Safiyy al-Din al-Urmawi
Kitab al-Adwar — systematizer of Islamic music theory
The most important music theorist of the late Abbasid period. His Kitab al-Adwar systematized the modal system with mathematical rigor. He survived the Mongol sack of Baghdad in 1258 by impressing the conquerors with his oud playing.
Key works
- Kitab al-Adwar (Book of Musical Modes)~1252— Systematic theory of modes — the foundation of classical Islamic music theory