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  • Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation hosts festivity for children

    The International Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation in Baku has hosted an event "Unity of the children of the Turkic World" to mark the National Sovereignty and Children's Day of Turkiye (April 23).

    President of the Foundation Gunay Afandiyeva addressed the event aimed at further strengthening cultural ties between the foundation and the member states and observers of the organization as well as familiarizing the younger generation with the material and spiritual values of the Turkic world.

    She expressed her gladness to see children - the architects of the future of the Turkic world at the International Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation.

    "The most valuable asset of every state are children who represent peace, love and hope. On this beautiful day, sharing with you the excitement of this holiday, I invite children from all over the Turkic world - represented by the youth from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkiye, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan gathered here - to spread the message of peace, friendship and brotherhood to the whole world together. We must not forget about the children who wanted to celebrate this holiday, but were faced with war, famine, diseases. Each of us must do everything possible to bring them back into society, to meet their needs. It is extremely important that our children get an education," said Afandiyeva.

    "Today their openness to science and new technologies, reading, research, and interest in innovations is essential. But we, as adults, are obliged to instill in them love of our Homelands, our nations, our history, culture and traditions. We, as the International Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation, are proud and pleased to fulfill this honorable mission. Because one of our main goals is to pass on the material and cultural values of the Turkic world to future generations. I once again congratulate all the children on the holiday and wish them to celebrate this day next year in Shusha, the Cultural Capital of the Turkic world," she added.

    Speaking at the event, the Ambassador of Turkiye to Azerbaijan Cahit Bagci stressed the importance of the event.

    "It can be said that every week, the International Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation holds very important events to promote Turkic culture and heritage. April 23 is the day when Mustafa Kemal Ataturk lit the torch of the national struggle. In this sense, national sovereignty is the message of Ataturk, which tells children to own up to their Homeland, their identity, their flag, and therefore it is very valuable," he said.

    Secretary-General of TurkPA Mehmet Sureyya Er, Members of Parliament’s of the Turkic states, ambassadors of the member states and observers of the Foundation and other officials also took part in the event.

    At the festivity, children representing Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkiye, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan performed songs, displayed dances in national costumes, played national musical instruments, and read poems expressing the solidarity of the Turkic world.

    The young talents were presented with certificates and gifts. The event participants also viewed the exhibition of paintings by the young Azerbaijani artist Kovsar Gurban.

    Initiated in 2012, Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation focuses on preservation of Turkic heritage in member countries as well as conducting projects in collaboration with partners in third countries.

    The Foundation provides assistance in the protection, study and promotion of Turkic culture and heritage through supporting and funding various activities, projects and programs. It carries out its activities in cooperation with TURKSOY and the Turkic Academy.

    Cooperation Council of the Turkic Speaking States (CCTSS) is an intergovernmental organization, which aims at promoting comprehensive cooperation among Turkic Speaking States.

    The organization was established by the Nakhchivan Agreement, which was signed at the Turkic Summit in 2009.

    In order to fulfill the objectives and tasks of the CCTSS, the organization has been divided into the following structures: Council of Heads of States; Council of Foreign Ministers, Senior Officials Committee, Council of Elders, Secretariat, Coordination Committee, Representation Office of the Turkic Council in Budapest.

  • Enjoy deep-rooted traditions of hospitality in Azerbaijan – an inviting Land of Fire

    Azerbaijan - a country where eastern colours combine magnificently with western progress, boasts unique nature, unmatched culture, and centuries-old customs, traditions and cuisine.

    Excellent hospitality, deep-rooted cultural traditions, the friendliness and generosity of the locals – these are the national traditions well preserved in Azerbaijan that are second to none.

    Azerbaijan is world-famous for the warm hospitality of its people.

    Being a compact, sunny and maritime city, Baku – the capital of Azerbaijan has a very cozy and welcoming atmosphere and displays all the peculiarities of a Mediterranean city: it is a dynamic, vivid and open-minded city, which invites its guests to enjoy an unforgettable and relaxing stay.

    There is saying ‘A guest is a flower of the house’. Certainly, the guest is sacred in Azerbaijan and this tradition of respect has been passed down for centuries and is still taken very seriously.

    The national traditions of hospitality mingle naturally with the high standards of service at the convention venues, the accommodation facilities and in the streets of the old quarters of the city where visitors are assured of a heartwarming smile and a memorable welcome.

    A great French novelist Alexandre Dumas wrote about Azerbaijani hospitality and also of the Caucasus peoples: “If you knock on any door in Azerbaijan, or anywhere in the Caucasus, say that you’re a foreigner and have no place to spend the night, the owner of the house will immediately give you his largest room. He and his family will move to the small room. Moreover, during the week, two weeks, or the month that you stay in his house he will take care of you and will not let you want for anything”.

    Azerbaijanis consider it a duty to show infinite respect for a guest. The guest is sacred in Azerbaijan and the tradition of respect is taken very seriously.

    A prominent 12th-century Azerbaijani poet and philosopher, who had a great influence on the literature of the Near Eastern countries - Nizami Ganjavi returned often to the noble custom of hospitality in his work such as “Yeddi Gozel” (The Seven Beauties).

