Mugham ( az, Muğam) or Mughamat ( az, Muğamat) is one of the many
classical compositions from
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 ...
, contrasting with
tasnif Tasnif ( fa, تصنيف) is one of the several forms of Persian music and can be considered as the Persian equivalent of the ballad. It is a composed song in a slow metre. As is true of other forms of musical composition, most tasnifs are of relativ ...
and
ashik
An ashik ( az, aşıq, ; tr, âşık; fa, عاشیق) or ashugh ( hy, աշուղ; ka, აშუღი) is traditionally a singer-poet and bard who accompanies his song—be it a dastan (traditional epic story, also known as '' hikay ...
.
It is a highly complex art form that weds classical poetry and musical improvisation in specific local modes. Mugham is a modal system. Unlike Western modes, "mugham" modes are associated not only with scales but with an orally transmitted collection of melodies and melodic fragments that performers use in the course of improvisation.
Mugham is a compound composition of many parts. The choice of a particular mugham and a style of performance fits a specific event.
The dramatic unfolding in performance is typically associated with increasing intensity and rising pitches, and a form of poetic-musical communication between performers and initiated listeners.
Three major schools of mugham performance existed from the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the regions of Karabakh, Shirvan, and Baku. The town of
Shusha
/ hy, Շուշի
, settlement_type = City
, image_skyline = ShushaCollection2021.jpg
, image_caption = Landmarks of Shusha, from top left:Ghazanchetsots Cathedral • Yukhari Govhar ...
of
Karabakh
Karabakh ( az, Qarabağ ; hy, Ղարաբաղ, Ġarabaġ ) is a geographic region in present-day southwestern Azerbaijan and eastern Armenia, extending from the highlands of the Lesser Caucasus down to the lowlands between the rivers Kura (Caspia ...
, was particularly renowned for this art.
A short selection of Azerbaijani mugham, played on the Azerbaijani wind instrument
balaban, was included among many cultural achievements of humanity on the
Voyager Golden Record
The Voyager Golden Records are two phonograph records that were included aboard both Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977. The records contain sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth, and are intended for ...
, which was attached to the
Voyager spacecraft to represent world music.
In 2003,
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
proclaimed Azerbaijani Mugham a
"Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity". It was added to the
UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists
UNESCO established its Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage with the aim of ensuring better protection of important intangible cultural heritages worldwide and the awareness of their significance.Compare: This list is published by the Intergover ...
in 2008.
History
![Seyid Shushinski ansambl](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Seyid_Shushinski_ansambl.jpg)
In the course of its long history, the
people of Azerbaijan have retained their ancient musical tradition. Mugham belongs to the system of modal music and may have derived from
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
musical tradition. The
Uighurs
The Uyghurs; ; ; ; zh, s=, t=, p=Wéiwú'ěr, IPA: ( ), alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central and East Asia. The Uyghu ...
in
Xinjiang
Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...
(新疆) call this musical development ''muqam'', the
Uzbeks
The Uzbeks ( uz, , , , ) are a Turkic ethnic group native to the wider Central Asian region, being among the largest Turkic ethnic group in the area. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, next to Kazakh and Karakalpak mino ...
and
Tajiks
Tajiks ( fa, تاجيک، تاجک, ''Tājīk, Tājek''; tg, Тоҷик) are a Persian-speaking Iranian ethnic group native to Central Asia, living primarily in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Tajiks are the largest ethnicity in Tajik ...
call it ''maqom'' (or ''shasmaqom''), while Arabs call it ''
maqam
MAQAM is a US-based production company specializing in Arabic and Middle Eastern media. The company was established by a small group of Arabic music and culture lovers, later becoming a division of 3B Media Inc. "MAQAM" is an Arabic word meaning a ...
'' and Persians ''
dastgah
Dastgāh ( fa, دستگاه) is the standard musical system in Persian art music, standardised in the 19th century following the transition of Persian music from the Maqam modal system. A consists of a collection of musical melodies, . In a son ...
''.
