NEWS

The weather will be partly cloudy, occasionally gloomy and mostly dry in Baku and Absheron peninsula on January 30.

Report informs, citing the National Hydrometeorology Department of the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, that it may be slightly foggy in some places. South-west wind will become north-west in the midday.

The air temperature on the Absheron peninsula will be +3 to +6 C at night, +12 to +14 C in the day, in Baku +4 to +6 C at night, and +12 to +14 C in the daytime.

The atmospheric pressure will make 759 mm mercury column, and relative humidity will be 70-80% at night and 50-55% in the daytime.

The weather will be mainly dry in Azerbaijani regions tomorrow. It will be foggy at night, and in the morning, the west wind will occasionally intensify in some places.

The air temperature will vary from -1 to +3 at night, +11 to +16 C in the daytime, in the mountains from 0 to -6 C at night, +2 to +7 C in the daytime.

According to the medical-meteorological forecast, meteorological factors tomorrow will be favorable for people sensitive to the weather.

Moscow will host the 11th International Mstislav Rostropovich Festival from March 27-31.

The concerts will take place in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. The concerts will bring together the greatest music bands and ensembles from Russia and Europe.

The five-day festival will culminate with a performance of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of Liege.

Artistic director of the festival is Olga Rostropovich.

An exhibition of Azerbaijani carpets has been launched at the Peña Cultural Center in the city of São Paolo. The event is co-organized by the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Brazil, the country’s Ministry of Culture and the City Hall of Sao Paulo.

Representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in São Paulo, art experts from local universities, employees of city hall as well as local residents participated in the opening ceremony.

The two-day photo exhibition will feature photographs of Azerbaijani carpet weaving and various samples of the country’s traditional carpets.

Azerbaijani Ambassador to Brazil Elkhan Polukhov, representative of the Office of International Relations of São Paulo City Hall Camila Assis and director of the Peña Cultural Center Valquiria Gama Nascimento addressed the event.

The event participants were presented with books, booklets, magazines and other publications highlighting the 20 January events and the Khojaly genocide.

Elkhan Polukhov highlighted the January 20 and Khojaly tragedies.

One the most popular opera of all time, Georges Bizet's " Carmen" has thrilled the audience in Baku.

The opera was presented to the audience at the State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater on January 25.

People's Artist of Azerbaijan Fidan Hajiyeva brilliantly performed the role of fiery gypsy Carmen.

The opera star shared the same stage with the leading soloists of the Opera and Ballet Theater Ali Asgarov, Gulnaz Ismayilova, honored artists Farid Aliyev, Ilaha Efendiyeva, Jahangir Gurbanov, Tural Aghasiyev, Aliakhmad Ibrahimov as well as Nina Makarova. The opera was conducted by Honored Artist Eyyub Guliyev.

Fascinating performance of opera singers, rich scenery and costumes totally captivated the audience.

"Carmen" is an opera in four acts by French composer Georges Bizet, based on a novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera is written in the genre of opéra comique. "Carmen" has since become one of the best-loved operas, performed in the classical canon.

Carmen was a gypsy girl who worked in a cigar factory. An army officer, Don José, was called to the factory because a fight broke out. He arrested Carmen because she hit another woman. However, he became enchanted with the exotic Carmen, and let her escape.

Don José deserted the army and followed Carmen into the mountains. But the beautiful gypsy soon tired of the steadfast Don José, and she fell in love with Escamillo, a dashing bullfighter. Devastated, Don José confronted Carmen outside the bullring. As the crowd cheered Escamillo in the background, Don José stabbed Carmen to death.

The weather will be partly cloudy, occasionally gloomy and mostly dry in Baku and Absheron peninsula on January 29.

Report informs, citing the National Hydrometeorology Department of the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, that light fog will be observed in some places in the morning. Mild south-west wind will blow.

The air temperature on the Absheron peninsula will be +4 to +6 C at night, +9 to +13 C in the daytime, in Baku +4 to +6 C at night, and +10 to +12 C in the daytime.

The atmospheric pressure will drop from 764 to 760 mm mercury column, and relative humidity will be 70-80% at night and 50-55% in the daytime.

The weather will be mainly dry in Azerbaijani regions tomorrow. It will be foggy at night, and in the morning, the west wind will occasionally intensify in some places.

The air temperature will vary from -2 to +3 at night, +8 to +13 C in the daytime, in the mountains from -1 to -6 C at night, +3 to +8 C in the daytime.

According to the medical-meteorological forecast, meteorological factors will be favorable for people sensitive to the weather.

Another concert has been held at International Mugham Center on January 25 as part of "Mugham Eveninings". 

At the evening, famous mugham singers Kamil Nabiyev, Miralam Miralamov and Nisbet Sadraeva amazed the audience with fascinating mugham music.

The spectators were deeply impressed by the performance of mugham singers.

Azerbaijan's music treasury, mughams such as Chakhargakh, Segah, Muhalif and Hijaz were presented at the concert.

It should be noted that the International Mugam Center implements a number of projects aimed at promoting Azerbaijani national music such as "Mugham Eveninings".

The audience has already enjoyed seven main mughams, as well as folk songs and tasnifs. 

With centuries-old history, the Azerbaijani mugham, a treasury of the world music, continues to amaze the music lovers.

This unique kind of music is based on the rich philosophical and literary ground.

One of the most valuable monuments of the material and spiritual culture of the nation contains seven main modes - Rast, Shur, Segah (are especially common), Shushtar, Bayaty-Shiraz, Chahargah, Humayun and three collateral kinds - shahnaz, sarendj, chargah in some other form.

