Monday, August 23, 2004 - 6:00 to 11:00 AM
"THE LAND OF FIRE"
Musical Voyage to Azerbaijan

AZERBAIJAN is a country that most people don't generally associate with classical music; however, the country has a classical music tradition dating back nearly a century to the early 1900s when Baku, its capital, produced more than 50 percent of the world's oil supply.

Located on the Caspian Sea, south of Russia and east of Turkey, north of Iran, Azerbaijan sits at the crossroads of East and West. And its music is the synthesis of these two great traditions. Often the melodic line and instrumentation are Eastern while genre and orchestration are Western. An unforgettable blend.

In late 1991, Azerbaijan gained its independence with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Today, gradually, their great music is becoming known throughout the world as it justly deserves to be. Music schools flourished during the Soviet period and composers created and today are still creating music in numerous styles including those from the West.

The first opera of the Muslim world was composed in Azerbaijan almost a hundred years ago by the Azerbaijani composer, Uzeyir Hajibeyov. He is known as the Father of Composed Music because he insisted that music could be written down and orchestrated, rather than just improvised. The first piece - Koroghlu - Son of Blind Man , was performed in 1938 in Moscow in the presence of Stalin who awarded it the highest accolades of the nation. Some suggest that the piece may have even saved Hajibeyov's life because he had been involved with the movement for independence before the Bolsheviks took over the country in 1920. And those years - especially the late 1930s were so infamous for Stalin's repression.

Today's program introduces some of the finest examples of Azerbaijani music and the contribution their composers have made to world cultural heritage.
by Betty Blair

6:00am - 7:00am
(A*04)... Uzeyir Hajibeyov (1885-1948) - Overture from "Koroglu" (The Blind Man's Son) - Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, Yalchin Adigozalov, Conductor - (CMA set)
(A*04)...Gara Garayev (1922-1984) - "Leyli and Majnun" - Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, Yalchin Adigozalov, Conductor - (CMA set)
(A*04)...Faraj Garayev (1943- ) - Three Polyphonic Pieces - Murad Adigozalzade, Piano
(A*04)... Tofig Guliyev (1917-2000) - Violin concerto in A minor - Mark Lubotsky, Violin, USSR Radio and TV Large Symphony Orch., Yuri Temirkanov, Conductor
(A*04)... Vasif Adigozal (1936- ) - "Garanfil" (Carnation) - Ramiz Guliyev, Tar, Azerbaijan State Chamber Orch., Yashar Imanov, Conductor (CMA set)

7:00am - 8:00am
(A*04)... Siyavush Karimi (1954-) - Landscape - Murad Adigozalzade, Piano
(A*04)...Soltan Hajibeyov (1919- ) - Karvan (Caravan) - Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, Yalchin Adigozalov, Conductor - (CMA set)
(A*04)...Azer Rezayev (1930- ) - Sonata for Violin and Piano - Arif Manafli, Violin, and Farhad Badalbeyli, Piano
(A*04)... Agshin Alizade (1937- ) - "Jangi" (Warrior) - Oleg Grechko, Oboe, Azerbaijan State Chamber Orch., Yashar Imanov, Conductor (CMA set)
(A*04)...Uzeyir Hajibeyov (1885-1948) - Nigar's Aria, from First Act - Koroglu (The Blind Man's Son) - Garina Karimova, Soprano, Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, Yalchin Adigozalov, Conductor
Uzeyir Hajibeyov - Nigar's Aria, from Second Act - Koroglu - Garina Karimova, Soprano, Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, Yalchin Adigozalov, Conductor
Uzeyir Hajibeyov - Song of the Khananda from Koroglu - Safura Azimi, singer, Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, Yalchin Adigozalov, Conductor


8:00am 9:00am
(A*04)...Improvisation on "Sari Gelin" - Alihan Samedov, Balaban - Mega Muzik - 064
(A*04)... Ismayil Hajibeyov (1949- ) - Three Sketches in the Spirit of Vatto - Murad Adigozalzade, Piano
(A*04)...Kamalia Ali-Zadeh (1978- ) - Prelude and Scherzo - Murad Adigozalzade, piano
(A*04)... Haji Khanmammadov (1918- ) - Concerto for Tar and Orch - Ramiz Guliyev, Tar, Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, Yalchim Adigozalov, Conductor - (CMA set)
(A*04)... Chingiz Sadykhov - Azerbaijani Folk Song from the South - Chingiz Sadykhov, Piano
(V*01)...Javanshir Guliyev (1950- ) - Seven Pieces with Interludes in Mugham Modes - - Rena Rezayeva, Piano - VMM 2027


9:00am - 10:00am
(A*01)...Fikrat Amirov (1922-1984) - The Arabian Nights (Complete) - Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra - Nazim Rezayev, Conductor - Olympia - OCD 578 A&B

10:00am - 11:00am
Fikrat Amirov - The Arabian Nights (Continued) - Olympia - OCD 578 A&B
Firangiz Ali-Zade (1947- ) - Habil-Sayaghi (in Habil's Style) for Cello and Prepared Piano - Yo-Yo Ma, Cello, Joel Fan, Prepared Piano
(A*04)...(1939- ) - Sevda Ibrahimova - Five Pieces on Azerbaijani Themes - Murad Adigozalzade, Piano

Links for CD

(A*04)...Azerbaijan International STORE - contact to buy most of the music that is featured on today's show (AZER.com)
(Q*01)...Qualiton Imports LTD
(V*01)...Vienna Modern Masters


About AZER.com - World's Largest Web site about Azerbaijan.
Explore Web sites created by Azerbaijan International: Archives of the English magazine - Azerbaijan International - Established in 1993 - 12 and half years ago - You'll find more than 1700 articles and 4500 photos, 165 sound samples (REAL AUDIO)

Azerbaijani composers
AZERI.org - Language and Literature - 50 Azerbaijani writers in Azeri and in English translation
AZgallery.org - "Discover the Little-Known World of Azerbaijani Art" - more than 3,000 samples of Azerbaijani art from 165 artists are on display
HAJIBEYOV.com - "Celebrating the Legacy of Azerbaijan's Great Composer - Uzeyir Hajibeyov". You'll find 35 samples of MUSIC. The Librettos to 7 of Hajibeyov's operas and Music Comedies in English and Azeri Latin. And numerous entries of oral histories related to people who know the great composer personally.

Rosen featured in Azerbaijan International Magazine: Making Waves: Princeton University Radio Program Features Azerbaijani Music, Spring 2002 (10.1) by Marvin Rosen

A Brief History of Azerbaijani Music
Classical Music of Azerbaijan - Opera review by Rob Barnett
Classical Music of Azerbaijan - review by Rob Barnet