NEWS

Azerbaijan National Library has hosted a conference to highlight the role of books and reading in the intellectual development of society. 

The event conference was timed to the World Book and Copyright Day aimed at promoting the enjoyment of books and reading.

Each year, on 23 April, celebrations take place all over the world to recognize the scope of books. On this occasion, UNESCO and the international organizations representing the three major sectors of the book industry - publishers, booksellers and libraries, select the World Book Capital for a year to maintain, through its own initiatives, the impetus of the Day's  celebrations.

Opening the conference, director of the National Library Karim Tahirov stressed the special attention of the national leader Heydar Aliyev to Azerbaijan's cultural heritage.

Between 1995 and1997, Heydar Aliyev visited the National Library and donated about 300 books from his personal library. At present, these books are located in the library's corner dedicated to the national leader.

Speaking at the conference, First Deputy Minister of Culture Vagif Aliyev congratulated all book lovers on the occasion of World Book and Copyright Day, celebrated annually on April 23. 

First Deputy Minister of Culture said that the book is a source of knowledge and a means of transmitting it from generation to generation. In this regard, the Ministry of Culture attaches special importance to the protection of copyright and publishing activities.

He emphasized the importance of relevant decrees on books and libraries, publishing houses ordered by Heydar Aliyev. 

 A rich legislative base in the field of book publishing and copyright was created under the leadership of national leader. 

Adoption of the laws "On Copyright and Related Rights" (1996), "On Library Affairs" (1998), "On Publishing" (2000) and "On Protection of the Rights of Azerbaijani Folklore  Expressions" (2003) has had a positive impact on the development of this field.

Moreover, the approval of the Azerbaijan's State Programme for development of library-information sphere in 2008-2013 by the President Ilham Aliyev, the order "On the use of the Azerbaijani language in Latin script in mass publications" as well as the decree "On ensuring the activities of the Azerbaijan Copyright" dated also contributed to the book publishing and copyright. 

Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry, Secretary General of Azerbaijan's National Commission for UNESCO Elnur Sultanov noted that UNESCO holds numerous events every year on the occasion of this significant day. He stressed the importance of encouraging young people to read more books.

Director of the Baku Book Center Gunel Anargizi spoke on the role of the Center in promoting books and reading in the country. She pointed out on work done by the Baku Book Center aimed at increasing interest in reading. 

Furthermore, secretary of the Azerbaijan Writers' Union Rashad Majid, director of the Central Scientific Library, professor Mammad Aliyev, dean of  Library Science and Information Faculty at Baku State University, associate professor Alamdar Jabbarly and Director of the "Education" publishing house Tural Akhundov addressed the event. 

At the end, the guests viewed  the exhibition timed to World Book and Copyright Day.

Nowadays, libraries and publishing houses in Azerbaijan are of great importance. There are also over 150 publishing houses that are engaged in printing.

The Mirza Fatali Akhundov National Library of Azerbaijan is a central state library of Azerbaijan. Its facades feature the statues of various writers and poets: Nizami Ganjavi, Mahsati, Uzeyir Hajibeyov, Shota Rustaveli, Alexander Pushkin and several others.

Founded in 1922, the library stores different books, printed materials, newspapers and records. The rare books, as well as the books about Azerbaijan covering the period until 1920 are kept in the rare book and library museum.

The country is also home to the Museum of Miniature Books.  Located within the oldest part of Baku city - Icherisheher, the museum is included in the Guinness Book of Records as the museum with the largest number of miniature books. 

The museum opened its doors in 2002 and owns one of the world's great collections of miniature books.

The creator of the museum, Zarifa Salakhova has made a unique contribution to the world of small books. 

The main objective for the establishment of the Museum was to revive love for books among the youth.

One of the world’s first miniature books museums is home to over 6,500 books published in 71 countries.

The collection contains "Flower Alphabet", "Pictures of English History", Pushkin’s "Yevgeni Onegin", "La Fontaine Fables" and the 24-volume "One Thousand and One Nights" a seminal work in Arabic literature.

YARAT Contemporary Art Space presents the 1st edition of the Baku Street Photography Festival.

BSPF is an international photography event showcasing the best contemporary street photography and featuring the works of professional and amateur photographers in this genre.

In the long months of isolation, everyone has missed the exciting events and learned to take a completely new view of the beauty of our city, its buildings, and its streets.