Azerbaijan is launching a large art project to mark the 28th anniversary of the Khojaly Massacre.

As part of the project, works of national artists will be displayed at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Bilasuvar on February 2.

The exhibition will also be presented in Guba and Ganja on February 1-15. Moreover, the exhibition will be also held in Georgia, Russia and Turkey on February 16-26. The project will end in Baku on February 28.

The exhibition will be held as part of "Justice for Khojaly" International Awareness Campaign, launched in 2008, at the initiative of Vice-president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Leyla Aliyeva.

The campaign aims to raise international public awareness of the Khojaly Genocide, root causes and consequences of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the need for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh region and other occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

The campaign’s activities are also directed towards honouring the victims and keeping their memories alive, particularly by constantly informing the younger generations and supporting the survivors and seeking ways to relieve their suffering.

On the night of February 26, 1992, Armenian armed forces, directly supported by the 366th regiment of the former USSR, stationed at that time in the town of Khankendi in Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan attacked, from five directions, the town of Khojaly.

About 613 civilians mostly women and children were killed in the massacre, and a total of 1,000 people were disabled. Eight families were exterminated, 25 children lost both parents, and 130 children lost one parent. Moreover, 1,275 innocent people were taken hostage, and the fate of 150 of them remains unknown.

The documentary film "Black Orchards: Azerbaijan and Armenia's Wars" produced by "TRT World" was screened at Azerbaijan's Consulate General in Los Angeles on January 23, 2020. It should be noted that last week the film received the "Best Short Documentary" award at the Hollywood International Moving Pictures Film Festival in Los Angeles.

Hosted and organized by Azerbaijan's Consulate General in Los Angeles, the event was attended by the film's senior producer Oubai Shahbandar and the director and producer Atakan Kerkuklu, as well as Consuls General and Honorary Consuls of various countries, faith and community leaders, media representatives, scholars, members of the local Azerbaijani community and leaders of Turkish, Pakistani, Jewish, Iranian, Korean, Latino and other communities.

Opening the event, Azerbaijan's Consul General in Los Angeles Nasimi Aghayev gave detailed information on the history of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict and Armenia's policy of aggression, military occupation, and ethnic cleansing against Azerbaijan. He stated that as a result of this illegal occupation of around 20 percent of Azerbaijan's sovereign territory, over 800,000 Azerbaijani civilians were expelled from their ancestral lands in the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. Consul General also noted that Armenia refuses to fulfill four United Nations Security Council resolutions condemning the occupation and demanding the unconditional and complete withdrawal of Armenian troops from Azerbaijan's occupied areas.

Then the documentary film "Black Orchards: Azerbaijan and Armenia's Wars" was screened. The audience received the film with much interest.

Following the screening, the film's senior producer Oubai Shahbandar spoke about the events highlighted in the film and the filming process.

Then Oubai Shahbandar and Atakan Kerkuklu responded to various questions from the audience on the film and the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict.

Tea and coffee lovers have gathered at the 2nd Baku Coffee & Tea Festival to enjoy the two most loved hot beverages in the world.

The festival took place at "Passage 1901" Restaurant, bringing together the country's best coffee and tea professionals.

The main goal of the festival is to create high-quality opportunities for the development of the coffee and tea industry and business, as well as long-term cooperation and exchange of experience.

Aroma tea and coffee, delicious sweets and pastries left no one indifferent. Moreover, the festival featured many exhibitions, contests, master classes and much more.

The festival aroused great interest among visitors. Here everyone found coffee and tea for his own taste.

Baku Coffee & Tea Festival provides a great opportunity to spend time in a friendly and cozy atmosphere.

Last year the festival gathered country's best coffee and tea professionals. The festival delighted its visitors with  exhibition of manufacturers and importers of coffee and tea, national barista championships, seminars and master classes, a guest-bar, a recreation area, a playground and other entertainments. In addition, two national barista championships were organized by the Specialty Coffee Association.

Baku Book Center will host an exhibition of young artists on February 3.

The event is co-organized by the Ministry of Culture and the Azerbaijan State Art Gallery, Azertag reported.

The project aims to discover and support talented artists.

About 60 paintings by more than 30 young artists will be on display at the exhibition. At the end of the event, the artists will be awarded with diplomas.

The Baku Book Center offers a wide range of books of various genres in many languages, including Azerbaijani, Russian, Turkish, English, Chinese, French, German, Arabic. There is a convenient search for the desired book thanks to the installed touch monitors.

The Baku Book Center was officially opened to visitors on September 1, 2018. It is located near the Khagani Park.

The main goal of the Center is to encourage people in reading book as a bearer of cultural, spiritual values and useful knowledge.

Here booklovers can also take part in presentations of books, literary and musical evenings, meetings with cultural and art workers, thematic master classes and much more.

The Center also organizes events with the participation of international organizations and diplomatic missions.

By the decision of the CIS Executive Committee, Baku Book Center has been awarded the diploma "For the great work in development of domestic book distribution and international book exchange in 2018."

The Azerbaijan State Art Gallery was created by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan during the period of National Leader Heydar Aliyev's leadership in 1972 on the base of the Azerbaijan State Exhibition Hall, functioning since 1960.

Creativity workshops, master classes, art exhibitions and other events are organized at the gallery with the aim to increase interest in fine art and discover new talents.

The State Art Gallery collects paintings, graphics, sculptures, decorative-applied art works and contemporary art from more than 10000 unique art pieces created by Azerbaijani artists.

The Gallery carries out the search and formation of cultural and aesthetic forms based on rich traditions of national art in the preservation and restoration of the cultural heritage of Azerbaijan.