NEWS

The 7th edition of the “Kharibulbul" International Music Festival will be held in Shusha and Lachin cities on May 11-13.

The festival jointly organized by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Culture, will feature concert programs and various presentations.

The city of Shusha was declared “the Cultural capital of the Islamic world for 2024”.

The next "Kharibulbul" International Music Festival will bring together ICESCO member states and their on-stage performance groups.

The official opening of Shusha - the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World 2024 and the 7th edition of the “Kharibulbul" International Music Festival will be held on May 11 on the Jidir Duzu plain.

The "Kharibulbul" music festival, which bears the name of flower symbolizing Shusha, was first organized on the mysterious Jidir Duzu plain of Shusha in May 1989.

AZERTAC’s photo correspondent Ilgar Jafarov has won gold medals at the two international photo contests held in Serbia.

The competitions held under the auspices of the International Federation of Photographic Art (FIAP) featured 1970 photos by 102 authors from 40 countries.

Ilgar Jafarov's photo titled "Emotions of a weightlifter" earned him the FIAP gold medal.

Another photo by Jafarov, entitled "Athlete Willpower" was awarded the Danube International Photo Association’s (DIPA) gold medal in the "Gold shadow 2024" photo competition.

The photos, awarded in the "Photojournalism" nomination, were taken at the Olympic and Paralympic Games held in Brazil in 2016.

On May 5, the opening ceremony of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest was held in Malmo, Sweden.

Report informs that the opening was broadcast live on the YouTube channel of the competition.

All participants walked through the Turquoise Carpet. Only the delegation from Israel did not participate in the ceremony due to the anniversary of the Holocaust.

This year, the first and second semi-finals of the continent's main song contest will take place on May 7 and 9. The best performer will be voted on in the final on May 11.

Azerbaijan's Minister of Culture Adil Karimli has met with Gabriela Ramos, Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences of UNESCO, who is participating in the 6th World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue.

Addressing the meeting, Minster Adil Karimli highlighted Azerbaijan-UNESCO relations, praising the fact that the organization is among the traditional partners of the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue held for the sixth time this year within the framework of the "Baku Process".

The minister emphasized Azerbaijan’s readiness to share its ideas regarding the development of the Baku Process global platform with UNESCO. He stressed the country’s interest in cooperation with the organization in variety of fields, including artificial intelligence.

During the meeting, the two also hailed the importance of UNESCO's representation and acting as a partner at the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) to be held in Azerbaijan this year.

The two also exchanged views on other issues of mutual interest.

On May 4-5, Azerbaijan’s inaugural National Carpet Festival, co-organized by the Administration of State Historical Architectural Reserve “Icherisheher” and “Azerkhalcha” OJSC, and supported by the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO), will be held in Icherisheher.

Throughout the two-day festival, numerous events dedicated to the art of carpet weaving will take place in Icherisheher. These include exclusive exhibitions showcasing ancient, modern, and designer carpets, as well as carpet-weaving masterclasses for both adults and kids. Educational seminars, interactive theater performances, a fair, a mugham evening, and a concert program are also scheduled. During the festival, the streets of the Old City will be adorned with carpets and special decorations featuring carpet motifs, adding to the colorful and magical atmosphere of the event.

Attendees interested in the art of carpet weaving will have the opportunity to explore every stage of carpet making, including dyeing threads, applying dyes and patterns, weaving, processing, burning, and washing the carpets. Skilled artisans from "Azerkhalcha" OJSC, representing 14 regions of Azerbaijan, will provide hands-on demonstrations on the intricacies of carpet weaving and processing directly on the loom. Furthermore, the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Science and Education will each host stands at the National Carpet Festival.

Notably, the National Carpet Festival, to be hosted by Icherisheher, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is dedicated to the professional holiday of "Carpenter's Day," established by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, on November 25, 2016. The mission of the Festival is to promote and safeguard the rich tradition of Azerbaijani carpet weaving, listed as UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage.

