Shovkat Hasan qizi Mammadova ( az, Şövkət Məmmədova; 18 April 1897 – 8 June 1981) was an
Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani may refer to:
* Something of, or related to Azerbaijan
* Azerbaijanis
* Azerbaijani language
See also
* Azerbaijan (disambiguation)
* Azeri (disambiguation)
* Azerbaijani cuisine
* Culture of Azerbaijan
The culture of Azerbaijan ...
opera singer (lyric coloratura
soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...
) and music instructor.
Early life and musical career
Mammadova was born in 1897 in Tiflis, Russian Empire (present-day Tbilisi, Georgia) to the low-class Azeri family of Hasan Mammadov and Khurshid (née Sultanova). She had a younger brother named Mugbil. Her father, a shoemaker who hailed from the village of Goshakilsa (presently in the Bolnisi Municipality, Georgia),Azərbaycanın ilk qadın opera müğənnisi... ''Sharg''. 24 May 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2017. noticed her musical gift when Shovkat was six years old. In 1910, he managed to find a sponsor, who agreed to promote her talent at a banquet organized by the vice-regent of the Caucasus, Count
Illarion Vorontsov-Dashkov
Count Illarion Ivanovich Vorontsov-Dashkov (russian: Илларио́н Ива́нович Воронцов-Дашков; 27 May 1837 – 15 January 1916) was a notable representative of the Vorontsov family. He served as Minister of Imperial Pro ...
. In 1911, she left for Milan, Italy to pursue a musical degree at the Milan Conservatory with the financial help of an Azeri multimillionaire,
Zeynalabdin Taghiyev
, image = Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev.jpg
, image_size = 250px
, caption =
, birth_date = 25 January 1823Shovkat Mammadova, Audacious Challenge by Fuad Akhundov. ''Azerbaijan International''. Winter 1997 (retrieved 26 August 2006) However, in 1912, their sponsorship was discontinued for undisclosed reasons, and Mammadova had to return home. That same year she enrolled in a program at a music school in Tiflis. At the age of 15, she made her first stage appearance at the Taghiyev Theatre in Baku, performing a piece from Uzeyir Hajibeyov's ''Husband and Wife''. In 1915, she got admitted to a post-secondary program at the Kiev Conservatory, where she met Reinhold Glière, a Russian composer. Glière showed keen interest in Azeri folk music and Mammadova's acquaintanceship resulted in his visit to the Karabakh region, where he got to meet with a number of professional mugham performers. Later in 1934, he would compose his famous ''Shakh-Senem'' based on his impressions and experiences from this trip, and dedicate it to Mammadova. By that time, she would already be widely known as a talented opera singer. Beginning in 1921, Mammadova toured Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Paris, Milan, Tabriz, and Tbilisi performing arias from ''
La Traviata
''La traviata'' (; ''The Fallen Woman'') is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on ''La Dame aux camélias'' (1852), a play by Alexandre Dumas ''fils'' adapted from his own 18 ...
Les Huguenots
() is an opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer and is one of the most popular and spectacular examples of grand opera. In five acts, to a libretto
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work suc ...
'', etc. She also managed to complete her studies in Milan in 1927–1930 and head back to Azerbaijan to go on with her career at the State Opera and Ballet Theatre in Baku.
Career as a music instructor
In 1923, Shovkat Mammadova founded the Musical Notes Publishing House as well as the Baku Theatrical College (nowadays known as the
Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Arts
Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Arts (ASUCA; az, Azərbaycan Dövlət Mədəniyyət və İncəsənət Universiteti) was founded in 1923 on the basis of the Baku Theatrical College. It is Azerbaijan's main state-funded institution of h ...
). In 1939–1945, she was the director of the
Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theatre
The Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater (Azeri: ''Axundov adına Azərbaycan Dövlət Akademik Opera və Balet Teatrı''), formerly known as the Mailov Theatre
. She was later appointed the Chair of the Vocal Department at the
Azerbaijan State Conservatory
The Hajibeyov Baku Academy of Music (Azeri: ''Hacıbəyov adına Bakı Musiqi Akademiyası'') is a music school in Baku, Azerbaijan. It was established in 1920 in Baku and was previously known as the Hajibeyov Azerbaijan State Conservatoire.
H ...
, where she professionally trained young vocalists until her death in 1981.
Family
In 1915, while studying at the Kiev Conservatory, Mammadova married Jacob Lubarsky, an engineer whom she had met in Milan three years earlier.
References
See also
*
List of People's Artists of the Azerbaijan SSR
This is a list of People's Artist of the Azerbaijani SSR (1931–1990); which after 1998, was renamed and rededicated as the People's Artist of Azerbaijan to reflect the new country leadership.
1930s
1931
* Gurban Pirimov (1880–1965), ...