THE DIVINE VOICE

The talented Azerbaijani pianist Narmina Efendiyeva cannot live without music. She is currently living and working in Toronto, Canada as the music director of Opera in Concert, Summer and Opera Lyric Theater, as well as an accompanist and vocal coach at the University of Toronto's Music Department and the Toronto Operetta Theater. As our guest today, Narmina will tell us about her propensity to win since the childhood, her feelings on the stage and never-ending desire to share the happiness with people through her music, as well as the things she loves to do in free time.

Narmina, tell us about your family. As far as we know, you are a musician in the fourth generation...

I was lucky indeed. Fortunately, teaching the music has long been part of the education of the younger generation in our family. My great-grandmother and grandparents on my mother’s side had been teaching piano. My mother, Alla Efendiyeva, is one of the leading teachers at the Asaf Zeynalli Music College. I do not have musicians on my father's side but the representatives of the "literary intelligentsia" of Azerbaijan. My great-grandfather, Aghalibey Naseh Efendizadeh, was a prominent representative of the Shamakhi poetic school. My grandfather Hidayat Efendiyev followed his father’s steps and became a well-known literary critic. His both sons are linguists. My father, Ali Efendiyev, is a professional interpreter who has translated many books authored by the prominent Azerbaijani historians into the Russian and English. Unfortunately, I am not gifted in writing although my father has somehow managed to make me love the languages since my childhood. But, of course, the music has always been my top priority. I started learning to play the piano when I turned five. At six, I gave my first small solo concert at my music school. Unfortunately, I do not remember how well was the performance but I still keep carefully the poster of my concert.

Why did you choose music? Have you ever dreamed of another profession?

Music has always been an integral part of my life. The concerts, contests, performances, you name it… I took all of them for granted and it seemed they organically intertwined in my life. Or maybe it was the opposite – my life organically intertwined in music classes and concerts. After I left my regular music school for the more specialized Bulbul School, it became obvious that music would always be the most valuable part of my journey through the life. I was fortunate enough to enter the class of Adila Vekilova, professor of the Uzeyir Hajibeyov Music Academy in Baku. Adila-khanim is an incredibly knowledgeable person with a surprisingly subtle spiritual temper. She is an amazing musician who devoted her life, mental and physical powers solely to music, and shares all of her constantly evolving knowledge with us. All these years with Adila-khanim – 8 years at school and 6 at the conservatory – I have received an endless stream of information and skills coupled with energy exchange and bright lessons full of life. Each of them was something new; a step into a never-ending process of technical and emotional improvement. I express my deep gratitude to this lady, without whom I would never gain even the third of what I can perform on the piano now. Have I ever dreamt of another profession? Seriously, no. I had had some childish fantasies about being a detective or dealing with languages. But my mother has confidently paved my way to the career in music. I still remember that once, before moving to the 7^th grade at school, mom has suddenly asked me to think if I would like to continue studying music. I knew that as a person of broader views, she had to offer me a choice but it was not serious. Mom has always wished to see me as an accomplished musician. I neither did mind nor did regret about my choice for a minute.

How did you end up in Toronto? Why did you move to this city? What does Toronto mean for you? How do you live there?

When we decided to move to another country for permanent residence, we chose Canada, a country originally made of and loyal to immigrants and welcome to new skilled workers. I think it was a right choice. Why Toronto? An immigrant’s rule of thumb is to settle in a big city. I recently read about it in my son's textbook on the history of Canada. I had not heard about this before but instinctively I was drawn to a big city, which is full of life and has many employment opportunities. An endless variety of nationalities, many jobs, opportunity to establish connections with the Diaspora, sometimes just a chance of meeting the old friends – I had experienced all of these three times during my first years in Toronto. This life experience makes one not feel alien in a new city and merge into the newly acquired community faster.

Tell us about your work. What is the role of chamber-instrumental and solo music in your work?

When I first came to Canada, I worked for a private music school teaching the piano and vocal to children. I soon realised that this is not what I want to do in my life. In most cases, the musical education of children in Canada is similar to getting skills in the circles of drawing, karate, football, etc. This goes on up until a child gets bored. The parents do not force them to engage in these activities seriously unless they are Chinese parents but that is another story. I could not waste my energy doing a useless work at the music school. But on the other hand, there was no serious job because nobody knew me here. Then I decided to enter the faculty of chamber music to show my skills. I received my Master’s Degree from the Music Faculty of the University of Toronto in two years and by the end of my period, I already had had right connections and established good relations in the music world. Currently, I mainly work on a contractual basis as a music director at Opera in Concert, Summer Opera Lyric Theater, as well as am an accompanist and vocal coach at the Music Faculty of the Toronto Operetta Theater. I like working with the singers. There is something magical in the combination of words and music. After all, my dad’s genes play their part well. It is fascinating to find a shaky balance between the music and words, to reveal one by means of another, to help a singer to get to the depths of this or that piece of work.

