Niyazi

Niyazi Zulfugar oghlu Taghizade Hajibeyov (20 August 1912 – 2 August 1984) was a Soviet and Azerbaijani conductor and composer. People's Artist of the USSR (1959) and Hero of Socialist Labour (1982).
Early life
Niyazi was born on August 20, 1912, in Tbilisi in a family of prominent Shusha musicians. His father was the composer Zulfugar Hajibeyov. He is the nephew of Uzeyir Hajibeyov, the founder of the Azeri classical music. He was playing the violin in "Qırmızı Kadet" Turkish military orchestra in 1921. He studied at the Gnessin Music School in Moscow in 1925-1926. In 1929-30 he studied at the Central Musical Technical School in Leningrad, but dropped out due to health problems. He returned to Baku in 1931. Right after that he was sent to Dagestan where he met his future wife Həchər khanum. Hecher Khanum's family would not approve of the marriage. So she and Niyazi decided to run away and secretly married. They lived a very difficult yet fulfilling life. The great love of his wife gave him strengths to produce most of his masterpieces, which contributed to Azerbaijan's and the musical treasury of the rest of the world.
Works
Niyazi conducted many of the major symphony orchestras in Prague, Berlin, Budapest, Bucharest, New York, Paris, Istanbul, London, Tehran, Beijing and Ulan-Bator and played an important role in making the Azeri classical music known to the world.
Niyazi was also a talented composer. Building upon the traditions of Uzeyir Hajibeyov, he splendidly synthesized the traditional Azeri folk songs and mugham with western classical symphonic music. Niyazi's most significant works include the opera "Khosrow and Shirin" (1942), and the ballet "Chitra" (1960). His symphonic mugham "Rast" achieved worldwide popularity and was included to the repertoire of many symphony orchestras around the world.
Niyazi was the conductor and music director of the Azerbaijan State Symphony orchestra for 46 years, from 1938 to his death. He died on August 2, 1984.
Niyazi was honored as the People's Artist of the USSR (1959) and received the Stalin Prize (1951, 1952) and Hero of Socialist Labour (1982).
See also
List of People's Artistes of the Azerbaijan SSR
House-Museum of Niyazi
References
External links
Listen to Niyazi, Music Section of Azerbaijan International
1912 births
1984 deaths
20th-century Azerbaijani composers
20th-century classical musicians
20th-century conductors (music)
20th-century male musicians
Musicians from Tbilisi
Communist Party of the Soviet Union members
Eleventh convocation members of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union
Members of the Central Committee of the 26th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic
Baku Academy of Music alumni
Komitas State Conservatory of Yerevan alumni
Heroes of Socialist Labour
Honored Art Workers of the Azerbaijan SSR
People's Artists of Armenia
People's Artistes of the Azerbaijan SSR
People's Artists of the USSR
Recipients of the Order of the Badge of Honour
Recipients of the Order of Lenin
Recipients of the Order of the October Revolution
Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour
Recipients of the Stalin Prize
Ballet conductors
Music directors (opera)
Azerbaijani ballet composers
Azerbaijani classical composers
Azerbaijani conductors (music)
Azerbaijani film score composers
Azerbaijani male composers
Azerbaijani opera composers
Soviet Azerbaijani people
Soviet conductors (music)
Soviet film score composers
Soviet male classical composers
Soviet opera composers
Burials at Alley of Honor