![Üzeyir Hacıbəyov6](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/%C3%9Czeyir_Hac%C4%B1b%C9%99yov6.gif)
The
meta-ethnicity
Meta-ethnicity is a relatively recent term (or neologism) occasionally used in academic literature or public discourse on ethnic studies. It describes a level of commonality that is wider ("meta-") and more general (i.e., might differ on specifics) ...
and intricate complexity of this music also becomes apparent in the fact that terms such as ''mugham'', ''maqam'', or ''dastgah'', omnipresent in oriental music, can mean one thing in the Turkish tradition, while the same term in the music of Uzbekistan takes on quite another meaning, and yet another in the classical Arabic tradition. So, in one culture mugham may be related to a strictly fixed melodic type, while in another it is only the cadences, the melody endings that are associated with it. In a third culture it may only correspond to a specific type of tone scales.
The genre itself has roots in
prayer
Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deified a ...
and
lullaby
A lullaby (), or cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies they are used to pass down cultural knowledg ...
and is passed on from mother to baby in this way. However, there are hundreds of varieties, such as songs similar to war chant.
In the 16–17th centuries the art of mugham was passing through the development process as a folklore professional music of the palace conditions. In this period a dastgah form starts to develop in the structure and forms of mugham. New colors and shades as well as tasnifs developed in mugham performance. The masters of mugham of Azerbaijan sang gazals written in aruz genre by
Fuzuli, Habibi and
Khatai
Ismail I ( fa, اسماعیل, Esmāʿīl, ; July 17, 1487 – May 23, 1524), also known as Shah Ismail (), was the founder of the Safavid dynasty of Safavid Iran, Iran, ruling as its King of Kings (''Shahanshah'') from 1501 to 1524. His re ...
. The music events were held in most regions of today's Azerbaijan in the 19th century and mugham was performed at these events. In the 19th century famous French writer
Alexandre Dumas
Alexandre Dumas (, ; ; born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (), 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas père (where '' '' is French for 'father', to distinguish him from his son Alexandre Dumas fils), was a French writer ...
who attended the ceremony in
Shamakhy
Shamakhi ( az, Şamaxı, ) is a city in Azerbaijan and the administrative centre of the Shamakhi District. The city's estimated population was 31,704. It is famous for its traditional dancers, the Shamakhi Dancers, and also for perhaps giving i ...
, wrote in his works about his trip saying he was greatly impressed by mugham that sounded there. Such events held in Azerbaijan were attended by khanendes from
Karabakh
Karabakh ( az, Qarabağ ; hy, Ղարաբաղ, Ġarabaġ ) is a geographic region in present-day southwestern Azerbaijan and eastern Armenia, extending from the highlands of the Lesser Caucasus down to the lowlands between the rivers Kura (Caspia ...
,
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
and
Tabriz
Tabriz ( fa, تبریز ; ) is a city in northwestern Iran, serving as the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. It is the List of largest cities of Iran, sixth-most-populous city in Iran. In the Quri Chay, Quru River valley in Iran's historic Aze ...
which in turn caused the blending of singing traditions of different regions.
In the early decades of the 20th century, a member of native intelligentsia,
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 ...
, the author of the first national opera
Leyli and Majnun, also formulated the theoretical basis of Azerbaijani mugham in his work ''The Principles of Azerbaijan Folk Music.'' Famous Azerbaijani composer
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 ...
and
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 ...
also made a great contribution to the development of the art of mugham through creating the mugham symphony.
Hajibaba Huseynov
Hajibaba Huseynali oghlu Huseynov ( az, Hacıbaba Hüseynəli oğlu Hüseynov; March 15, 1919 – October 24, 1993) was an Azerbaijani khananda, poet, pedagogue. He was awarded the People's Artiste of the Azerbaijan SSR.
Biography
Hajibaba Hu ...
was credited as a key figure in the popularization of mugham, and developing talented mugham khanandas such as
Alim Qasimov
Alim Hamza oghlu Qasimov ( az, Alim Həmzə oğlu Qasımov; born August 14, 1957) is an Azerbaijani musician and one of the foremost mugham singers in Azerbaijan. He was awarded the International Music Council-UNESCO Music Prize in 1999, one of ...
,
Aghakhan Abdullayev and
Gadir Rustamov
Gadir Rustamov ( az, Qədir Rüstəmov; 3 March 1935 – 14 December 2011) was an Azerbaijani mugham
Mugham ( az, Muğam) or Mughamat ( az, Muğamat) is one of the many classical compositions from Azerbaijan, contrasting with tasnif and ...
. As of 1985,
Agdam Mugham School functions in Azerbaijan, which produced the "Karabakh Nightingales" mugham ensemble.
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 ...
also has a great tradition of composers and musicians of western classical music.
