 300th anniversary of Itri's death, the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

declared 2012 the "International Itri Year".

Biography

Many things known about him today are subject to dispute. His real name was Mustafa, and he was sometimes referred to as Buhurizade Mustafa

Efendi Effendi or effendy ( ; ; originally from ) is a title of nobility meaning ''sir'', ''lord'' or ''master'', especially in the Ottoman Empire and the Caucasus''.'' The title itself and its other forms are originally derived from Medieval Greek ...

. Itri was a major exponent of Turkish classical music. He was a very prolific composer with more than a thousand works. However, only about forty of these survived to this day, the rest being lost. It is believed that he was a

Mevlevi The Mevlevi Order or Mawlawiyya (; ) is a Sufi order that originated in Konya, Turkey (formerly capital of the Sultanate of Rum) and which was founded by the followers of Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi Rumi, a 13th-century Persian poet, Sufi ...

, and composed religious music for this order. He lived through the times of five Ottoman Sultans. He became well known during the time of

Mehmet IV Mehmed IV (; ; 2 January 1642 – 6 January 1693), nicknamed as Mehmed the Hunter (), was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1648 to 1687. He came to the throne at the age of six after his father was overthrown in a coup. Mehmed went on to b ...

. He sang in ''

fasıl The ''fasıl'' is a suite in Ottoman classical music. It is similar to the Arabic '' nawba'' and '' waslah''. A classical ''fasıl'' generally includes movements such as '' taksim'', '' peşrev'', '' kâr'', '' beste'', ''ağır semâ'î'', '' ...

s'', which are concert programs with the same ''

makam Maqam, makam, maqaam or maqām (plural maqāmāt) may refer to: Musical structures * Arabic maqam, melodic modes in traditional Arabic music ** Iraqi maqam, a genre of Arabic maqam music found in Iraq * Persian maqam, a notion in Persian class ...

'', in the presence of

. Starting from this time, he enjoyed the support of the palace for many years. He taught music in the palace Enderun school. He was also interested in gardening. It is believed that his name Itri comes from the word itir, which means

pelargonium ''Pelargonium'' () is a genus of flowering plants that includes about 280 species of perennial plant, perennials, succulent plant, succulents, and shrubs, common name, commonly called geraniums, pelargoniums, or storksbills. ''Geranium'' is also ...

. As with most composers of his day, Itri was also a famous poet. He used poetic forms based on the classical Ottoman school of poetry (

Divan A divan or diwan (, ''dīvān''; from Sumerian ''dub'', clay tablet) was a high government ministry in various Islamic states, or its chief official (see ''dewan''). Etymology The word, recorded in English since 1586, meaning "Oriental cou ...

), as well as those based on syllabic meters identified with folk music and poetry. Unfortunately most of his poetry has not survived to this day. He was also known for being a calligrapher. Itri's portrait is depicted on the reverse of the Turkish 100

lira Lira is the name of several currency units. It is the current Turkish lira, currency of Turkey and also the local name of the Lebanese pound, currencies of Lebanon and of Syrian pound, Syria. It is also the name of several former currencies, ...

banknote issued in 2009.Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey
. Banknote Museum

. – Retrieved on 20 April 2009.

Major works

* Segâh Kurban Bayramı Tekbiri * Segâh Salât-ı Ümmiye * Dilkeşhâveran Gece Salâtı * Mâye Cuma Salâtı * Segâh Mevlevi Ayini * Rast Darb-ı Türkî Naat ve Sofyan Tevşih * Nühüft Durak; Nühüft İlahî * Nühüft Tevşih; Nevâ Kâr * 2 Pençgâh Beste * Hisar Devr-i Kebir Beste ve Aksak Semai * Mâhûr Ağır Aksak Semai * Rehavî Berefşan Beste * Buselik Hafif Beste ve

Yürük Semai A ''yürük semai'' (also spelled ''yürük sema'i'', ''yürük sema i'', or ''yürük semâ'î'') is a musical form in Ottoman classical music. It was a movement of a ''fasıl'' (suite). It is generally composed in an '' usul'' (rhythmic structure ...

* Segâh Ağır Semai * Segâh Yürük Semai * Bayatî Çember Beste * Bestenigâr Darb-ı Fetih Beste * Dügâh Hafif Beste * Isfahan Zencir Beste ve Ağır Aksak Semai * Nikriz Muhammes Beste * Râhatu'l Ervah Zencir Beste * Irak Aksak Semai * Rast Aksak Semai * Nühüft Aksak Semai * Acemaşiran Yürük Semai * Rehavî Peşrev * Nühüft Peşrev ve Saz Semaisi * Nevâ Kâr

References

{{Authority control 1711 deaths Composers from the Ottoman Empire Calligraphers from the Ottoman Empire 1640 births Composers of Ottoman classical music Composers of Turkish makam music 17th-century artists from the Ottoman Empire 18th-century artists from the Ottoman Empire