Murad IV (1612-1640) 17th Ottoman Sultan, and son of Ahmed I and Kösem Sultan (Anastassia). He came to the throne at the age of eleven and died when he was only twenty-eight. He was the most cruel of all the Ottoman Sultans. In spite of this, his reign marked one of the most important eras in the history of the Ottoman tradition. At the end of the sixteenth century musical activities of the court had almost ceased due to serious political and economic problems. Music was revived and made considerable progress during his reign. The first half of the 17th century saw the flourishing of many fine musicians in the Ottoman tradition. Having conquered Bagdad, Murad took the best twelve musicians of Persia to Istanbul, and these artists made their own contributions to Ottoman music. Murad IV wrote poems under the pen-name "Muradi". We learn from Ali Ufkî's Mecmua-i Saz ü Söz that he was also a composer and used the pen-name "Sah Murad". Some fifteen compositions in the repertoire bear the signature of "Sah Murad".
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