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 ...
with his ''Leyli and Majnun'' created the genre of mugham-opera.
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 Aze ...
(1922–1984) was the first composer of symphonic mughams, namely –
Shur, ''Kurd Ovshari'', and ''Gulistan Bayati Shiraz''. Azerbaijani composers created a plethora of compositions that fused mugham and traditional European genres. Among those, for example,
Vasif Adigozal's mugham oratorio ''
Karabakh Shikastasi''. Such works are obviously very different from traditional mugham formations but in fact incorporate many mugham idioms. On the level of musicians, there remains a strict separation between classical and "traditional" music in terms of training. Even if the musicians are educated at the same conservatorium they stick to one camp.
According to the
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
, mugham is a symphonic-length suite, full of contrasting sections: unmetered and rhythmic, vocal and instrumental, lingering around a single sustained note or taking up a refrain that could be a dance tune.
In 2005,
International Center of Mugham created under the decree of Azerbaijani president
Ilham Aliyev
Ilham Heydar oghlu Aliyev ( az, İlham Heydər oğlu Əliyev, ; born 24 December 1961) is the fourth president of Azerbaijan, serving in the post since 31 October 2003.
The son and second child of the former Azerbaijani leader Heydar Aliyev, ...
. In August of same year, on the territory of the
Baku Boulevard
Baku Boulevard ( az, Dənizkənarı Milli Park, also known as National Park) is a promenade established in 1909 which runs parallel to Baku's seafront. Its history goes back more than 100 years, to a time when Baku oil barons built their mansion ...
, Ilham Aliyev with his spouse, the Goodwill Ambassador of UNESCO
Mehriban Aliyeva
Mehriban Arif gizi Aliyeva (; az, Mehriban Arif qızı Əliyeva Paşayeva, ; born 26 August 1964) is an Azerbaijani politician and physician who is the vice president and First Lady of Azerbaijan.
She is married to Ilham Aliyev, the president o ...
and UNESCO Director General
Koichiro Matsuura
Kōichirō, Koichiro, Kouichirou or Kohichiroh is a masculine Japanese given name.
Possible Writings
*晃一郎, "clear, one, son"
*光一郎, "light, one, son"
*弘一郎, "vast, one, son"
*鴻一郎, "prosperous, one, son"
*紘一郎, "large, on ...
, laid the first stone at the base of the complex. Opening of the complex took place on December 27, 2008. The total area of center is 7500 meters squared, which also includes concert saloon of 350 people, recording studio, rooms for rehearsals. In the foyer, visitors can find
busts of famous mugham performers, also a rich collection of musical instruments.
The modes of mugham
![Pht-Vugar Ibadov eurovision (2)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Pht-Vugar_Ibadov_eurovision_%282%29.jpg)
In recent years, Azerbaijan folk music existed within the scope of folk art. The vocal-instrumental forms of folklore contain the elements of polyphony. The peculiarity of folk music clarifies itself firstly with the development of a modal system. It contains seven main modes –
Rast,
Shur,
Segah
Segah ( fa, سه گاه, az, Segah, tr, Segâh) is a musical modal system in traditional mugham
Mugham ( az, Muğam) or Mughamat ( az, Muğamat) is one of the many classical compositions from Azerbaijan, contrasting with tasnif and ashik. ...
(are especially common),
Shushtar
Shushtar ( fa, شوشتر; also Romanized as Shūshtar and Shūstar and Shooshtar) is a city and capital of Shushtar County, Khuzestan Province, Iran.
Shushtar is an ancient fortress city, approximately from Ahvaz, the centre of the province. ...
,
Bayaty-Shiraz,
Chahargah,
Humayun
Nasir-ud-Din Muhammad ( fa, ) (; 6 March 1508 – 27 January 1556), better known by his regnal name, Humāyūn; (), was the second emperor of the Mughal Empire, who ruled over territory in what is now Eastern Afghanistan, Pakistan, Northern ...
and three collateral kinds – shahnaz, sarendj, chargah in some other form. Before, it was considered that each of the modes has its special vivid emotional meaning. Every mode represents a strongly organized scale, possessing a firm tonic prop (maye), and each step of the mode has its melodic function.