  • Kamancheh Music Festival starts in Baku

    First ever Kamancheh Music Festival has been held at the National Conservatory.

    The artistic director of the festival is the National Conservatory's rector, People's Artist Siyavush Kerimi.

    Professional kamancheh performers, including People's Artists Fakhraddin Dadashov, Agajabrail Abbasaliyev, Elshan Mansurov, Munis Sharifov, Shafiga Eyvazova, Honored Artists Togrul Asadullayev, Ismail Gamidov, Elnur Akhmedov, Rauf Islamov, musician Ogtay Sherifov and others took part in the festival. The festival aroused great public interest.

    Kamancheh is a bowed string instrument, which is widespread amongst Eastern and Central Asian peoples under a variety of names.

    The founder of the modern professional musical art of Azerbaijan, Uzeyir Hajibayli, considered  kamancheh to be the most melodic of musical instruments. 

    The folk instrument is described in the works of medieval classical poets. Mir Seyid Ali, representative of the 16th-century school of painting, depicted the barbat (lute), daf (frame drum) and kamancheh in his work called "A Musical Gathering".

    By the way, the only factory in the USSR for the production of musical instruments (tar, kamancha, nagara, gaval, gosha naghara) operated in Shusha.

  • State Chamber Orchestra to perform in Baku

    The State Chamber Orchestra will perform a concert at the Philharmonic Hall on May 4.

    The orchestra will perform under the baton of the artistic director and chief conductor, People's Artist Fahraddin Karimov. The soloist of the program is the laureate of international competitions, pianist, Ph.D., associate professor of the Baku Musical Academy  Zuleykha Abdulla.

    The evening will feature works by Franz Schubert's "Allegro assai", Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Concerto for Piano and Orchestra as well as  Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings.

    Notably, the State Chamber Orchestra was founded by Fikrat Amirov and Gara Garayev in 1964.

    Nazim Rzayev directed the Orchestra until 1992 since its foundation.

    The orchestra toured different cities of Russia, as well as former Czechoslovakia, Poland, Tunis, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Turkey during this period.

    The orchestra generally performs works of Azerbaijani composers and premiered works by Western European and Russian composers.

    The ASCO also performed at the concerts dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the Independence of Azerbaijan organized in Berlin, Paris and Rome in 2011.

    Azerbaijan State Chamber Orchestra participated at the Azerbaijani Culture Days conducted in Beijing in May 2011, as well as at the 2nd Ramatuelle International Classical Music Festival organized in France in July 2011.

  • Italian maestro shares secrets of vocal arts

    Vincenzo De Vivo, an artistic director of the International Academy of Lyric Art, has given a master class  as part of the Baroque Music Days International Festival. 

    The master class lasted over three hours. During this time, Vincenzo De Vivo gave his recommendations and secrets of performing arts. He advised young talents to learn more about Baroque period composers. 

    The maestro also shared with young vocalists proper breathing techniques.

    The master class was attended by Baku Music Academy's students who study in the class of the head of the Solo and Opera Singing Department People's Artist  Khuraman Gasimova, People's Artist Gulnaz Ismayilova, Honored Artist Ilham Nazarov as well as Ozturk Adelin, Subkhan Rustamov, Leyla Bakhishova, Emin Ismailov, as well as talented BMA graduates.

    The vocalists performed Ruggiero's aria from the opera "Alcina", Sesto's aria from the opera "Julius Caesar",  Countess's aria from the opera "The Marriage of Figaro" as well as "Danza, danza fanciulla gentile".

    Since 1982, the maestro has successfully collaborated with different cultural institutions as director and consultant. He has acted as the artistic Director of Teatro San Carlo in Napoli, the Roma Opera House, the Bologna Teatro Comunale, the Festival Pergolesi Spontini in Jesi, the Cantiere Internazionale d’Arte in Montepulciano, the Vice General Manager of the Palau de les Arts in Valencia, etc.

    Vincenzo De Vivo was teaching as a professor of the Courses of Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia in Roma, Accademia della Scala in Milan, Accademia Paolo Grassi in Martina Franca, Accademia Verdiana of the Teatro Regio in Parma.

    He has published various essays on the Italian opera along with writing many librettos for composers such as Ambrosini, Dall’Ongaro, Ferrero, Festa, Gregoretti, Rendine, Taralli as well as rhythmic translations in Italian of operas by Bizet, Mozart, etc.

  • Baku to host "Japanese Culture Festival 2022"

    The Embassy of Japan in Azerbaijan invites everyone with an interest in Japanese culture, people and history to the "Japanese Culture Festival 2022" to be held on May 15 at the Landmark Hotel Baku.

    It will be the first public event held as part of the Japan-Azerbaijan Friendship Year 2022.

    The event will feature dances, songs, performances, stands related to Japanese culture and handicrafts. Participation at the event is free of charge and all those who are interested in Japanese culture are welcome.

  • World-famous kamancheh master to give concert in Baku

    World-famous musician, kamancheh player Mark Eliyahu will come to Baku, Report informs.