The 2021 edition theme is Streets in Focus as it will bring together a selection of works by photographers who see and capture the play of light in the leaves of trees by the faces of random passers-by, by industrial landscapes, if you can transmit history through a photo or simply like to capture moments, YARAT invites you to be a part of the Baku Street Photography Festival.

Baku Street Photography is organized by YARAT Contemporary Art Space (Azerbaijan) in partnership with street photographer and traveler Andrey Glazkov (Russia).

The festival agenda will include a photo contest and educational program.

The main goal of the festival is to be closely connected to the community and young people, help them discover their talent, and provide them with tools and experience in one of the most dynamic and popular genres of photography.

The contest Streets in Focus is open for participants aged 14+ from all over the world.

At this challenging time, the team of the 1st Baku Street Photography Festival (BSPF) considers it crucial not only to support photographers but also to provide them with a platform for their self-expression. We’re going to challenge the widespread belief that most photographers and artists are not eloquent. Our guest speakers are from Azerbaijan, Russia, Georgia, Italy, and America, and they are ready to communicate with you in the format of zoom conferences and Instagram live streams, ready to spell their tips, share their experiences and emotions. Our speakers will talk about trips, upcoming projects, amusing and curious accidents that happened to them throughout their professional career.

As part of our program, the festival team will try to help talented photographers open up and get a little closer to us.

All talks will be held in the evening (convenient for those who work full-time) or over weekends. Offline and online exhibitions, book presentations, and discussions will be happening in frames of the Festival.

An expert jury will review all works submitted in frames of the contest and awards will be given in 4 categories: single shot, series, mobile photo, and analog photo.

The festival contest is supported by Canon Azerbaijan and DiVi companies.

The jury includes Sanan Aleskerov, Andrey Glazkov, Fakhriyya Mammadova, Vugar Amrullayev, Adil Yusifov, Elmar Mustafayev, Mark Rafaelov, Natavan Vahabova, Orkhan Aslanov, Rauf Askerov, Khalid Zeynalov, Valeh Maharramov and Elshan Ibrahimov

To enter the contest, please visit www.bakustreetphoto.az to upload images from your computer or send your works by e-mail contest@bakustreetphoto.az. When your submission has been completed, you will get an e-mail confirmation. Alternatively, you can post your image on Instagram with the hashtags #streetinfocuscontest #bakustreetphoto2021.

Deadline for applications is July 25, 2021. Participation is free.

Guest photographers of the festival Harvey Wang (US), Igor Mukhin (Russia), Jean-Marc Caracci (France), Daria Troitskaia (Italy), Konstantin Nossachev (US), Sasha Van Der Werf (US), Nikolay Dutkin (Russia), Rebecca Wiltshire (Australia), Mehran Cheraghchi (Iran) and others.

Guest Photographers from Azerbaijan include Rafael Gambarov, Asim Talib, Mirnaib Hasanoghlu, Ilgar Jafarov, Rufat Abas, Eldar Akbarov, Emil Khalilov, Sevinj Aslanova, Agdes Bagirzadeh, Vugar Ibadov, Sitara Ibrahimova, Nana Gafarova, Zaur Mirzoyev, Ilkin Huseynov, Eltaj Zeynalov, Majid Aliyev, Ilkin Yagubov and others.

Special guest of the festival are Lado Pochkhua (US), Elene Kapanadze (Georgia), Bahruz Huseynzade (Azerbaijan), Bahram Baghirzadeh (Azerbaijan), Vyacheslav Sapunov (Azerbaijan), Fariza Babayeva (Azerbaijan), and others.

The festival partners include Administration of the State Historical-Architectural Reserve “Icherisheher”, State Advertising Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (ADRA), Azerbaijan Photographers Union, Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Azerbaijan, Baku Media Center, Maksud Ibragimbekov Centre, Baku Book Center, Tbilisi Photography and Multimedia Museum, Arts Council Azerbaijan, Urban Street Photo Gallery, Art Factor, Orkhan Aslanov Studio, United Coffee Beans, DJ Rameen, and others.

For more information or enquiries, please contact: info@bakustreetphoto.az

Azerbaijani Culture social platform has hosted Mugham Sound of the East International Festival.

The main goal of the social platform is to promote Azerbaijan's rich culture, cultural figures, art among youth.