Zarbi mugham includes nine modes –
Heyrati,
Arazbari,
Samayi-Shams,
Mansuriyya,
Mani
Mani may refer to:
Geography
* Maní, Casanare, a town and municipality in Casanare Department, Colombia
* Mani, Chad, a town and sub-prefecture in Chad
* Mani, Evros, a village in northeastern Greece
* Mani, Karnataka, a village in Dakshi ...
,
Ovshari,
Heydari,
Karabakh Shikastasi and
Kasma Shikastasi.
Analysis
![Azeri 7](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Azeri_7.jpg)
Part of the confusion arises from the fact that the term itself can have two different, if related meanings. The famous Azerbaijani composer
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 ...
has the following explanation: “The expression ''mugham'' is used in two senses in the folk music of Azerbaijan. On the one hand the word ''mugham'' describes the same thing as the term ''lad''
ussian for key, mode, scale An analysis of Azerbaijani songs, dances and other folk-music forms show that they are always constructed according to one
f these
F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''.
His ...
modes. On the other hand the term ''mugham'' refers to an individual, multi-movement form. This form combines elements of a suite and a rhapsody, is symphonic in nature, and has its own set of structural rules. In particular one should observe that the ''suite-rhapsody-mugham'' is constructed according to one particular ''mode-mugham'' and is subject to all of the particular requirements of this mode.” (
Sovetskaya Muzyka
''Music Academy'' (russian: Музыкальная Академия, translit=Muzykalʹnaja Akademija, italic=yes; before 1992 – ''Soviet Music'') is the oldest Russian peer-reviewed academic journal about music.
History
''Soviet Music'' (russi ...
1949:3). Azerbaijani conservatory throughout the 20th century produced significant scholars and scholarship. Among them, Rena Mamedova explored the philosophical content of mugham, as an Azerbaijani "formula of creative thinking". Elkhan Babayev wrote extensively on rhythmic aspect of mugham performance. The native scholars continued and expanded Hajibeyov's analysis of mugham.
Mugham describes a specific type of musical composition and performance, which is hard to grasp with western concepts of music in another respect: for one, mugham composition is improvisational in nature. At the same time it follows exact rules. Furthermore, in the case of a suite-rhapsody-mugham the concept of improvisation is not really an accurate one, since the artistic imagination of the performers is based on a strict foundation of principles determined by the respective mode. The performance of mughams does therefore not present an amorphous and spontaneous, impulsive improvisation.
With respect to the concept of improvisation, mugham music is often put in relation to jazz, a comparison that is accurate to a certain point only. Although mugham does allow for a wide margin of interpretation, an equation with jazz is oversimplified, since it fails to account for the different kinds of improvisation for different Mugham modes. The performance of a certain mugham may last for hours. (For the uninitiated listener it is close to impossible to know whether a musician is actually improvising or playing a prearranged composition.) Furthermore, as Garayev stresses, mugham music has a symphonic character.
The songs are often based on the medieval and modern poetry of Azerbaijan, and although love is a common topic in these poems, to the uninitiated ear many of the intricacies and allusions are lost. For one, the poems do not primarily deal with worldly love but with the mystical love for god. Yet, strictly speaking, this is still secular music/poetry, as opposed to, say, Sufism. Nevertheless, mugham composition is designed very similarly to Sufism in that it seeks to achieve ascension from a lower level of awareness to a transcendental union with god. It is a spiritual search for god.
Derivatives and offshoots
Jazz mugham
The famous Azerbaijani jazz musician
Vagif Mustafazadeh
Vagif Mustafazadeh ( az, Vaqif Mustafazadə; March 16, 1940 – December 16, 1979), also known as Vaqif Mustafa-Zadeh, was a Soviet-Azerbaijani jazz pianist and composer, acclaimed for fusing jazz and the traditional Azerbaijani folk music known ...
, who died in 1979, is credited with fusing
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
with mugham. Jazz mugham is jazz based on the modal forms or scales of mughams, just as a mugham symphonies are symphonies based on mughams. Ordinary jazz is marked by metered rhythm. But mugham jazz does not follow a metered system. Both rhythm and scales are improvised.
[Azerbaijan mugham music makes revival]
/ref>
In recent years, interest to jazz mugham has seen rise in many western countries, particularly in the United States, Austria and Japan. In 1995, Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott Buckley (November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997), raised as Scott Moorhead, was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. After a decade as a session guitarist in Los Angeles, Buckley amassed a following in the early 1990s by ...
performed "What Will You Say" as a duet with Alim Qasimov at the Festival de la Musique Sacrée (Festival of Sacred Music) in France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
.
