Mugham Center pays tribute to jazz legend

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

International Mugham Center hosted a concert in honor of famous jazz composer and pianist Vagif Mustafazade on December 18.

The event was held by the Vagif Mustafazade Charitable Foundation and the Ministry of Culture, Azertag reported.

The concert featured works of country's  jazz legend.

The Youth Chamber Orchestra performed the work "Vagifeye Devam". The orchestra was conducted by People's Artist of Azerbaijan Yalchin Adigozalov.

Afterwards, well-known jazzman Emil Afrasiyab, honored art worker Javan Zeynalli, Isfar Sarabski, Mirjavad Jafarov appeared on the stage.

The musicians captivated audiences with spectacular concert.

Vagif Mustafazade is the founder of Azerbaijani jazz mugham movement that emerged in the late 1960s and 1970s in Baku, as a result of the mixture of these two styles.

Throughout years, he wrote numerous jazz compositions, including fugues, preludes, ballads and scherzos, many of them written in the 1970s. He released a total of eight albums, all with different line-ups, mood and style.

By the beginning of 1960s, Vagif was gaining recognition outside of Azerbaijan.

Winner of numerous jazz festivals such as "Tallinn-66", "Tallinn-67", Baku festival "Jazz 69", Donetsk 1977 festival, and "Tbilisi-78", Vagif Mustafazadeh always fascinated listeners with his originality and virtuosity.

Musician's death was a shock to many people. He was only 39 years old when he died on stage while performing in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) in 1979.

Jazz schools around the world have recognized Vagif Mustafazadeh as a phenomenal musician. His works represent a unique combination of eastern and western schools, of tradition and innovation.