The festival was held online in two languages ​​- Azerbaijani and English, bringing together representatives of Azerbaijan, Turkey, Pakistan, the USA, Czech Republic, France and other countries, who shared their thoughts on the development of ancient musical art abroad.

It was noted that mugham is a form of national music belonging to the peoples of the East.

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

Three major schools of mugham performance existed from the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Karabakh, Shirvan, and Baku. In the late 1960s and the 1970s, a completely new mugham style emerged in the country.

Vagif Mustafazade is considered the founder of Azerbaijani jazz-mugham, who blended the two music styles.

A short selection of Azerbaijani mugham, played on the Azerbaijani wind instrument balaban, was included among many cultural achievements of humanity on the Voyager Golden Record, which was attached to the Voyager spacecraft to represent world music.

First Vice-President of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva has played an exceptional role in promoting mugham art.

Thanks to the efforts of First Vice-President, UNESCO proclaimed Azerbaijani Mugham a "Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" (2008). The mugham art entered UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists in 2008.

Furthermore, International Mugham Center was built in Azerbaijan. Over the past years, the Center has implemented multiple cultural projects aimed at promotion of national music: "Evenings of ashug music", "Treasury of Secrets", "Unforgettable", "Pearls of ethnic music", etc.

At the initiative of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, the International World of Mugham Festival was held in country for the first time in 2009.

Music experts from the USA, France, Hungary, Italy, Turkey, Germany and other countries took part took part in symposium held as part of the festival.

Today Azerbaijani mugham art enjoys global success. The national mugham singers known as khanende, fascinate audiences at prestigious music events across the world.

Azerbaijan's living vocal treasure Alim Gasimov has greatly contributed to the Azerbaijani culture, especially mugham.

The khanende was awarded the International Music Council-UNESCO Music Prize, one of the highest international accolades for music in 1999.

For his achievement, he was quoted by the New York Times as simply one of the greatest singers alive, with a searing spontaneity that conjures passion and devotion, contemplation and incantation.

August 26 is celebrated worldwide as the International Day of Azerbaijani Mugham and Silk Road countries’ Music.

The decision to proclaim the day has been made by the administration of the Canadian city of Niagara-on-the-Lake and the leadership of the traditional annual Niagara International Chamber Music Festival 2010.

Muslim Magomayev's Cultural and Musical Heritage Foundation has recently announced a song contest named after the prominent singer.

Young talents Mahir Tagizadeh and Islama Abdullayeva will represent Azerbaijan at the 6th Muslim Magomaev International Vocalists Contest.

The order of performances in the first round has been determined. Islama Abdullayeva will perform third, while Mahir Tagizadeh is fifth in the line. 

Mahir Tagizadeh and Islama Abdullayeva have shared their thoughts about the music contest. 

Both contest participants are extremely proud to represent Azerbaijan at such a large-scale project.

For Mahir Tagizadeh, it is a great honor to represent Azerbaijan at an international level. 

Islama Abdullayeva believes that the secret of success lies in soulful performance.

The final night of the 6th Muslim Magomaev International Vocalists Contest will take place in the Crocus City Hall on April 24. The audience is invited to enjoy classical works and pop songs once performed by the legendary singer. 

The music competition is open for professional singers (20-35 years old), alumni of specialized music education institutions or undergraduates of musical institutes and colleges.

Opera singers, stars of popular music, music theatre conductors and stage directors and representatives of international production companies have been invited to join the jury panel.

Muslim Magomayev made a great contribution to Azerbaijani music. His creative activity occupies a special place in the country’s music history.

The idol of millions became famous around the USSR at the age of 19 after a stellar performance at the Kremlin Palace in Moscow. He became known in Europe after a successful performance at the Youth Festival in Helsinki, Finland.

A very important stage in mastering his vocals skills even further was his training in the La Scala Opera Theatre in Milan. Muslim's stay in Italy – a country of innumerable art treasures and the home of bel canto – in the 1960s was not only beneficial for his singing but also affected his inner world.

At the age of 30, Magomayev was one of the youngest recipients of the highest artistic title, People's Artist of the USSR. He also received numerous awards for his contribution to opera and popular music in the Soviet Union.

