Ahmet Adnan Saygun
Encyclopedia
Ahmed Adnan Saygun was a Turkish
composer, musicologist and writer on music. Ahmed Adnan Saygun is acknowledged as one of the most important 20th century composers in Turkish music history.
He was a master of the neoclassical form, and his works are rooted in Western musical practice; yet they incorporate traditional Turkish folk songs and culture. He usually adds this folk element by picking one note out of the scale and weaves a melody around it using a Turkish mode. His extensive output includes five symphonies, five operas, two piano concertos, concertos for violin, viola and cello, and a wide range of chamber and choral works. The London Times called him "the grand old man of Turkish music, who was to his country what Jean Sibelius
is to Finland
, what Manuel de Falla
is to Spain
, and what Béla Bartók
is to Hungary
." As Saygun was growing up in Turkey he witnessed radical changes in his country’s politics and culture as the reforms
of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
had replaced the Ottoman Empire
—which had ruled for nearly 600 years—with a new secular republic based on Western models and traditions. As Atatürk had created a new cultural identity for his people and newly founded nation, Saygun found his role in developing what Atatürk had begun.
– in today's Turkey
. There were frequent concerts given by the Ottoman military band
s, and performances of Western works by chamber music
ensembles at the time and this influenced Saygun to start his first music lessons in elementary school. He started playing the piano, the Ottoman short-necked lute and the oud
at an early age and quickly found his passion writing music at the age of fourteen. His father who was a mathematics teacher and scholar of religions and literature taught him English and French as well as world religions at an early age. Through rigorous study Saygun was able to translate the music section of the French Grande Encyclopédie into a music encyclopedia in Turkish
. While in high school, he continued his music lessons with lessons in school as well as from a private teacher and through a theory book which he was given at an early age. In 1926, only two years after his graduation from high school he was appointed as teacher of music at a high school in his native city of İzmir.
In 1928 he was recognized nationally and received a grant to study in France
by the Turkish state. He attended the Schola Cantorum de Paris where he studied composition with Vincent d'Indy
, theory and counterpoint with Eugène Borrel, organ with Edouard Souberbielle and Gregorian chant
with Amédée Gastoué. He was further introduced to late-romantic music and French impressionism. During this time his imagination flourished, enabling him to write his first large work for orchestra: Divertimento. This piece won him an award in 1931 in Paris and was performed with great success the same year in Poland and former USSR. In 1931 he returned to Turkey as a music teacher for a new establishment found by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk that aimed to train music teachers with respect to the new law of arts. This suggested that previous training standards had to be changed to meet Western musical standards. Musical education adopted Western musical practices as part of this new era in Turkey.
In 1934 he was appointed as the conductor of the prestigious Presidential Symphony Orchestra. That very same year Atatürk approached Saygun, asking him to write the first Turkish opera. As Saygun was a huge follower of Atatürk he accepted his offer with great warmth and in two months time finished writing the first Turkish opera, Özsoy
. The opera's theme was the historical friendship between the peoples of Turkey and Iran. Following Özsoy
s success Atatürk asked Saygun to write another opera suggesting the heroism of the Turks and Atatürk's devotion to his country and people.
Saygun quickly finished his second opera Taşbebek in that very same year. This was the year that marked Saygun's career as the musical "voice" of the newly founded republic of Turkey. He now was the musical symbol of his country and had dedicated his works and life for the people and his country, like his great admirer Atatürk.
Following the operas he was neglected in Ankara State Conservatory by its founder Paul Hindemith
. He moved to Istanbul as part of the theory faculty at the Istanbul Municipal Conservatory. In 1936 Béla Bartók
visited Turkey to research the native folk music. Saygun accompanied Bartók on his travels around the country, collecting and transcribing folk songs all through the Anatolia
and Osmaniye
(a region of Adana
), Turkey. Saygun gained immense knowledge of Bartók's style of writing during this trip and learned a great deal about string quartets: they became great friends.
In 1939 he was invited back to Ankara
to further promote Western musical activities and practices. A year later he formed his own organization, Ses ve Tel Birliği, which showcased recitals and concerts throughout the country, further developing public knowledge of Western classical music.
Saygun's international acclaim flourished with his oratorio
Yunus Emre in 1946. This is an hour-long work written for four vocal soloists, a full chorus and full orchestra that sets a number of poems by the 13th century Anatolian mystic poet Yunus Emre
. This work captures Yunus Emres legacy with the use of Turkish modes and folk melodies, although it is written in the post-romantic style. Since its premiere in Ankara in 1947, the oratorio has been translated into five languages and performed worldwide, including a performance in English at the United Nations
led by conductor Leopold Stokowski
with the NBC Symphony Orchestra
in 1958. This same year he won the Stella della Solidarieta and the Jean Sibelius
composition awards.