I also like the chamber-instrumental music. You do not need to babysit singers who are mostly the souls of thin and vulnerable nature. I feel quite at home here with fellow instrumentalists, we speak the same language, say. Working with the strings is a more delightful and equal partnership, while it is more of a physical and moral support as far as the singers is concerned. A singer must be sure that he has your strong support. As Domingo once said about the La Scala orchestra, a pianist "will follow you down to the hell and rise from there to the surface." Meanwhile, a stringer does not care about who follows you where. But I think every musician in the ensemble needs professional support and confidence in his partner.

My favorite solo performance is now in deep disgrace due to the lack of time necessary for daily rehearsals. It is impossible to prepare for solo programs going to work at 9am and returning at 9pm. Although the last year was remarkable as I had several solo performances. I am infinitely glad for having this chance and I hope that I will have time again for serious activities in the near future.

Do you participate in joint projects with Azerbaijani musicians?

There is a wonderful Azerbaijani violinist, Rufat Amiraliyev, living in Toronto. We have performed at several concerts together playing the pieces from Garaev, Shostakovich, and Dvorak. Our cooperation continues and brings us both pleasant moments of human and musical communication.

Whose performance do you find a standard to follow up?

- Well, as long as I can remember, I have never had performance standards. There are many wonderful, talented, brilliant musicians, who continue to surprise and fascinate me. But I have never wished to play as, for example, Pletnev, Kisin or, God forbid, Lang Lang. There are no universal musicians who perform any piece equally beautiful. Someone has a stunning performance of Chopin, yet another one performs the works of Mozart amazingly but is very poor with Brahms, while the third one is very good with Ravel but shows an awful performance of Beethoven’s works. All musicians are different and beautiful in their own way. I'm talking, of course, about the outstanding musicians, about those whose interpretation you can dislike, yet you still have to appreciate their talent and originality. For me, my favourite pianists today are, perhaps, Kisin, Argerich, Horowitz, and Sokolov. Their performances mostly attract by their honesty towards themselves and the performed composer, as well as a never-ending devotion to music.

Do you often visit your homeland?

I have somehow quietly made a tradition to visit home twice a year: in winter and in summer. In the summer, I always like staying at our summer residence to see the sea and the sun, to gain some strength and energy for a whole year. In the winter, I visit Azerbaijan for a short period. I have to cancel my work for a week or two but I do not intend to do the same with my winter trip to Baku. I enjoy sitting with my parents and friends in February around the daffodils. This winter, with my friends from the Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, violinist Elina Aliyeva and cellist Eyyub Aliyev, we had a wonderful concert program at the conservatory playing the beautiful music of Frank, Brahms, and Mendelssohn.

Do you promote Azerbaijan and if yes, how? Do you perform Azerbaijani music in Toronto?

I think that the best way to promote your country and nation is demonstrate your professionalism. People always acknowledge the quality of your work and your inspiration. This subconsciously reflects on your home country and nationality. Everyone who lives among people of other nationalities should remember this. Waving a flag is simple. I think a work done professionally is the criterion determining the degree of pride of a person for his country.

Of course, I play Azerbaijani music when we are able to include the works of our composers in our concert program. Basically, these include pieces of Gara Garaev, Fikret Amirov, and Tofig Guliyev. I hope that in the near future we, the Azerbaijani musicians living in Toronto, will be able to come together and share our beautiful music with audiences.

What do you listen to in your spare time? How do you feel about modern music, pop music?

No matter how boring it may sound but if I listen to music, it is almost always the classical music. One can find some jazz, some pop, some rock and metal in the classical music. You just need to know where to look for them. The simplest thing is to listen to Bach, he has everything. I'm fine with the pop music - sometimes we need to hum simple tunes, beat the rhythm, or just shake up. I think it's normal. I will not talk about how people get imposed to pop music through substituting concepts. This is a completely different, long and boring conversation. But as long as the pop music is an easy and short way of enjoying your pastime, why not? I also have my favourite, say, light tunes.

What should be done to make the youth interested in classics?

Perhaps you will be surprised but I do not think you need to do anything special. Classical music, like any true art, attracts the youth no matter what. I play a lot on auditions, and every time I am surprised to see how many young people want to study music professionally, even though they can get diplomas in other areas. Here is an example: a clever, intelligent girl with a degree in computer programming. You would think what else is necessary for her – she will get a good job and be happy. But no, she sings in opera productions and applied to the music faculty looking forward to response. And there are many more such examples. That’s the way it goes here in Canada. In Baku, too, I know guys who, while doing a completely different thing, are seriously involved in classical music. Even if they do not compose music, they listen to it constantly. They are among us - real lovers and connoisseurs of classical music. But it's kind of a closed club with members making a secret of their involvement. Because we usually feel proud of what the majority does only. But if television was concerned with the outreach of the beautiful, our underground clubbers would not need to keep their love for classical music a secret under the guise of general indifference. Once I was at La Boheme of Puccini in our opera house. I saw a bored company of young people sitting in front of me. The play was due to start soon, and the girl reprimanded one of the young guys why he took them to the opera house instead of the planned party at work. The young guy was trying to defend himself but then the lights began fading out slowly, and the theater embraced the audience with its magic... After the first act, the girl said: "It's good that we came to the theater today, I did not expect it to be so interesting!" Even if she was an aggressive atheist who failed to become a zealous adept that evening but she heard the voice of God whose name is Music.