Cultural significance
In 2003, UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
has acknowledged the authenticity, richness and cultural significance of mugham both national and global culture, and in 2003 announced it as a “Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity”.
Considered to be the classical music of Azerbaijan, the mugham is a traditional musical form characterized by a large degree of improvisation and draws upon popular stories and local melodies. The recent evolution of the cultural industry has threatened the improvisational nature and the ear-to-ear transmission of this art form. During his official visit to the country in August 2005, the Director-General of UNESCO, in the company of President Ilham Aliyev
Ilham Heydar oghlu Aliyev ( az, İlham Heydər oğlu Əliyev, ; born 24 December 1961) is the fourth president of Azerbaijan, serving in the post since 31 October 2003.
The son and second child of the former Azerbaijani leader Heydar Aliyev, ...
and several Goodwill Ambassadors, attended a foundation stone-laying ceremony of a Mugham Centre. In 2004, Mehriban Aliyeva
Mehriban Arif gizi Aliyeva (; az, Mehriban Arif qızı Əliyeva Paşayeva, ; born 26 August 1964) is an Azerbaijani politician and physician who is the vice president and First Lady of Azerbaijan.
She is married to Ilham Aliyev, the president o ...
, the First Lady of 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 ...
, was named as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for the oral and musical traditions.
Since 2009, International World of Mugham Festival is held with the participations of famous artists from all over the world.
Social impact
The massive popularity of mugham resulted in a powerful impact on worldwide society. Many of mugham khananda
A khananda ( az, xanəndə ; fa, خواننده; alternative spellings in English: khanende, khanande, khanandeh) is a name generally given to singers of mugham, an Culture of Azerbaijan, Azeri folk music genre. The word is of Persian origin ...
s were known as country-loving, powerful, respectful characters, and mugham was popularly associated with sign of pain and hope during First Nagorno-Karabakh War
The First Nagorno-Karabakh War, referred to in Armenia as the Artsakh Liberation War ( hy, Արցախյան ազատամարտ, Artsakhyan azatamart) was an ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in th ...
.
Mugham has lived and sounded 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 ...
in all periods, independently on political, public and economic situation and reserved its place in Azerbaijani culture Azerbaijani culture may refer to:
Regions
*Culture of Azerbaijan
The culture of Azerbaijan ( az, Azərbaycan mədəniyyəti) combines a diverse and heterogeneous set of elements which developed under the influence of Turkic, Iranic and Cauc ...
. The mugham masters play tremendous role in transition of mugham from generations to generations.
Notable Performers
Individuals
Female
* Malakkhanim Ayyubova
Malakkhanim Eyubova ( az, Mələkxanım Eyubova; born November 5, 1962, Shamakhi) is an Azerbaijani khananda (folk singer).
Life
After finishing No.155 Secondary School in Baku, she joined music school to play accordion. However, she was selected ...
* Shovkat Alakbarova
Shovkat Feyzulla qizi Alakbarova ( az, Şövkət Ələkbərova) (20 October 1922 in Baku – 7 February 1993 in Baku) was an Azerbaijani singer.
Life and career development
Shovkat Alakbarova was born to Azerbaijani people, Azerbaijani paren ...
* Konul Khasiyeva
* Sara Gadimova
* Gandab Guliyeva
* Sakina Ismayilova
* Tukezban Ismayilova
* Yaver Kelenterli
Yaver Kelenterli (; ) (1902–1979), née Yaver Ali gizi Zamanova, also spelled as Yavar Kalantarli, was an Azerbaijani Soviet khananda singer of mugham, an Azeri music genre. In 1939, she was celebrated with the title Honored Artist of the Azer ...
* Farghana Qasimova
Fargana Alim qizi Qasimova ( az, Fərqanə Alim qızı Qasımova; born August 6, 1979) is an Azerbaijani mugham singer in Azerbaijan. She is the daughter of famous mugham singer Alim Qasimov. She has twice received presidential awards for the p ...
* Nazakat Mammadova Nazakat Mammadova ( az, Nəzakət Məmmədova, Назакет Мамедова, February 28, 1944, Ganja - October 21, 1980, Sochi) was an Azerbaijani singer. She started her career in the ''Lale'' girls musical group and between 1970 and ...