The success of Yunus Emre encouraged Saygun to compose further large-scale works. In the 1950s he wrote three new operas, his first two symphonies, a piano concerto, and several pieces of chamber music pieces, of which a Paris premiere of the first string quartet (1954) and a premiere of the second string quartet (1958) in New York
performed by the Juilliard String Quartet
gained him further international exposure. There followed, amongst other works, three more symphonies, concertos for violin and viola and a second piano concerto, and a third string quartet. A fourth quartet remained unfinished at his death.
Saygun was known not only as a composer but also as a scholar as he wrote and published many books on the teaching of music. He was also an ethnomusicologist and a teacher. He greatly influenced the development of western music in Turkey and helped to establish several new music conservatories, and was also a member of the National Education Council and the board of the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation
. Starting in 1972, he taught composition and ethnomusicology at the Istanbul Municipal Conservatory (renamed "Turkish Music State Conservatory" in 1986) until his death in 1991. Following his death, the Ahmed Adnan Saygun Center for Music Research at Bilkent University
in Ankara, Turkey, was founded where his original manuscripts and archives are also kept.
His works were played by orchestras such as NBC Symphony Orchestra
, Vienna Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony Orchestra
, Berlin Symphony Orchestra
, Munich Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Orchestra, NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover and numerous others.
The German label CPO
has launched a series of works in memoriam of the 100. birthday of the composer in 2007. The records are including Symphonies 1,2,3,4,5, Piano Concertos 1,2, Violin Concerto, Viola Concerto, Cello Concerto, Anatolian Suite and String Quartets 1,2,3,4
Turkish music historian Emre Araci
published a comprehensive biography and catalogue of Adnan Saygun in 2001 (Yapı Kredi Yayınları, in Turkish), based on his 1999 PhD thesis from Edinburgh University.
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
composer, musicologist and writer on music. Ahmed Adnan Saygun is acknowledged as one of the most important 20th century composers in Turkish music history.
He was a master of the neoclassical form, and his works are rooted in Western musical practice; yet they incorporate traditional Turkish folk songs and culture. He usually adds this folk element by picking one note out of the scale and weaves a melody around it using a Turkish mode. His extensive output includes five symphonies, five operas, two piano concertos, concertos for violin, viola and cello, and a wide range of chamber and choral works. The London Times called him "the grand old man of Turkish music, who was to his country what Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the later Romantic period whose music played an important role in the formation of the Finnish national identity. His mastery of the orchestra has been described as "prodigious."...
is to Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, what Manuel de Falla
Manuel de Falla
Manuel de Falla y Matheu was a Spanish Andalusian composer of classical music. With Isaac Albéniz, Enrique Granados and Joaquín Turina he is one of Spain's most important musicians of the first half of the 20th century....
is to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and what Béla Bartók
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
is to Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
." As Saygun was growing up in Turkey he witnessed radical changes in his country’s politics and culture as the reforms
Atatürk's Reforms
Atatürk's Reforms were a series of political, legal, cultural, social and economic reforms that were designed to modernize the new Republic of Turkey into a democratic and secular nation-state...
of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....
had replaced the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
—which had ruled for nearly 600 years—with a new secular republic based on Western models and traditions. As Atatürk had created a new cultural identity for his people and newly founded nation, Saygun found his role in developing what Atatürk had begun.
Biography
Ahmed Adnan Saygun was born in 1907 in İzmir, then part of the Ottoman EmpireOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
– in today's Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. There were frequent concerts given by the Ottoman military band
Ottoman military band
Ottoman military bands are thought to be the oldest variety of military marching band in the world. Though they are often known by the Persian-derived word mahtar in the West, that word, properly speaking, refers only to a single musician in the band...
s, and performances of Western works by chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
ensembles at the time and this influenced Saygun to start his first music lessons in elementary school. He started playing the piano, the Ottoman short-necked lute and the oud
Oud
The oud is a pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in North African and Middle Eastern music. The modern oud and the European lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging paths...
at an early age and quickly found his passion writing music at the age of fourteen. His father who was a mathematics teacher and scholar of religions and literature taught him English and French as well as world religions at an early age. Through rigorous study Saygun was able to translate the music section of the French Grande Encyclopédie into a music encyclopedia in Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
. While in high school, he continued his music lessons with lessons in school as well as from a private teacher and through a theory book which he was given at an early age. In 1926, only two years after his graduation from high school he was appointed as teacher of music at a high school in his native city of İzmir.
