Mahmut Mazhar Alanson (born February 13, 1950) is a Turkish musician, guitarist, member of the popular Turkish pop music band MFÖ, and an actor.
He was born on February 13, 1950 to a family of musicians in Ankara, Turkey, where his father was the head trumpeter in the State Philharmonic Orchestra. He continued Kadıköy Anadolu Lisesi which is also commonly known as Kadıköy Maarif College for his high school education in Istanbul following his father's death. After the high school, he attended the State Conservatory in Ankara and graduated in performing arts, in particular (theater).
He started playing the guitar during his high school years. In 1966, Mazhar formed the band Kaygısızlar ("The Carefree") along with Fuat Güner and Sadik Kuyas. They played the music of the Beatles, Crosby, Stills & Nash and the Rolling Stones and collaborated with the renowned Turkish pop singer Barış Manço. Later on, Özkan Uğur joined the band, and in 1972 the trio was renamed MFÖ, after the initials of the members. While Özkan was serving his military duty, Mazhar and Fuat released their first album Türküz Türkü Çığırırız ("We are Turkish, we will sing Türkü"). The album song Güllerin İçinden ("From in-between the roses") brought the group to a broader audience. In 1974, Galip Boransu and Ayhan Sicimoğlu joined the band, and the quintet took the name İpucu Beşlisi ("Clue Quintet"). However, the band dissolved after a short time, and the group MFÖ continued to play as a trio again.