* Rubaba Muradova
Rubaba Khalil qizi Muradova ( az, Rübabə Muradova), born Rubaba Ishragi (21 March 1930 – 28 August 1983), was an Iranian and Azerbaijani opera ( mezzo-soprano) and folk singer. She graduated from the Zeynalli College of Music in Baku and w ...
* Basti Sevdiyeva
* Jahan Talyshinskaya
Jahan Mir Rzakhan qizi Talyshinskaya ( az, Cahan Talışinskaya) (9 February 1909 in Lankaran – 1 March 1967 in Baku) was an Azerbaijani folk singer and theatre actress.
Early career
Born in Lankaran to a wealthy noble family, from her mate ...
* Nazaket Teymurova
Male
* Aghakhan Abdullayev
* Abulfath Aliyev
* Ahmed Agdamski
Ahmed Agdamski ( az, Əhməd Ağdamski) also known by the stage name of Ahmed Bashir oglu Badalbeyli ( az, Əhməd Bəşir oğlu Bədəlbəyli) (January 5, 1884, in Shusha, Elisabethpol Governorate (Russian Empire) – April 1, 1954, in Agdash, ...
* Shakili Alasgar
Alasgar Abdullayev or Shakili Alasgar ( az, Ələsgər Abdullayev; 1866 — 1 April 1929) was an Azerbaijani khananda.
Biography
Shakili Alasgar was born in Nukha (present-day Shaki) in 1866. He worked with a bricklayer in his childhood. Alasgar ...
* Janali Akbarov
* Gulu Asgarov
* Arif Babayev
Arif Haji oglu Babayev ( az, Arif Hacı oğlu Babayev) was an Azerbaijani film director and Honorary Art Worker of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, Azerbaijan SSR (1964).
Biography
Arif Babayev was born on September 20, 1928, in Baku. The ...
* Bulbuljan
Bulbuljan ( az, Bülbülcan), born as Abdulbagi Ali oglu Zulalov (1841–1927), was an Azerbaijani singer of folk music and mugam (an original improvisational genre of classical folk music in Azerbaijan). He was also famous for his performance ...
* Jabbar Garyagdyoglu
* Talat Gasimov
* Zahid Guliyev
* Hajibaba Huseynov
Hajibaba Huseynali oghlu Huseynov ( az, Hacıbaba Hüseynəli oğlu Hüseynov; March 15, 1919 – October 24, 1993) was an Azerbaijani khananda, poet, pedagogue. He was awarded the People's Artiste of the Azerbaijan SSR.
Biography
Hajibaba Hu ...
* Mansum Ibrahimov
Mansum Israfil oglu Ibrahimov ( az, Mənsum İsrafil oğlu İbrahimov; born October 1, 1960 in İmamqulubəyli, Agdam, Azerbaijani SSR, USSR) is an Azerbaijani people, Azerbaijani mugham singer and actor.
Biography
In 2011, he participated with ...
* Kechachioghlu Muhammed
* Sabir Mirzayev
* Alibaba Mammadov
* Sakhavat Mammadov
Sakhavat Mammadov ( az, Səxavət Məmmədov; 23 October 1953 – 30 September 1991) was an Azerbaijani people, Azerbaijani mugham singer.
Death
On Monday, 30 September 1991, Sakhavat died in a motor vehicle accident. He couldn't be buried in hi ...
* Yagub Mammadov
* Zabit Nabizadeh
* Alim Qasimov
Alim Hamza oghlu Qasimov ( az, Alim Həmzə oğlu Qasımov; born August 14, 1957) is an Azerbaijani musician and one of the foremost mugham singers in Azerbaijan. He was awarded the International Music Council-UNESCO Music Prize in 1999, one of ...
* Islam Rzayev
* Gadir Rustamov
Gadir Rustamov ( az, Qədir Rüstəmov; 3 March 1935 – 14 December 2011) was an Azerbaijani mugham
Mugham ( az, Muğam) or Mughamat ( az, Muğamat) is one of the many classical compositions from Azerbaijan, contrasting with tasnif and ...
* Khan Shushinski
Khan Shushinski ( az, Xan Şuşinski), born Isfandiyar Aslan oglu Javanshir (20 August 1901, Shusha – 18 March 1979, Baku), was an Azerbaijani khananda folk singer.
Life
Despite Shushinski's relation to the khans of Karabakh, his stage name deri ...