In 1928 he was recognized nationally and received a grant to study in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
by the Turkish state. He attended the Schola Cantorum de Paris where he studied composition with Vincent d'Indy
Vincent d'Indy
Vincent d'Indy was a French composer and teacher.-Life:Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d'Indy was born in Paris into an aristocratic family of royalist and Catholic persuasion. He had piano lessons from an early age from his paternal grandmother, who passed him on to Antoine François Marmontel and...
, theory and counterpoint with Eugène Borrel, organ with Edouard Souberbielle and Gregorian chant
Gregorian chant
Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainchant, a form of monophonic liturgical music within Western Christianity that accompanied the celebration of Mass and other ritual services...
with Amédée Gastoué. He was further introduced to late-romantic music and French impressionism. During this time his imagination flourished, enabling him to write his first large work for orchestra: Divertimento. This piece won him an award in 1931 in Paris and was performed with great success the same year in Poland and former USSR. In 1931 he returned to Turkey as a music teacher for a new establishment found by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk that aimed to train music teachers with respect to the new law of arts. This suggested that previous training standards had to be changed to meet Western musical standards. Musical education adopted Western musical practices as part of this new era in Turkey.
In 1934 he was appointed as the conductor of the prestigious Presidential Symphony Orchestra. That very same year Atatürk approached Saygun, asking him to write the first Turkish opera. As Saygun was a huge follower of Atatürk he accepted his offer with great warmth and in two months time finished writing the first Turkish opera, Özsoy
Özsoy (opera)
Özsoy is an opera composed by Ahmet Adnan Saygun from a libretto by Münir Hayri Egeli. It was the first Turkish opera composed during the country's Republican period under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and it was given its premiere performance in the Halk Evi Theatre in Ankara on 19 June 1934.The opera...
. The opera's theme was the historical friendship between the peoples of Turkey and Iran. Following Özsoy
Özsoy (opera)
Özsoy is an opera composed by Ahmet Adnan Saygun from a libretto by Münir Hayri Egeli. It was the first Turkish opera composed during the country's Republican period under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and it was given its premiere performance in the Halk Evi Theatre in Ankara on 19 June 1934.The opera...
s success Atatürk asked Saygun to write another opera suggesting the heroism of the Turks and Atatürk's devotion to his country and people.
Saygun quickly finished his second opera Taşbebek in that very same year. This was the year that marked Saygun's career as the musical "voice" of the newly founded republic of Turkey. He now was the musical symbol of his country and had dedicated his works and life for the people and his country, like his great admirer Atatürk.
Following the operas he was neglected in Ankara State Conservatory by its founder Paul Hindemith
Paul Hindemith
Paul Hindemith was a German composer, violist, violinist, teacher, music theorist and conductor.- Biography :Born in Hanau, near Frankfurt, Hindemith was taught the violin as a child...
. He moved to Istanbul as part of the theory faculty at the Istanbul Municipal Conservatory. In 1936 Béla Bartók
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
visited Turkey to research the native folk music. Saygun accompanied Bartók on his travels around the country, collecting and transcribing folk songs all through the Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
and Osmaniye
Osmaniye
-External links:...
(a region of Adana
Adana
Adana is a city in southern Turkey and a major agricultural and commercial center. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, 30 kilometres inland from the Mediterranean, in south-central Anatolia...
), Turkey. Saygun gained immense knowledge of Bartók's style of writing during this trip and learned a great deal about string quartets: they became great friends.
In 1939 he was invited back to Ankara
Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
to further promote Western musical activities and practices. A year later he formed his own organization, Ses ve Tel Birliği, which showcased recitals and concerts throughout the country, further developing public knowledge of Western classical music.
Saygun's international acclaim flourished with his oratorio
Oratorio
An oratorio is a large musical composition including an orchestra, a choir, and soloists. Like an opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias...
Yunus Emre in 1946. This is an hour-long work written for four vocal soloists, a full chorus and full orchestra that sets a number of poems by the 13th century Anatolian mystic poet Yunus Emre
Yunus Emre
Yunus Emre was a Turkish poet and Sufi mystic. He has exercised immense influence on Turkish literature, from his own day until the present...
