Azerbaijani classical music ( az, Azərbaycan klassik musiqisi) includes a range of musical styles rooted in the traditions of Western or

European classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

that European settlers brought to the country from the 20th century and onwards.

History

Azerbaijan Democratic Republic era

The professional classical music in

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

is associated with name of composer

Uzeyir Hajibeyov Uzeyir bey Abdulhuseyn oghlu Hajibeyov ( az, Üzeyir bəy Əbdülhüseyn oğlu Hacıbəyov; russian: Узеир Абдул-Гусейн оглы Гаджибеков, translit=Uzeir Abdul-Guseyn ogly Gadzhibekov; September 18, 1885November 23, 19 ...

Soviet era

In 1920, Azerbaijani classical music had undergone a renaissance and

Baku Academy of Music The Hajibeyov Baku Academy of Music (Azeri: ''Hacıbəyov adına Bakı Musiqi Akademiyası'') is a music school in Baku, Azerbaijan. It was established in 1920 in Baku and was previously known as the Hajibeyov Azerbaijan State Conservatoire. H ...

was founded to give classical musicians the same support as folk musicians. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Fikret Amirov Fikret Mashadi Jamil oghlu Amirov ( az, Fikrət Məşədi Cəmil oğlu Əmirov; November 22, 1922, Ganja – February 20, 1984, Baku) was a prominent Soviet and Azerbaijani composer. Biography Fikret Amirov grew up in an atmosphere of Azerba ...

introduced a new genre called symphonic

mugam Mugham ( az, Muğam) or Mughamat ( az, Muğamat) is one of the many classical compositions from Azerbaijan, contrasting with tasnif and ashik. It is a highly complex art form that weds classical poetry and musical improvisation in specific ...

. Amirov's symphonic mugams were based on classical folk pieces and were performed by many renowned symphony orchestras throughout the world, such as the

Houston Symphony Orchestra The Houston Symphony is an American orchestra based in Houston, Texas. The orchestra is resident at the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts. History The first concert of what was to become the Houston Symphony took place on June 21, 1 ...

conducted by

Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra and his appeara ...

Post-Soviet era

In the present era, classical music in Azerbaijan must contend and co-exist with a dominant culture of

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...

. Specialist music education at establishments such as the

Asaf Zeynally Music School in Baku The Baku Musical College (now the Azerbaijan National Conservatory Music College) is a state college of professional secondary education in Baku and one of the leading secondary musical schools of Azerbaijan. General information Baku Musical Coll ...

and

provide music teaching to classical musicians. Modern day advocates of Western classical music in Azerbaijani include

Farhad Badalbeyli Farhad Shamsi oghlu Badalbeyli ( az, Fərhad Şəmsi oğlu Bədəlbəyli; born 1947) is an Azerbaijani pianist and composer. He was awarded the title, People's Artists of the Azerbaijan SSR (1978), the People's Artist of the USSR (1990), and lau ...

Fidan Gasimova Fidan Akram gizi Gasimova ( az, Fidan Əkrəm qızı Qasımova), born 17 June 1947 in Baku, Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, Azerbaijan SSR, is an Azerbaijani operatic soprano who was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1988. Life Gasimova ...

and Franghiz Alizadeh.

Festivals and venues

Azerbaijan is host to many major

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

s, festivals and venues. The

Gabala International Music Festival Gabala International Music Festival is an annual festival of classical music held every summer beginning in 2009 in Gabala, Azerbaijan. The festival is organised with the support of Heydar Aliyev Foundation at the initiative of the rector of the ...

and

Uzeyir Hajibeyov International Music Festival The Uzeyir Hajibeyov International Music Festival is held in September, since 2009, in Azerbaijan. Musical events are held in several cities of Azerbaijan, and the main ceremonies take place in Baku. History Since 1995, September 18 (Uzeyir Ha ...

have presented annual music programmes of international status since the early 21st century.

Notable Performers

Composers

Vasif Adigozalov Vasif Zulfugar oghlu Adigozalov (alternative spellings: Adigezalov, Adygozal) ( az, Vasif Zülfüqar oğlu Adıgözəlov; 28 July 1935 – 15 September 2006) was one of Azerbaijan's most distinguished composers. He is the son of khananda Zulfu Ad ...