Organized by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, Azerbaijan will present a national pavilion at the 60th Venice Biennale with support from Azerbaijan`s Ministry of Culture and the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Italy.

Since 2027, Azerbaijan has actively participated in the Venice Biennale, a renowned global art platforms.

The national pavilion will exhibit works by honored Azerbaijani artists Irina Eldarova, Rashad Alakbarov, and Vusala Agharaziyeva.

Titled “Foreigners Everywhere,” the 60th Venice Biennale will run from April 20 to November 24.

The “Dirchelish” (Revival) Youth Social-Psychological Rehabilitation Center, in collaboration with the embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Spain and the Principality of Andorra, will organize an exhibition titled "Art of Cultural Diplomacy" in Madrid as part of the “Green World Solidarity Year”.

The event will take place at the Centro Cultural Emilia Pardo Bazán from April 20-27.

Its aim is to introduce Spanish art enthusiasts to Azerbaijani culture and to showcase the talents of Azerbaijani youth.

A delegation led by Chair of the New Caledonian Congress Committee on Infrastructure, Spatial Planning, Sustainable Development, Energy, Transport and Communications Naisseline Omayra visited Wednesday the Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku.

The delegation was informed about the Heydar Aliyev Center, which is considered one of the rare pearls of world architecture.

The Center is engaged in studying and promoting the statehood policy and heritage of National Leader Heydar Aliyev.

The guests viewed the cars that Great Leader Heydar Aliyev used during his leadership of Azerbaijan from 1969 to 2003.

The delegation members also familiarized themselves with the “Pearls of Azerbaijan” exhibition, highlighting rich history and culture of Azerbaijan, as well as unique exhibits related to the abundant natural resources, centuries-old history and cultural heritage of the country.

They also viewed the exhibition featuring carpets and ancient musical instruments of Azerbaijan.

Chairman of Azerbaijan`s State Tourism Agency Fuad Naghiyev has met with Chairperson of Saint Petersburg`s Tourism Development Committee Sergey Korneev to discuss opportunities for developing tourism relations and enhancing cooperation between Azerbaijan and Russia.

During the meeting, the sides exchanged views on the creation of joint tourism routes, investment opportunities, educational programs, and the development of relations among the tourism companies in line with the "Roadmap for the development of tourism between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Russian Federation in 2024-2026".

The two also discussed issues related to hosting various marketing events in 2024, participating in exhibitions, organizing workshops and presentation, and opening a tourism representative office in Moscow to promote Azerbaijan's tourism potential in Russia.

Fuad Naghiyev noted that the number of Russian tourists visiting Azerbaijan increased by 40 percent, reaching 625,000 individuals in 2023 compared to 2022. Furthermore, during the first three months of 2024, the number of Russian citizens arriving in Azerbaijan surged by 24 percent, totaling 147,438 compared to the corresponding period of the previous year.

As the world celebrates the World Theatre Day on March 27th, an occasion to highlight the role of art in promoting intercultural and civilizational dialogue, as a source of inspiration fostering diversity and cultural openness, and as an integral part of the intangible civilizational heritage reflecting the values of belonging and coexistence, the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), seizes this opportunity to renew its commitment to supporting the art of theatre, promoting cultural dialogue and developing the skills of theater practitioners in its Member States.

According to ICESCO, the organization also strives to highlight the efforts undertaken to strengthen this ancestral art (the father of all arts) through its scientific publications and symposia, particularly in light of the challenges posed by artificial intelligence and its impact on reducing human creativity.

In this regard, ICESCO is working towards the publication of a set of guides aimed at anchoring the cultural identity of theatre in the Islamic world, as well as the elaboration of a guiding study on artistic and theatrical education for schoolchildren, with the aim of supporting all art forms, particularly theater.

On this World Theatre Day, ICESCO reaffirms its support for the efforts of its Member States to develop this art form, promote the training of artists and the preservation of performing arts, in addition to integrating people with special needs into theatrical performances and consolidating social cohesion.