Magadmi was the first to recite the Holy Qur’an on Saudi and Indian radio stations. His recitation was marked by a sweet sound and beautiful tone, accompanied by a unique intonation. Considered the master of the Hijazi recitation style, people called him the sheikh of Hijaz reciters of the Holy Qur’an.

“Hijazi recitation style of the Holy Qur’an, with its touch of passion, has a special influence on listeners. Sheikh Magadmi is the best reciter of that style,” wrote Secretary-General of the International Holy Qur’an Memorization Organization Abdullah Bin Ali Basfr in Al-Huda magazine.

Born in 1921 in the Souk Al-Lail District in Makkah, Magadmi lost his eyesight at the age of three following a smallpox epidemic.

Notwithstanding his visual impairment, the boy studied recitation of the Holy Qur’an under prominent reciters Sheikh Ahmed Abdullah Hijazi and Sheikh Ahmed bin Hamed Al-Teji Al-Redi at Al-Qushashyah school, considered to be the oldest school for Holy Qur’an memorization.

He learned the entire Qur’an at a very early age, mastering the readings with a high voice and multiple tones with variation in keys.

Magadmi was further trained by other prominent sheikhs in Makkah and Egypt and studied Islamic jurisprudence and Hadith at the Holy Mosque in Makkah.

At an early age, Magadmi won the first prize in a Qur’an Competition in Makkah and obtained certificates of excellence and appreciation from many prominent sheikhs and religious scholars in the Arab world. He recited the Holy Qur’an in the Holy Mosque and worked as a teacher in the Al-Falah Schools in Makkah, Jeddah and India. According to his colleagues and students, he led an austere life. His recitation school has attracted thousands of students.

When Saudi Radio planned to broadcast the Holy Qur’an, Magadmi refused to consent to the recording of his recitation initially. However, his teacher Sheikh Beshnak convinced him that his recordings would be beneficial not only to listeners in the Kingdom and neighboring Muslim countries now, but to future generations as well. Magadmi’s recitations were also aired by ARAMCO’s radio station.

In 1953 the sheikh went to India as a teacher and recited the Holy Qur’an on All India Radio in New Delhi. During the four years he stayed in India, he taught and recited the Holy Qur’an continuously. Back in Makkah, he was in high demand to recite on all domestic and international occasions.

In Feb. 1991, Sheikh Magadmi died at the age of 69 in Makkah.

Famous Egyptian Qur’an reciter Abdul Basset Abdul Samad admired the unique recitation of Magadmi, saying that the movements in Magadmi’s recitation were hard to emulate. Sheikh Magadmi was perfect in all seven recitation styles of the Holy Qur’an.

Sheikh Magadmi has been awarded three licenses from Al-Azhar University in Cairo, in addition to recognition certifications from prominent sheikhs in Muslim countries.

“Sheikh Magadmi is one of the symbols of the Hijazi recitation, which is popular in Makkah. He has been among the most prominent figures reciting the Holy Qur’an witnessed by Saudi Arabia over the last sixty years,” former Saudi Information Minister Muhammad Abdu Yamani said in a program on Al Jazeera TV channel last year.

Paying tribute to Magadmi after his death, Secretary-General of Qur'an Memorization Charitable Society in Makkah Sajad Kamal Al-Hassan said, "Sheikh Magadmi was among the most renowned reciters of the Holy Qur'an of his time in Saudi Arabia.”

As the sheikh did not like pictures, he was rarely available for photographs. However, his voice has been preserved, as a large number of his recitations and readings are nowadays used as cellular ring tones.