The legendary singer also wrote songs, film soundtracks and music for theatre performances. In addition, he played in films and acted as a host in television and radio broadcasts. He also loved to paint pictures but called it his hobby.

In his later life, Magomayev struggled with a serious heart condition. In 1998, Magomayev officially ended his musical career and gave only a few performances together with his wife.

One of the greatest singers of the 20th century died of heart failure in Moscow on October 25, 2008, and was laid to rest in Baku.

International Mugham Center has launched a scientific-research programme aimed at promoting Azerbaijan's mugham art.

The project coordinator, Doctor of Philology Gulhuseyn Kazimli and the head of the Research Laboratory for the Restoration and Improvement of Ancient Musical Instrument at the Azerbaijan National Conservatory Mammadali Mammadov visited the National History Museum.

They viewed a number of tar samples, including a unique relic of 1744, presented to the great performer Mirza Faraj in 1890 in the Iranian city of Rasht, as well as musical instruments by Mashadi Suleiman and Bahram Mansurov. All these tar musicians have left a deep mark on the performing arts of Azerbaijan.

Tar or a long-necked plucked lute is traditionally crafted and performed throughout Azerbaijan

It is made from mulberry, walnut and pear trees, and the face of the instrument is made from cattle heart membrane. Its strings differ by thickness and composition.

The music and craftsmanship of Azerbaijani musical instrument, tar, was inscribed in the UNESCO list in 2012.

Famous for its spectacular concerts, scientific-theoretical and research projects, the International Mugham Center is now switching to online projects, which can be found on Facebook and Instagram.

The Center is currently working on a plan for the development of various cultural events, lectures and online projects aimed at promoting mugham and national music.

Moreover, the Mugham Center has recently signed a memorandum on joint cooperation with Heydar Aliyev Palace.

The document was signed with the aim of developing cooperation and strengthening relations in the field of culture and art, promoting national spiritual values ​​and cultural heritage, preparing new joint projects, holding events, festivals and meetings.

A working group will be created for this purpose. All necessary measures will be taken for implementing joint projects as well as work aimed at the creative development of the younger generation.

Over the past years, the Center has successfully implemented multiple cultural projects aimed at promotion of national music: "Evenings of ashug music", "Treasury of Secrets", "Unforgettable", "Pearls of ethnic music", etc.

Chairman of Azerbaijan`s State Tourism Agency Fuad Naghiyev has held separate meetings with Uzbek and Mexican ambassadors to discuss prospects for cooperation in the field of tourism.

They also exchanged views over the impact of the COVID-19 restrictions on tourism industry. The sides expressed interest in resuming mutual tourist visits in the post-pandemic period.

A photo taken in Azerbaijan's Ganja city following Armenian missile attack, has been named "Media Photo of the Year" in Turkey.

Ugur Yildirim, a photojournalist of Turkish Sabah newspaper, has captured Azerbaijani woman, who received the news of her relative’s death as a result of a missile fired by Armenia at Azerbaijan’s Ganja city. Dozens of civilians were killed in Armenia's ballistic missile attacks on residential complexes in Ganja during the war in 2020.

Yildirim’s another photo, capturing the joy of people after the liberation of Shusha city from the Armenian occupation also received an award in Turkey.

The clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan resumed after Armenia launched large-scale attacks on Azerbaijani forces and civilians on September 27. 

The 44 days of war ended with the Russian brokered peace deal signed on November 10 by the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders.  

The peace agreement ended the 30-years-old conflict between Baku and Yerevan over Azerbaijan’s Nagorno-Karabakh region that along with the seven adjacent districts came under the occupation of Armenian armed forces in the war in the early 1990s.

For about three decades, Armenia failed to implement the UN Security Council resolutions demanding the withdrawal of the Armenian troops, which was the main obstacle to the resolution of the conflict. 

Pakistani singer Noman Shah Bukhari has released a music video to support strong ties between Azerbaijan, Pakistan and Turkey.

Noman Shah is a famous vocalist in Pakistan as well as Middle East and UK. Over the past years, the singer has successfully released several solo albums. 

The singer shared his song, "Saltanat e Usmania," in the Turkish and Urdu languages on YouTube following his first music video where he performed the theme song of Resurrection: Ertugrul, a popular Turkish TV series.

Pakistani artist stressed that Turkey and Pakistan were the first to recognize Azerbaijan's independence.