Shafiga Akhundova Shafiga Akhundova ( az, Şəfiqə Axundova; 21 January 1924 – 26 July 2013) was a prominent Azerbaijani composer, the first professional female author of an opera in the East and People’s Artist of Azerbaijan. Akhundova was born into a family ...

* Agshin Alizadeh * Franghiz Alizadeh *

Fikrat Amirov Fikret Mashadi Jamil oghlu Amirov ( az, Fikrət Məşədi Cəmil oğlu Əmirov; November 22, 1922, Ganja – February 20, 1984, Baku) was a prominent Soviet and Azerbaijani composer. Biography Fikret Amirov grew up in an atmosphere of Azer ...

Afrasiyab Badalbeyli Afrasiyab Badal bey oghlu Badalbeyli ( az, Əfrasiyab Bədəl bəy oğlu Bədəlbəyli) (19 April 1907, in Baku – 6 January 1976, in Baku) was a Soviet Azerbaijani composer, with noble Iranian origins (he was the descendant of Bahman Mirza and ...

Tofig Bakikhanov Tofig Ahmed-agha oglu Bakikhanov ( az, Tofiq Əhmədağa oğlu Bakıxanov) is a composer. He was awarded the title People's Artists of the Azerbaijan SSR (1990). Biography Tofig Bakikhanov, a descendant of Baku khans, was born on 8 December 1930 ...

* Faraj Garayev *

Gara Garayev Gara Abulfaz oghlu Garayev ( az, Qara Əbülfəz oğlu Qarayev, russian: Кара́ Абульфа́зович Кара́ев (Kara Abulfazovich Karayev), February 5, 1918 – May 13, 1982), also spelled as Qara Qarayev or Kara Karayev, was a pr ...

Tofig Guliyev Tofig Alakbar oglu Guliyev ( az, Tofiq Ələkbər oğlu Quliyev, tr, Tevfik Elekber oğlu Guliyev; 7 November 1917, Baku – 4 October 2000, Baku) was a Soviet and Azerbaijani composer, pianist, and conductor. Biography Tofig Guliyev was born in ...

Soltan Hajibeyov Soltan Ismayil oghlu Hajibeyov ( az, Soltan İsmayıl oğlu Hacıbəyov, russian: Солтан Исмаил оглы Гаджибеков, also transliterated as Sultan Gadzhibekov; 5 May 1919 – 19 September 1974), was a Soviet Azerbaijani comp ...

Zulfugar Hajibeyov Zulfugar Abdulhuseyn oghlu Hajibeyov ( az, Zülfüqar bəy Əbdülhüseyn bəy oğlu Hacıbəyov, 17 April 1884 – 30 September 1950) was an Azerbaijani composer and a member of a family noted for its musical talents. He was one o ...

Jovdat Hajiyev Ahmad Jovdat Ismayil oglu Hajiyev (June 18, 1917 - January 18, 2002) was one of the major Azerbaijani composers of the Soviet period. He is remembered for his monumental orchestral works, having been the first Azerbaijani to compose a symphony (1 ...

Rauf Hajiyev Rauf Soltan oghlu Hajiyev ( az, Rauf Soltan oğlu Hacıyev; 15 May 1922 – 19 September 1995) was a Soviet and Azerbaijani composer and politician. People's artist of the USSR (1978). He was Chairman of the Union of Composers of the Azerbaijan S ...

Jahangir Jahangirov Jahangir Shirgasht oglu Jahangirov (Azerbaijani: ; 20 July 1921 – 25 March 1992) was a Soviet and Azerbaijani composer, conductor and choirmaster; he was named People's Artists of the Azerbaijan SSR in 1964. Biography Jahangir Jahangirov was bor ...

Haji Khanmammadov Haji Dadash oglu Khanmammadov ( az, Hacı Xanməmmədov) (June 15, 1918, Derbent – April 7, 2005, Baku) was an Azerbaijani and Soviet Union, Soviet composer. He is best known for writing the first concertos for the Azeri stringed folk instrument ...

* Muslim Magomayev *

Arif Malikov Arif Malikov (also Melikov; Baku, 13 September 1933 – Baku, 9 May 2019) was an Azerbaijani composer. He graduated from the Baku Conservatory as a music composer in 1958. He shot to fame in 1961 when his first major composition " Legend of Lov ...

