Osman Zeki Üngör was born in Uskudar, graduated from Besiktas Military College and then enrolled in the Mizika-i Humayun, where he studied basic music under d'Aranda Pasa and violin under Hueseyin Bey, Pepini Giato and Vondra Bey. He then became Saffet Atabinen's student and played first violin in the orchestra he conducted. He also taught music at the Istanbul Men's College, which was known at the time as Istanbul Erkek Darul-Muallim. In 1917 and 1918, he traveled to Vienna, Berlin, Dresden, Munich, Pest and Sophia as the director of the Palace Orchestra and performed the works of composers such as Beethoven, Wagner and Weber. In February 1918, he began organizing weekly public concerts. After the declaration of the Republic, he became the director of the newly opened College of Music Teachers. Osman Zeki Üngör, the composer of the national anthem, retired at the age of 54 and appointed Ahmet Adnan Saygun as the conductor of the orchestra and Salahaddin as the director of the Music Teachers' College.
