Aziza Mustafa Zadeh (; born December 19, 1969) is an Azerbaijani singer, pianist, and composer who plays a fusion of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

mugham Mugham () or Mughamat () is one of the many classical compositions from Azerbaijan, contrasting with tasnif and ashik. It is an art form that weds classical poetry and musical improvisation in specific local modes. Mugham is a modal system. ...

(a traditional improvisational style of Azerbaijan) with classical and

avant-garde In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable ...

influences.

Biography

Aziza was born in

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

to musical parents Vagif and Elza Mustafa Zadeh (née Bandzeladze). Aziza's parents first noticed their daughter's sensitivity to music when she was eight months old. Aziza recalls the story as her mother tells it: Aziza enjoyed all forms of art, especially dancing, painting and singing. At the age of three, she made her stage debut with her father, improvising vocals. She began studying classical piano at an early age, showing special interest in the works of famous composers

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...

and

Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period who wrote primarily for Piano solo, solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown ...

. Soon thereafter, she showed a growing talent for improvisation. On December 16, 1979, Aziza's father died of a severe heart attack in

Tashkent Tashkent (), also known as Toshkent, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uzbekistan, largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of more than 3 million people as of April 1, 2024. I ...

at the age of 39. In order to help her daughter cope with this blow, Aziza's mother gave up her career as a singer to help nurture her daughter's own musical talents. In 1988, at the age of 18, Aziza's mugam-influenced style helped her win third place together with American Matt Cooper in the

Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz The Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz is a non-profit music education organization founded in 1986. Before 2019, it was known as the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, but was then renamed after its longtime board chairman, Herbie Hancock. The i ...

(formerly

Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk ( October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the Jazz standard, standard jazz repertoire, includ ...

Institute of Jazz) piano competition in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

It was around this time that she moved to Germany with her mother. Aziza released her debut album, ''

Aziza Mustafa Zadeh Aziza Mustafa Zadeh (; born December 19, 1969) is an Azerbaijani singer, pianist, and composer who plays a fusion of jazz and mugham (a traditional improvisational style of Azerbaijan) with classical and avant-garde influences. Biography Azi ...

'', in 1991. The album showed influence of

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain (instrumental), Spain", "500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba" ...

and

Keith Jarrett Keith Jarrett (born May 8, 1945) is an American pianist and composer. Jarrett started his career with Art Blakey and later moved on to play with Charles Lloyd (jazz musician), Charles Lloyd and Miles Davis. Since the early 1970s, he has also be ...

, as well as Near Eastern music. Her second album, ''

Always Always may refer to: Film and television * ''Always'', a 1985 film directed by Henry Jaglom * ''Always'' (1989 film), a 1989 romantic comedy-drama directed by Steven Spielberg * ''Always'' (2011 film), a 2011 South Korean film, also known as ''O ...

'', won her the

Phono Academy Prize Phono may refer to: * Phone (phonetics), speech sound, gesture or segment * Phonograph, regularly abbreviated to ''phono'' on buttons and jacks of audio equipment * RCA connector, called "phono" since they originally connected to phonographs * Pho ...

, a prestigious German music award, and the Echo Prize from

Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...

. She has since performed in many countries with many jazz and traditional luminaries and released several more albums, the most recent being ''Generations'', released in 2020. Aziza currently resides in

Mainz, Germany Mainz (; see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in the Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region—Germany's second-larges ...

, with her mother, Elza Mustafa Zadeh, who is also her manager. Her two favorite leisure activities, she says, are painting and sleeping. She believes in God, though she does not consider herself as belonging to any religion.

Baku Jazz Festival 2007

Aziza visited Azerbaijan in June 2007 for the

Baku Jazz Festival The Baku International Jazz Festival is an annual jazz event founded and organized by saxophonist and Baku resident Rain Sultanov. The festival aims to showcase Azerbaijan's long-running attachment to jazz, a connection established in the count ...

, starring in her own concert at the

Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater The Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater () is an opera house in Baku, Azerbaijan. Formerly known as the Mailov Theatre (), was built in 1911 by Armenian architect Nikolai Bayev.

and headlining the end-of-festival concert at the open-air Green Theater.

Discography

* ''

'' (1991) * ''

'' (1993) * ''

Dance of Fire ''Dance of Fire'' is the third album released by the Azeri jazz artist Aziza Mustafa Zadeh. It was released in 1995. Recording and Music The album was recorded at Sony Music Studios in New York during January and February 1995. It was produced b ...

'' (1995) * '' Seventh Truth'' (1996) * ''Jazziza'' (1997) * ''Inspiration – Colors & Reflections'' (2000) * ''

Shamans Shamanism is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with the Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit world through Altered state of consciousness, altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of th ...

'' (2002) * ''Contrasts'' (2006) * ''Contrasts II'' (2007) * ''Generations'' (2020)

References

External links

*
Azerbaijan International article
*
AllAboutJazz.com: Aziza Mustafa Zadeh: Body and Soul and Mugam!

Music Section of Azerbaijan International {{DEFAULTSORT:Mustafa Zadeh, Aziza 1969 births Azerbaijani jazz singers Azerbaijani women pianists Azerbaijani jazz pianists 20th-century Azerbaijani women singers Musicians from Baku Azerbaijani deists Living people Scat singers Women jazz pianists Azerbaijani people of Georgian descent 21st-century Azerbaijani pianists 21st-century Azerbaijani women singers 20th-century women pianists 21st-century women pianists