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| Music of Azerbaijan | ||||||
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| Nationalistic and patriotic songs | ||||||
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Opera inAzerbaijan has a history dating back to the 19th centuryRussian Empire.
The emergence of opera and ballet inAzerbaijan is associated with theImperial Russian period of Azerbaijani history when Azerbaijanis became exposed to European music traditions first-hand.[1] The very first documented performance of an opera in Baku took place in May 1889 whenAlexey Verstovsky's operaAskold's grave was staged at a circus arena in Baku (on the site of the currentAzerbaijan Carpet Museum building), accompanied by the folk choir of Dmitry Agrenev-Slavyanski.
In the early 1900s, opera troupes toured Baku on a yearly basis (except 1901 and 1913), featuring prominent singers of the time such asNatalia Ermolenko-Yuzhina andAntonina Nezhdanova.
TheOpera Theater in Baku was built in 1911.[2]
The first opera by anAzerbaijani composer premiered three years earlier, in 1908.
Leyli and Majnun (1908) byUzeyir Hajibeyov was the first creation in the opera genre not only in Azerbaijan, but also in the wholeMuslim world.[3] It was followed by the operasSheikh Sanan (1909),Rustam and Zohrab (1910),Shah Abbas and Khurshid Banu (1912),Asli and Karam (1912) andHarun and Leyla (1915) which were written, but never staged.[4]The Cloth Peddler musical comedy written in 1913 was Hajibeyov's most popularoperetta. It is considered to be the most well-known work of Hajibeyov in the former Soviet Union.The Cloth Peddler was translated intoRussian,Tatar,Chagatai,Persian andTurkish soon after its premiere in 1913. Later this operetta was translated intoPolish,Bulgarian,Chinese,Arabic,French and other languages.[5]
In 1921, Hajibeyov became a member of a council for the development ofAzerbaijani theaters and contributed to the improvement of stage arts of Azerbaijan.[6] In 1925, Hajibeyov merged Russian and Azerbaijani opera troupes in a single troupe and created the permanent company of the Opera and Ballet Theater of Azerbaijan. In 1932, Hajibeyov wroteKoroghlu, which was first staged in 1937.[7]
In 1935Muslim Magomayev composedNargiz (1935) andReinhold Glière composedShahsanam.[8] The success of these operas encouraged other composers to create operas. In the 1940s, operas such asKhosrow and Shirin byNiyazi,Vatan ("Motherland") byJovdat Hajiyev andGara Garayev,Nizami byAfrasiyab Badalbeyli and many other operas were written and staged. The operaSevil written byFikrat Amirov premiered in 1953 and a remake of this opera was staged in 1998.[9]
In 1972,Shafiga Akhundova was the first Azerbaijani female composer and the first such in the Muslim world to write an opera.[10] Ballets by foreign and classic composers also are frequently staged at the Azerbaijan Opera and Ballet Theater. Operas created by various Azerbaijani composers such as Akhundova (Galin Gayasi),Suleyman Alasgarov (Bahadur and Sona,Faded Flowers),Jahangir Jahangirov (Life of a Composer,Azad),Vasif Adigozalov (The Dead), Ramiz Mustafayev (Vagif), Zakir Baghirov (Aygun), Nazim Aliverdibeyov (Jirtdan) and others were staged throughout the modern history of Azerbaijani opera.
Prominent Azerbaijani opera singers includeBulbul,Shovkat Mammadova,Fatma Mukhtarova,Huseyngulu Sarabski,Hagigat Rzayeva,Rashid Behbudov,Rauf Atakishiyev,Franghiz Ahmadova,Muslim Magomayev,Lutfiyar Imanov,Fidan andKhuraman Gasimovas,Rubaba Muradova, andZeynab Khanlarova.[11]
In 1908 (January, 12), the first mugham opera staged at the theater ofZeynalabdin Taghiyev was a great success.[12] Famous classic story and mugham were joined in this opera.Leyli and Majnun became the first mugham opera inAzerbaijan. Zulfugar HajibayovAshig Garib (1916) andShah Ismayil by Muslum Magomayev (1916) are significant examples of this genre. This tradition was continued by composers in the second half of the 20th century.Shafiga Akhundova'sGəlin qayası (Bride rock) andJahangir Jahangirov'sXanəndə taleyi (The fate of singer) are examples of operas by these composers.[13]
Operas composed by Azerbaijanis includes:
Uzeyir Hajibeyov:
Other prominent operas:
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| Dinara Aliyeva · Shovkat Mammadova · Fatma Mukhtarova | ||||
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| Ahmed Agdamski · Muslim Magomayev · Elchin Azizov | ||||