Eldar Mansurov Eldar Bahram oglu Mansurov ( az, Eldar Bəhram oğlu Mansurov / , ; born February 28, 1952) is an Azerbaijani musician, composer and songwriter. He is the son of musician Bahram Mansurov. His younger brother Elkhan Mansurov is also a musici ...

* Arif Mirzayev *

Khayyam Mirzazade Khayyam Hadi oglu Mirzazade ( az, Xəyyam Hadı oğlu Mirzəzadə; 5 October 1935 – 30 July 2018) was an Azerbaijani composer and professor. Biography Khayyam Mirzazade was born on October 5, 1935, in Baku. In 1957, he graduated from Azerbaija ...

Niyazi Niyazi Zulfugar oghlu Taghizade Hajibeyov ( az, Niyazi Zülfüqar bəy oğlu Hacıbəyov) (1912–1984) was a prominent Soviet Azerbaijani conductor, and composer of the renowned symphonic mugham "Rast". Early life Niyazi was born on August 2 ...

Said Rustamov Said Rustamov ( az, Səid Rüstəmov), born Mir-Jabbar Ali oglu Seyid-Rustamzadeh (12 May 1907 in Erivan – 10 June 1983 in Baku), was a Soviet Azerbaijani composer and conductor. Life and contributions Said Rustamov was born in Yerevan where ...

Emin Sabitoglu Emin Sabitoglu ( az, Emin Sabitoğlu, real name Emin Sabit oghlu Mahmudov (); 2 November 1937 – 18 November 2000) was a Soviet Azerbaijani composer, author of a lot of well-known Azerbaijani songs and music for films. People's actor of Azerbaija ...

Ali Salimi Ali Salimi ( fa, علي سليمي, az, Əli Səlimi; 1922 in Baku – 22 April 1997 in Tabriz) was an Iranian Azerbaijani musician, composer and tar player. He had been based in Tehran for the last few decades where he made significant contribu ...

Huseyngulu Sarabski Huseyngulu Sarabski ( az, Hüseynqulu Sarabski), born Hüseynqulu Malik oğlu Rzayev (20 March 1879 – 16 February 1945), was an Azerbaijani opera singer (tenor), composer, playwright, stage actor, theatre director, and musician (tar). Early life ...

Asya Sultanova Asya Bakhish Sultanova (16 October 1923 – 22 November 2021) was an Azerbaijani composer who is best known for her works for children and her collaboration with singer Muslim Magomayev. Biography Sultanova was born in Baku. Her father was a geo ...

Alakbar Taghiyev Alakbar Taghiyev ( az, Ələkbər Tağıyev; April 28, 1924 – April 16, 1981) was Azerbaijani composer and author of popular Azerbaijani songs. Biography He was born in 1922, in Ganja, into a large, low-income family. At the age of 14, he beg ...

Asaf Zeynalli Asaf Zeynalabdin oglu Zeynally ( az, Asəf Zeynallı), also spelled Zeynalli (5 April 1909, Derbent – 27 October 1932, Baku), was an Azerbaijani composer. Early life Asaf Zeynally was the third child of the gardener Zeynalabdin and his wife ...

Conductors

Elnara Kerimova Elnara Nadir qizi Kerimova, also spelled Karimova ( az, Ziyafet Kərimova) (born 1962 in Baku) is an Azerbaijani and Turkish conductor and chorus master. Contributions Born in Baku, Azerbaijan, Elnara Kerimova studied choir conducting at the ...

Orchestras

Azerbaijan State Orchestra of Folk Instruments The Azerbaijan State Orchestra of Folk Instruments ( az, Azərbaycan Dövlət Xalq çalğı alətləri orkestri) is the first notable orchestra of folk instruments in Azerbaijan, affiliated with the Azerbaijan State Philharmonic Society. It was c ...

Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra The Hajibeyov Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra (Azeri: ''Hacıbəyov adına Azərbaycan Dövlət Simfonik Orkestri'') was formed in 1920 being one of the first orchestras in the Soviet Union, at the request of composer Uzeyir Hajibeyov after wh ...

References

{{reflist, 30em Classical music in Azerbaijan classical