Elnara Nadir gizi Kerimova, also spelled Karimova (; born 1962 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 ...

) is an

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

i and

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

conductor and

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...

master,

People's Artiste of Azerbaijan People’s Artiste of Azerbaijan () is the honorary title granted for contribution to the development of Azerbaijani culture. The term artiste refers to a professional entertainer, and awards creative success in the theater, cinema and music fie ...

(2018).

Contributions

Born in

, Elnara Kerimova studied

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

conducting Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance, such as an orchestral or Choir, choral concert. It has been defined as "the art of directing the simultaneous performance of several players or singers by the use of gesture." The primary d ...

at the Asaf Zeynally Music College and later at the

Baku Academy of Music The Hajibeyli Baku Academy of Music (Azeri: ''Hacıbəyli adına Bakı Musiqi Akademiyası'') is a music school in Baku, Azerbaijan. It was established in 1920 in Baku and was previously known as the Hajibeyli Azerbaijan State Conservatoire. H ...

. While still receiving her professional training at the Zeynalli College she became a

chorister A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

for the Azerbaijan State Polyphonic Choir. She was promoted to chief conductor of the choir in 1988. Within the next four years, the orchestra guided by Kerimova toured

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

, and

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

. In 1992, Kerimova was invited to Turkey by the Ministry of Culture to conduct the TRT Ankara Radio Polyphonic Choir. With this choir, she participated in various festivals and has given more than 300 concerts. Kerimova has been entrusted important positions at various educational institutions, such as

Ankara State Conservatory The Hacettepe University Ankara State Conservatory (), the first conservatory to be founded in the Republic of Turkey, was established in 1936 by a directive of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The conservatory is part of Hacettepe University. History ...

and

Bilkent University Bilkent University () is a private non-profit research university located in Ankara, Turkey. It was founded by İhsan Doğramacı, the first president of the Council of Higher Education and the head of the prominent Doğramacı family, with th ...

, and amateur choirs. She has taken the responsibility to develop and improve the choral music while also popularizing this genre throughout Turkey. Starting from May 1999 Elnara Kerimova has been working as a conductor for the Orfeon Chamber Choir. With this choir, she won awards at festivals in England, Canada, and Austria and performed concerts in Belgium, Pakistan, Israel, Japan, and China. In 2009, Kerimova worked on the choral scenes from

Uzeyir Hajibeyov Uzeyir bey Abdulhuseyn bey oghlu Hajibeyov (18 September 188523 November 1948) was an Azerbaijanis, Azerbaijani composer, musicologist and teacher. He is recognized as the father of Azerbaijani classical music. He composed the music of the Az� ...

's opera ''

Koroghlu The ''Epic of Koroghlu'' (; ; ; ) is a heroic legend prominent in the oral traditions of the Turkic peoples, mainly the Oghuz Turks. The legend typically describes a hero who seeks to avenge a wrong. It was often put to music and played at sp ...

'' as part of an international project presented by TURKSOY. In 2010, she established the ''Buta'' chamber choir at the initiative of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Azerbaijan. In 2015, she won a gold medal at the European Choir Games in

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...

, Germany, with the TURKSOY chamber choir. In 2011, she was awarded the title of Honored Artiste of Azerbaijan, and in 2018, she received the title of People's Artiste Azerbaijan.

References

Turkish people of Azerbaijani descent 1962 births Living people Azerbaijani conductors (music) Turkish conductors (music) Turkish women conductors (music) Musicians from Baku 21st-century conductors (music) Baku Academy of Music alumni People's Artiste of Azerbaijan {{Turkey-musician-stub