. This work captures Yunus Emres legacy with the use of Turkish modes and folk melodies, although it is written in the post-romantic style. Since its premiere in Ankara in 1947, the oratorio has been translated into five languages and performed worldwide, including a performance in English at the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
led by conductor Leopold Stokowski
Leopold Stokowski
Leopold Anthony Stokowski was a British-born, naturalised American orchestral conductor, well known for his free-hand performing style that spurned the traditional baton and for obtaining a characteristically sumptuous sound from many of the great orchestras he conducted.In America, Stokowski...
with the NBC Symphony Orchestra
NBC Symphony Orchestra
The NBC Symphony Orchestra was a radio orchestra established by David Sarnoff of the National Broadcasting Company especially for conductor Arturo Toscanini...
in 1958. This same year he won the Stella della Solidarieta and the Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the later Romantic period whose music played an important role in the formation of the Finnish national identity. His mastery of the orchestra has been described as "prodigious."...
composition awards.
The success of Yunus Emre encouraged Saygun to compose further large-scale works. In the 1950s he wrote three new operas, his first two symphonies, a piano concerto, and several pieces of chamber music pieces, of which a Paris premiere of the first string quartet (1954) and a premiere of the second string quartet (1958) in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
performed by the Juilliard String Quartet
Juilliard String Quartet
The Juilliard String Quartet is a classical music string quartet founded in 1946 at the Juilliard School in New York. The original members were violinists Robert Mann and Robert Koff, violist Raphael Hillyer, and cellist Arthur Winograd; Current members are Joseph Lin and Ronald Copes violinists,...
gained him further international exposure. There followed, amongst other works, three more symphonies, concertos for violin and viola and a second piano concerto, and a third string quartet. A fourth quartet remained unfinished at his death.
Saygun was known not only as a composer but also as a scholar as he wrote and published many books on the teaching of music. He was also an ethnomusicologist and a teacher. He greatly influenced the development of western music in Turkey and helped to establish several new music conservatories, and was also a member of the National Education Council and the board of the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation
Turkish Radio and Television Corporation
The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation, also known as TRT , is the national public broadcaster of Turkey and was founded in 1964. Around 70% of TRT's funding comes from a tax levied on electricity bills and a sales tax on television and radio receivers...
. Starting in 1972, he taught composition and ethnomusicology at the Istanbul Municipal Conservatory (renamed "Turkish Music State Conservatory" in 1986) until his death in 1991. Following his death, the Ahmed Adnan Saygun Center for Music Research at Bilkent University
Bilkent University
İhsan Doğramacı Bilkent University, commonly referred to as Bilkent University or Bilkent, is the first private, nonprofit university in Turkey with the fundamental aim of creating a center of excellence in higher education and research...
in Ankara, Turkey, was founded where his original manuscripts and archives are also kept.
His works were played by orchestras such as NBC Symphony Orchestra
NBC Symphony Orchestra
The NBC Symphony Orchestra was a radio orchestra established by David Sarnoff of the National Broadcasting Company especially for conductor Arturo Toscanini...
, Vienna Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony Orchestra
Vienna Symphony Orchestra
-History:In 1900, Ferdinand Löwe founded the orchestra as the Wiener Concertverein . In 1913 it moved into the Konzerthaus, Vienna. In 1919 it merged with the Tonkünstler Orchestra. In 1933 it acquired its current name...
, Berlin Symphony Orchestra
Berlin Symphony Orchestra
The Konzerthausorchester Berlin is a symphony orchestra based in Berlin, Germany. The orchestra is resident at the Konzerthaus Berlin, designed by the architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel...
, Munich Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Orchestra, NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover and numerous others.
The German label CPO
CPO
-Officers:* Chief Performance Officer of the United States* Chief Petty Officer, a military rank* Chief privacy officer, an executive responsible for managing issues of privacy laws and policies...
has launched a series of works in memoriam of the 100. birthday of the composer in 2007. The records are including Symphonies 1,2,3,4,5, Piano Concertos 1,2, Violin Concerto, Viola Concerto, Cello Concerto, Anatolian Suite and String Quartets 1,2,3,4
Turkish music historian Emre Araci
Emre Araci
Emre Aracı, Turkish music historian, conductor, composer.- Life :Dr Emre Aracı is a Turkish music historian, composer and conductor who has been living in the United Kingdom since 1987...
published a comprehensive biography and catalogue of Adnan Saygun in 2001 (Yapı Kredi Yayınları, in Turkish), based on his 1999 PhD thesis from Edinburgh University.
Operas
- Op.9 ÖzsoyÖzsoy (opera)Özsoy is an opera composed by Ahmet Adnan Saygun from a libretto by Münir Hayri Egeli. It was the first Turkish opera composed during the country's Republican period under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and it was given its premiere performance in the Halk Evi Theatre in Ankara on 19 June 1934.The opera...