    He will give a concert at the Heydar Aliyev Palace on June 19 as part of his "About Love" tour.

    Although the Israeli kamancheh player, born in Dagestan in 1982, got acquainted with kamancheh in Greece, he came to Azerbaijan and took lessons from Honored Artist, kamancheh master Adalat Vazirov. Mark's father is also a famous musician Piris Eliyahu.

  • Netflix plans lower-priced service with ads

    Netflix Inc. plans to create a lower-priced version of its service that has advertising, a big change for the company after years of only offering its movies and TV shows commercial-free, Report informs referring to Bloomberg.

    Co-Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings brought up the potential for advertising on a call on April 19 with investors, after Netflix posted a loss of 200,000 customers in the first quarter - the first such decline in a decade - and forecast a further drop of 2 million this quarter.

    Netflix built its streaming business into an online juggernaut with almost 222 million customers globally. But subscriber growth has come to a halt, and revenue in the latest quarter, up 9.8% to $7.87 billion, missed Wall Street forecasts. Netflix also estimates there are more than 100 million people viewing the service without paying for it.

    “Those who have followed Netflix know that I’ve been against the complexity of advertising and a big fan of the simplicity of subscription,” Hastings said on the call. “I’m a bigger fan of consumer choice, and allowing consumers who would like to have a lower price and are advertising tolerant to get what they want, makes a lot of sense.”

    The company will work on creating an ad-supported version of the service over the next year or two, Hastings said.

  • Georgian cultural figures visit Shusha

    The Georgian cultural figures have visited the city of Shusha. The delegation also included  ecologists, turkologists and bloggers. 

    The guests visited the central square, the Shusha Castle, Jidir Plain, the Molla Panah Vagif Museum Mausoleum Complex and Bulbul House-Museum. 

    The Georgian cultural figures brilliantly performed Azerbaijani songs in the city, known as the country's musical center. 

    Famous opera singer Zhakeli Lamze performed the song "Ey Veten" in front of the Shusha Castle. 

    Veriko Turashvili sang the song "Sari Galin" while Dmitry Kisishvili and his daughter Eli Kisishvili -the song "Jujelerim".

    The Georgian delegation also watched the demining process in Jabrayil and Fuzuli regions. 

    They also honored the memory of Azerbaijani citizens who died as a result of Armenia's rocket shelling at the city of Ganja on October 11 and October 17, 2020. 

    The delegation arrived in Azerbaijan with the support of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Georgia and the Georgian representative office of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR). 

    The Georgian delegation will visit Ganja, Fizuli, Jabrayil, Shusha and Agdam on April 15-17.

    The delegation will be informed about the consequences of the rocket attacks on Ganja, monuments destroyed as the result of the Armenian vandalism, Fuzuli International Airport, minefields, as well as the ongoing construction work.

    The Georgian delegation has previously met with Azerbaijan's Deputy Minister of Culture Sevda Mammadaliyeva. 

    During the meeting, it was noted that both countries have an ancient history and rich cultural heritage.

  • World Art Day celebrated in Baku

    Art has the power to reinterpret the meaning of life through a new lens. It encourages usto search constantly for creative ideas. 

    Every year on April 15, the world community celebrates the fine arts and promotes awareness of creativity. 

    A proposal to declare World Art Day was put forward at the 17th General Assembly of the International Association of Art with the first celebration held in 2012. 

    The day was decided in honor of the birthday of Leonardo da Vinci as a symbol of world peace, freedom of expression, tolerance, brotherhood and multiculturalism as well as art’s importance to other fields.

    World Art Day in Azerbaijan

    World Art Day has been celebrated in Baku. The event also timed to coincide with the  95th birth anniversary of the greatest cellist of the second half of the 20th century Mstislav Rostropovich.

    Head of the Baku Main Department of Culture Ibrahim Aliyev, heads of cultural institutions attented the event initiated by the Center for organizing Cultural Events and Working with Creative Youth and Mstislav Rostropovich House-Museum.

    Laureates of republican and international competitions, students of the Rostropovich Music school presented a concert program as part of the celebration. 

    Born in Baku, Mstislav Rostropovich premiered over 100 pieces and formed long-standing artistic partnerships with such prominent composers as Dmitri Shostakovich, Sergei Prokofiev, Henri Dutilleux, Witold Lutoslawski, Olivier Messiaen, Luciano Berio, Krzysztof Penderecki, Alfred Schnittke, Norbert Moret, Andreas Makris and Benjamin Britten.

    Rostropovich is also well known for his interpretations of standard repertoire works, including Dvořák's Cello Concerto in B minor and Haydn's cello concerti in C and D,[citation needed] Prokofiev's Symphony-Concerto and the two cello concerti of Shostakovich.

    A Grammy Award winner was considered one of the leading conductors of the West. The musician won over 50 awards during his career. 

    Starting from 2007, a festival dedicated to the eminent musician is annually held in Azerbaijan.

    In 2019, the 10th International Mstislav Rostropovich Festival was held in Baku.

    The festival was attended by prominent public figures, representatives of diplomatic missions, famous cultural and art figures, and numerous fans of classical music.