1924-2009
He was born in Kirkuk. He was obsessed with music since he was a child and he learned it at his mother. He joined the College of Law and graduated in 1948 while continuing his studies at the Institute of Fine Arts. He traveled to Paris to study music systematically. There he mastered to play the viola. After returning to Baghdad in 1953 he founded a string quartet band. He traveled to Moscow to study music composition and then to the United States. He worked as teacher at the Institute of Fine Arts and in the Academy of Fine Arts in addition to his work in the General Corporation of Radio and Television, where he contributed to the establishment of the first music library specialized in field survey. The music critics called him ‘the pioneer of music composition in Iraq’. He had strong friendships with many famous musicians and authors in the world, but in Iraq he was persecuted by the dictatorial regime because he had composed the tune of the national anthem after July 14,1958. He received various certificates, medals and awards in theoretical and applied music. He worked as an instructor of the violin in a number of universities including the University of Yarmuk, Jordan. He was known for his many musical compositions and beautiful symphonies through which he gained international fame especially in Europe and America.