(one act), 1934 - Op.11 Taşbebek (one act), 1934
- Op.28 Kerem (three acts), 1947–52
- Op.52 Köroğlu (three acts), 1973
- Op.65 Gılgameş, 1962–1983
Ballets
- Op.17 Bir Orman Masalı (A Forest Tale), 1939–43
- Op.75 Kumru Efsanesi (Legend of Kumru), 1986–89
Orchestral
- Op.1 Divertimento, (large orchestra wıth saxophone and darbuka), 1930
- Op.10/b İnci's Book (Symphonic arrangement), 1944
- Op.13 Magic Dance, 1934
- Op.14 Suite for Orchestra, 1936
- Op.24 Halay, 1943
- Op.29 Symphony No. 1, 1953
- Op.30 Symphony No. 2, 1958
- Op.39 Symphony No. 3, 1960
- Op.53 Symphony No. 4, 1974
- Op.57 Ritual Dance, 1975
- Op.70 Symphony No. 5, 1985
- Op.72 Variations for Orchestra, 1985
Vocal/Choral Orchestral
- Op.3 Laments (tenor solo and male choir), 1932
- Op.6 Kızılırmak Türküsü (folk song for soprano), 1933
- Op.16 Masal Lied (baritone solo), 1940
- Op.19 Cantata in the Old Style (soloists and chorus), 1941
- Op.21 Geçen Dakikalarım (baritone solo), 1941
- Op.23 Four Folk Songs, 1945
- Op.26 Yunus Emre, oratorio (soloists, choir, orchestra), 1942
- Op.41 Ten Folk Songs, 1968
- Op.54 Laments - Book II (tenor solo, male voices), 1974
- Op.60 Mediations on Men I, 1977
- Op.61 Mediations on Men II, 1977
- Op.63 Mediations on Men III, 1983
- Op.64 Mediations on Men IV, 1978
- Op.66 Mediations on Men V, 1978
- Op.67 Epics on Atatürk and Anatolia, 1981
- Op.69 Mediations on Men VI, 1984
Concertante
- Op.34 Piano Concerto No. 1, 1952–58
- Op.44 Violin Concerto, 1967
- Op.59 Viola Concerto, 1977
- Op.71 Piano Concerto No. 2, 1985
- Op.74 Cello Concerto, 1987
Chamber
- Op.4 Intuitions ( two clarinets), 1933
- Op.8 Percussion Quartet (clarinet, saxophone, piano, percussion), 1933
- Op.12 Sonata (piano-cello), 1935
- Op.20 Sonata (piano- violin), 1941
- Op.27 String Quartet No.1, 1947
- Op.33 Demet, Suite for violin and piano,1955
- Op.35 String Quartet No.2, 1957
- Op.37 Trio (oboe, clarinet, harp), 1966
- Op.43 String Quartet No.3, 1966
- Op.46 Wind Quintet, 1968
- Op.49 Deyiş "Dictum" (strings), 1970
- Op.50 Three Preludes (two harps), 1971
- Op.55 Trio (oboe, clarinet, piano), 1975
- Op.62 Concerto da Camera (strings), 1978
- Op.68 Three Folk Songs for Four Harps, 1983
- Op.78 String Quartet No.4-two movements, 1990
Piano
- Op.2 Suite for Piano, 1931
- Op.10/a İnci's Book, 1934
- Op.15 Piano Sonatina, 1938
- Op.25 From Anatolia, 1945
- Op.38 Ten Etudes on "Aksak" Rhythms, 1964
- Op.45 Twelve Preludes on "Aksak" Rhythms,1967
- Op.47 Fifteen Pieces on "Aksak" Rhythms, 1967
- Op.58 Ten Sketches on "Aksak" Rhythms, 1976
- Op.51 Short Things, 1950–52
- Op.56 Ballade (two pianos), 1975
- Op.73 Poem for Three Pianos, 1986
- Op.76 Poem for Two Pianos, 1989?
- Op.77 Piano Sonata, 1990?
Choral
- Op.5 Folk Song, 1933
- Op.7 Çoban Armağanı, 1933
- Op.18 Dağlardan Ovalardan, 1939
- Op.22 Bir Tutam Kekik, 1943
- Op.42 Impressions (three female voices), 1935
External links
- Peermusic Classical: Ahmed Adnan Saygun Composer's Publisher and Bio
- Discography
- http://www.jpc.de/jpcng/home/search?fastsearch=saygun&pd_orderby=score