Abdullah Akat, Prof. Dr., an ethnomusicologist, and faculty member at Istanbul University State Conservatory, Department of Musicology, Ethnomusicology Program (2019 to date), Chair of the ICTMD Study Group on Music and Dance in the Turkic World (2021 to date), and the Editor-in-Chief of the Musicologist journal since 2017.

He got his bachelor's degree from the Istanbul Technical University (ITU) Turkish Music State Conservatory in 2004 with the first ranked degree of the Music Theory department; completed his MA in Turkish Music in 2006, and Ph.D. in Musicology and Music Theory at the ITU Social Sciences Institute in 2010. He worked as a Research Assistant at ITU Social Sciences Institute between 2006–2010. He founded the Karadeniz Technical University (KTU) Karadeniz Music Archive (KARMA) in 2011 when he was working as Assistant Professor at KTU State Conservatory between 2011–2013. He completed his Post-doctoral research in the Berliner Phonogramm-Archiv between 2013–2014, with the support of the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK). He worked as Head of Musicology Department of KTU State Conservatory between 2014-2016; as Director of State Conservatory of KTU and as Senator of KTU and Trabzon University, Turkey between 2016 and 2019.

He conducted and participated in many research projects and artistic events in Turkey and abroad; gave lectures and conferences as a visiting scholar at several universities in Europe.

As an editor, he published many books, proceedings, CDs, and articles. He founded Porte journal in 2006, Istanbul, and Musicologist journal in 2017, Trabzon; worked in scientific journals as an editorial board member and reviewer.

His fieldworks, publications, research projects, and presentations are related to music archiving, the Turkey-Black Sea, Balkan, Crimean, and Caucasian music cultures.