One common characteristic shared by great musicians such as Jose Feliciano, Ray Charles, and Stevie Wonder is that they are blind. There are blind musicians around the world who have achieved remarkable success. Kâni Karaca is one of them.

Karaca demonstrated a level of mastery that was difficult to approach, particularly in religious music but also in the performance of secular musical works. Many master musicians who were with him during his lifetime considered themselves to be behind him.

Born in 1930, Kâni Karaca lost his sight in an accident when he was just a few months old. While attending primary school, he began memorising the Quran at the encouragement of the village imam. Due to the beauty of his voice, more and more people began listening to him recite the Quran in various mosques. He acquired basic musical knowledge thanks to the imam of the mosque in Adana, who was knowledgeable about music, and the musical activities at the Adana Türk Ocağı.

He came to Istanbul in 1950. He met the famous composer Sadettin Kaynak, who agreed to give him music lessons. Another important figure, Sadettin Heper, taught him religious music forms.

Mesut Cemil Bey, one of the most important artists of Turkish music, encouraged him to perform works composed in the most difficult makams, which were secular in nature, on Istanbul Radio.

Following these developments, he became one of the most respected names in Turkish music and gained worldwide recognition, particularly in the field of religious music.

He taught at the State Conservatory in Istanbul. He passed away in 2004.

I believe that to understand how proficient he is in the Turkish musical mode (“makam”) system, one must observe his facial movements. Video recordings better demonstrate his powerful command over his voice. For that reason, in addition to the usual Spotify links, I am also sharing two YouTube videos.

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