Salah El Mahdi (; born Mohamed Ibn Abderrahmane Ben Salah Mehdi Chérifi on February 9, 1925, in

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

and died September 12, 2014, in Tunis) was a Tunisian musicologist, conductor, composer, flautist, music critic and judge.

Biography

Born in Tunis in 1925, he graduated from

University of Ez-Zitouna Ez-Zitouna University (, ) is an Ancient higher-learning institutions, ancient public university in Tunis, Tunisia. The university originated in the Al-Zaytuna Mosque, founded at the end of the 7th or in the early 8th century, which developed into ...

in 1941 and then at the law school and National School of Administration. He obtained a Ph.D. in musicology in 1981 and a doctorate in letters at the

University of Poitiers The University of Poitiers (UP; , ) is a public university located in Poitiers, France. It is a member of the Coimbra Group. It is multidisciplinary and contributes to making Poitiers the city with the highest student/inhabitant ratio in France ...

. At the age of 18 he left the capital of

La Marsa La Marsa ( ') is a coastal city located in the northeastern part of Tunisia, situated along the Mediterranean Sea. It is part of the Tunis Governorate and has a population of around 100,000 people. The city is known for its beaches, upscale resid ...

and gave music lessons to students. In 1949, he became director of the institution and ensemble there and was appointed honorary member of the

SACEM The Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music or SACEM () is a French professional association collecting payments of artists’ rights and distributing the rights to the original songwriters, composers, and music publisher A mus ...

. He was appointed as a judge on November 11, 1951, while assuming the job of music critic in several newspapers. In theater, he performed several roles with the troupe ''El Kaoukab'' of Tunis, and wrote plays for radio. In 1961, he was appointed to the Secretariat of State for Culture and information. He helped establish the National Folk Arts Troupe (1962), the Tunisian Symphony Orchestra (1969), the National Society of Preservation of the Quran and the National School of Chanting the Koran. In 1982, he became general manager of the national cultural activities until his retirement and served as director of the Tunisian Conservatory for many years. Indeed by 1987 he was said to be "director of all of the country's musical organizations." Internationally, he participated in several conferences run by institutions under

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 ...

. Later he became a member of the executive committee of the

Islamic history The history of Islam is believed, by most historians, to have originated with Muhammad's mission in Mecca and Medina at the start of the 7th century CE, although Muslims regard this time as a return to the original faith passed down by the Abra ...

, culture and the arts and the High Committee of Islamic civilization which are headquartered in Istanbul (Turkey) and Executive Committee of the International Council music attached to UNESCO. He is also vice-chairman of the board of the International Society of Music Education, International Institute of Music, and International Folk Music Council. He has composed nearly 600 compositions, blending classical and folk songs, east and western instrumental music, chamber music and piano pieces, violins and harps and four symphonies. He participated in 1958 to successfully contest the Tunisian national anthem to which he composed the music. After retirement he pursued teaching and sharing of his knowledge.

Tribute

In recognition of his dedication to Tunisian music and his contributions to the arts, the National Conservatory of Music of Tunis was named after him starting from May 30, 2017.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahdi, Salah 1925 births 2014 deaths Tunisian musicologists Tunisian flautists Tunisian conductors (music) Tunisian music critics Tunisian judges University of Poitiers alumni UNESCO officials University of Ez-Zitouna alumni Tunisian officials of the United Nations 20th-century Tunisian composers 20th-century musicologists 20th-century conductors (music) 20th-century male musicians Male composers Male conductors (music) National anthem writers 20th-century Tunisian musicians 20th-century flautists