"Therefore, after Azerbaijan's independence, these three countries now have very strong ties," he said.

Since the start of the 44-day war with Armenia in 2020, Turkey and Pakistan were among the first countries supporting Azerbaijan. The two countries supports Azerbaijan in the restoration of its liberated territories.

"Honestly, the costumes were very difficult to make. Before "Saltanat e Usmania," I had made a video for the theme song of Resurrection: Ertugrul, as it was very famous in Pakistan and the costumes in the series were my main inspiration. I bought all the materials from Pakistan and brought them together. It was not an easy process. I tried my best. I made the flags, the costumes, and brought together the environment," Bukhari added.

The Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) and the Azerbaijan National Commission for Education, Science, and Culture have discussed prospects of cooperation in science and technology.

The meeting was attended by Secretary-General of the Azerbaijani National Commission for Education, Science, and Culture Vasif Eyvazzade, a member of the Comission Leyla Taghizade, head of the ICESCO Sector of Science and Technology Raheel Qamar and many others. 

During the meeting, the two parties discussed the organization of a training workshop in reverse engineering in Baku addressing the basics of devices and developing small tools, medical and biological equipment, and cutting-edge diagnostic devices, in terms of the fundamentals and designs.

The sides considered a training program in Baku in July 2021, consisting of a three-day boot camp to train young people on ways to set up and develop small businesses in the field of technology and innovation.

The program will also feature an accelerated six-week course where the beneficiaries will apply their training in starting up their own projects. The program will start in Azerbaijan in cooperation with the Azerbaijani ministries of Agriculture, and Transport, Communications and High Technologies, to be later implemented in 10 other countries.

The two parties also discussed the symposium that the Sector of Science and Technology will hold in Agadir, Morocco in June on Sustainable and Smart Cities.

Over the past years, Azerbaijan and ICESCO have built strong ties, based on common values.

The visit of the ICESCO delegation to Azerbaijan early in January was an important step in this direction. Moreover, ICESCO has proposed to declare Shusha as the capital of the Islamic world.

Azerbaijan implemented numerous international projects with ICESCO. Baku (2009) and Nakhchivan (2018) were named the Capital of Islamic Culture.

Azerbaijan's capital hosted the meeting of the ICESCO culture ministers in 2009. The 12th General Conference and the 36th meeting of the ICESCO Executive Board were held as well.

ICESCO is also one of the main partners of the Baku Process initiated by President Ilham Aliyev and adopted by the United Nations. The organization has been an official partner in the 5th World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue held in 2011.

The organization will also assist Azerbaijan in the restoration of monuments destroyed as a result of Armenian aggression. Training courses will be organized for specialists in this field.

Shah Ismail Khatai's "Dehname" and "Nasiyatname" poems have been published in Baku.

The books were published by "Hədəf Nəşrləri" publishing house on the initiative of the relevant commission under the Azerbaijan Writers' Union.

The author of the project is chairman of the commission, writer, associate professor Shamil Sadig.

Shah Ismail has left a deep mark in the Azerbaijan's rich history. He declared Azerbaijani as the state language, and wrote beautiful epic poems under the name Khatai.

Ismail was only a year old when his father was killed by the Aq Qoyunlu.

For six years Ismail was hiding from his enemies in the palace of Mirza Ali, who was faithful to Safavids. 

Within years of hiding, Ismail studied science and military affairs before emerging at the age of 12 years to take over Azerbaijan.

Soon young Ismail took under control the territories of today's Iran, as well as Iraq, the Caucasus, parts of Central Asia, and western Afghanistan.

Shah Ismail Khatai also wrote beautiful poems like "Dehname", beits in the masnavi genre "Nasiyatname". His Divan (collected works) includes gazelles and other poems written in various genres.

"Dehname" is considered one of the first in the Masnavi genre in the Azerbaijani literature. Khatai wrote it at the age of 20.

"Dehnameh" means "Ten Letters" because the mesnevi contains ten love letters between a young man in love and his beloved. There are more than 1400 couplets in the poem.

The love poem reflects the influence of folk poetry and dastan - oral epic narration. The work is also Sufi in nature and contains praises to Imam Ali and padishah.

"Dehname" was published independently, but most often it or excerpts from it appear in works dedicated to it or poetry collections published in Azerbaijan, Russia, Turkey.