* Musa Shushinski
Musa may refer to:
Places
*Mūša, a river in Lithuania and Latvia
*Musa, Azerbaijan, a village in Yardymli Rayon
*Musa, Iran, a village in Ilam Province
* Musa, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Iran
* Musa, Kerman, Iran
* Musa, Bukan, West Azerbaijan ...
* Seyid Shushinski
Seyid Shushinski ( az, Seyid Şuşinski), born Mir Mohsun Seyid Ibrahim oglu Shushinski (12 April 1889, Horadiz – 1 November 1965, Baku), was an Azerbaijani khananda folk singer.
Early career
He was born in the small town of Horadiz, near pres ...
Musicians
* Elnur Ahmadov
* Firuz Aliyev
* Habil Aliyev
* Firuz Aliyev
* Elchin Hashimov
* Sahib Pashazade
* Kamil Jalilov
* Mansur Mansurov
* Mazahir Mammadov
* Bahram Mansurov
Bahram Meshadi Suleyman oglu Mansurov ( az, Bəhram Məşədi Süleyman bəy oğlu Mansurov / , ; 12 February 1911, Baku – 14 May 1985, Baku) was a Soviet and Azerbaijani Tar (lute) player. He also served as People's Artist of the Azerbaijan SSR ...
* Gurban Pirimov
Gurban Bakhshali oglu Pirimov (Primov) ( az, Qurban Baxşəli oğlu Pirimov) (October 1880 in Abdal Gulabli near Shusha, Karabakh, Azerbaijan – 29 August 1965 in Baku, Azerbaijan) was an Azerbaijani folk musician and tar-player.
Life and car ...
* Sadigjan
Mirza Sadig ( az, Sadıqcan), more commonly known as Sadigjan is an Azerbaijani folk musician, tar player, and the creator of the Azerbaijani tar (also known as upgraded tar).
Sadigjan is one of the famous Azerbaijani tar players. By improving ...
See also
* Franghiz Ali-Zadeh
Franghiz Ali-Zadeh (Azerbaijani Firəngiz Əlizadə, Russian Франгиз Али-Заде; born 29 May 1947 in Baku, Azerbaijani SSR, Soviet Union) is an Azerbaijani composer and pianist, currently living in Germany. She is best known for her w ...
* Vagif Mustafazadeh
Vagif Mustafazadeh ( az, Vaqif Mustafazadə; March 16, 1940 – December 16, 1979), also known as Vaqif Mustafa-Zadeh, was a Soviet-Azerbaijani jazz pianist and composer, acclaimed for fusing jazz and the traditional Azerbaijani folk music known ...
* Aziza Mustafazadeh
Aziza Mustafa Zadeh ( az, Əzizə Mustafazadə; born December 19, 1969) is an Azerbaijani singer, pianist, and composer who plays a fusion of jazz and mugham (a traditional improvisational style of Azerbaijan) with classical and avant-garde in ...
* Music of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijani music (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan musiqisi) is the musical tradition of the Azerbaijani people from Azerbaijan Republic. Azerbaijani music has evolved under the badge of monody, producing rhythmically diverse melodies.Энциклоп ...
* Culture of Azerbaijan
* History of Azerbaijan
The history of Azerbaijan is understood as the history of the region now forming the Republic of Azerbaijan. Topographically, the land is contained by the southern slopes of the Caucasus Mountains in the north, the Caspian Sea in the east, and t ...
* International Mugham Center of Azerbaijan
The International Mugham Center of Azerbaijan is a center of Azerbaijani arts and music aiming to promote, preserve and popularize the mugham genre of Azerbaijani music. It is located in Baku Boulevard, in downtown Baku.
Overview of the center
...
* Mugham triads
Mugham triads — ( az, Muğam üçlüyü) performers of a classic mugham consists who play the national musical instruments of Azerbaijan: tar, kamancheh and daf (tambourine);
Structure
The vocal instruments which are performed by the mugham tr ...
References
External links
UNESCO proclaimes Mugham of Azerbaijan a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
Mugham Society of America
Louis Werner about Mugham
{{Authority control
Azerbaijani music
Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
Modes (music)
Classical and art music traditions
Azerbaijani inventions
Azerbaijani styles of music
Azerbaijani words and phrases
National symbols of Azerbaijan
Articles containing video clips
Contents of the Voyager Golden Record
Maqam-based music tradition