Selâhaddin Pinar was born in Istanbul in 1902. He began learning music at the age of twelve, taking lessons from Udî Sami Bey. In 1920, he was one of the founders of the "Darü′l-Feyz-i Mûsıkî," later to be known as the "Üsküdar Musıkî Cemiyeti" (Üsküdar Musical Society). In 1919, he was drawn to the tanbur. Though he remained faithful to the traditional şarkı form, he blazed his own path, composing beautiful works with a new feeling and approach. He died in 1960, having composed nearly one hundred pieces.