Today is the birthday of the prominent Azerbaijani and Soviet opera and pop singer (baritone), composer, People's Artist of the USSR Muslim Magomayev.
Muslim Mahammad oglu Magomayev was born on August 17, 1942 in Baku.
He first played in the sailors' club at the age of 14. At the age of 19, he became famous for his successful performances at the Youth Festival in Helsinki and the Days of Azerbaijani Culture in Moscow in 1963.
In the 1960s, he was a soloist at the Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theater and had an internship at La Scala Theater in Milan, Italy. He performed with Enrico Piazza the parts of Figaro from the opera "Barber of Seville" and Scarpia from the opera "Tosca".
In 1966, he gave his first concert at the Olympia Concert Hall in Paris. He graduated from the Azerbaijan State Conservatory in 1968. In 1969, she received her first award at the International Song Festival in Sopot, Poland.
In 1975, he was appointed artistic director of the Azerbaijan State Variety Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra has given concerts in France, Bulgaria, Poland, Finland, Canada and Iran, as well as in a number of cities in the Soviet Union. He has been involved in pop music since the 1970s and has gained unprecedented popularity. He performed all over the former USSR, gave concerts in stadiums, television gave a lot of space to his concerts, and gramophone records were released in large numbers.
The repertoire is comprehensive and very wide. Along with popular songs, he skillfully sang world hits, classics and songs written for movies. He was a member of the Supreme Soviet of Azerbaijan and was awarded a number of orders and medals.
The life and career of Muslim Magomayev, who achieved extraordinary success, is also unusual. In the late 1950s, during his adolescence and early youth, he sang in the courtyards of one of Baku's neighborhoods, among his friends.
Everyone who hears this unparalleled baritone voice in Baku, inevitably pays attention to it, could not get out of the magic of this voice. He was already known at the age of 15-16, he had his own fans. He would be invited to study in clubs, schools, institutes, and even on Baku Boulevard. He would not leave any of these invitations unanswered.
Young Muslim's unique voice and extraordinary talent, of course, attracted the attention of the Azerbaijani music community. The famous conductor and composer Niyazi loved him very much, watched his every step in art and took care of him. As Muslim, who never tired of reading, learned from experienced teachers, his voice became more polished and beautiful, and his timbre became richer.
He achieved his first official success in 1962. On the recommendation of Maestro Niyazi, Muslim, who was sent to the VIII World Festival of Students and Youth in Helsinki, returns to Baku with a medal. The popular Ogonyok magazine publishes a portrait of him and an article entitled "Baku conquers the young world."
In 1940-50, Rashid Behbudov became famous in the USSR and other countries of the world with his wonderful tenor voice. His young colleague Muslim began to be recognized in the USSR and a number of other countries in the mid-1960s. It is no coincidence that the management of the Bolshoi Theater wanted to involve him in their troupe at any cost. The situation even reached the point that the USSR Minister of Culture Ekaterina Furtseva took Muslim under her personal protection.
One of his biggest dreams was to study in Italy. Finally, that day came and the young Muslim was sent by the Azerbaijan Opera and Ballet Theater to La Scala to gain experience.
As a child, he was interested in the gramophone records of Italian classics such as Mattia Battistini, Enrico Caruso, Mario del Monaco, Tinna Ruffo. Now his youthful dreams have come true and he has had the opportunity to learn from living luminaries such as Cenarro Barro and Enrico Piazza.
Thus, Muslim returns to Baku as a real Figaro and takes part in the play "Barber of Seville". His friendship and cooperation with the famous pianist Rauf Atakishiyev paved the way for his greater success in this direction. Every performance of the opera "Barber of Seville" is full of enthusiasm, and the Baku audience greets Figaro - Muslim Magomayev with unprecedented enthusiasm.
He wrote music for Eldar Guliyev's films. Then the director fulfilled the orders of Gleb Drozdov. He composed music for the play "Yaroslavna" based on the work "The Epic of Igor's Regiment". She played the role of Prince Igor and Tamara Sinyavskaya played the role of Yaroslavna.
Muslim Magomayev married Tamara Sinyavskaya.
A film-concert "Singing Muslim Magomayev" was made in 1971. Muslim Magomayev, who managed to protect the love of the audience for many years, was awarded the USSR Red Banner of Labor and the Order of Friendship of Peoples, and was named People's Artist of the USSR.
World-famous singer Muslim Magomayev died on October 25, 2008 and was buried in the Alley of Honors in Baku.
According to the Order of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev dated May 11, 2012, the 70th anniversary of prominent singer and composer Muslim Magomayev was celebrated at the state level.