QANUN CONCERTO BY FERİD ALNAR
It is said that Alnar, who started learning qanun from Kanuni Vitali Efendi at a very young age, had nothing left to learn from his teacher after four months. His mother, Saime Hanım, who had a very beautiful voice, played the qanun and his uncle played the oud. Ferid Alnar, who gave up his architectural studies for music, joined the Dârütta'lîm-i Mûsikî community and rendered great services to Turkish music. Those who started Turkish music with qanun took his name as an idol. Even if they could not find and listen to his records, those who heard him or his records admired his playing with an inaccessible technique and his unique clean style. He broke new ground in qanun playing and brought his outstanding performance on the instrument to a level of virtuosity that is difficult to achieve.
Ferid Alnar did for the qanun what Şerif Muhittin Targan did for the oud. To the plectrum technique first
used by Kanûnî Hacı Arif Bey, he added the tremolo technique, which he decorated with very light nail
strokes learned from his teacher Vitali Efendi, and was able to raise it to a more successful and superior
level.
He went beyond the ordinary and developed a very masterful transition technique. He recorded many records
on his own and accompanied contemporary artists. He also wrote instrumental pieces in a highly original
and advanced style, successfully using the maqam and modes of Turkish music in almost all of his works.