Muslim Magomayev — from “Shah Ismail” to “Nargiz”

Abdulmuslim Magomayev was born in Grozny in 1885 — the same year as Uzeyir Hajibeyli. The two met at the Transcaucasian Teachers' Seminary and remained friends and colleagues for life.

“Shah Ismail” — the second mugham opera

Completed in 1919, “Shah Ismail” is the second major example of Azerbaijani mugham opera. Magomayev took a folk epic as his subject and bound the improvised vocal layer more tightly to the written orchestral fabric.

It remains in the repertoire of the Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theatre.

“Nargiz” — the first opera in European style

Premiered in 1935, “Nargiz” was the first Azerbaijani opera written entirely in the European manner: fully notated, with no improvisation.

This was not a retreat from mugham opera but a widening of the national school's range.

Folklorist and conductor

For years Magomayev collected and notated Azerbaijani and Caucasian folk songs, building the raw material later generations would draw on.

He also worked as a conductor. The Azerbaijan State Academic Philharmonic carries the name of the composer, who died in 1937.

The celebrated singer Muslim Magomayev was his grandson and namesake — a rare case of one name carrying across two generations of Azerbaijani music.