A "ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION" FOR ASHIQS

The 80th anniversary of the first congress of Azerbaijani ashiqs, held in 1928, has not gone unnoticed. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism marked this notable event by holding a round table discussion at the Museum Centre on the subject "The Ashiq Arts of Azerbaijan: The Modern State and Prospects for Development". The event brought together Azerbaijani Minister of Culture and Tourism, Abulfaz Qarayev, prominent theorists - researchers into various aspects of the ashiq arts and ashiqs themselves - modern exponents of this ancient art from various regions of our country. UNESCO representative David Stehl and an expert from the same organization, Jean During, were special guests of the event.

Participants were shown a short video created from archive materials of the congresses of Azerbaijani ashiqs held in 1928, 1938 and 1961… Years go by and faces change - not just faces, but also ashiq legends! There is a voice-over, reading poems by Samad Vurgun. The last picture reads '2008'. Just the date for the time being. All its achievements lie in the future. Expanding on the film, the Minister of Culture and Tourism said that a series of documentaries will be made, under the aegis of the cinema department of his ministry, about the major representatives of the Azerbaijani ashiq arts. The round table agenda included discussions on the role of ashiq in the history of Azerbaijani culture, its unique features, influence on the arts of neighbouring countries, modern problems and its protection and promotion at an international level.

Abulfaz Qarayev noted the importance that our country's leadership attaches to the ashiq arts, saying: "Mugham has taken its place in the history of human culture, and our ministry is making every effort to ensure that ashiq receives the same kind of recognition around the world. In the context of globalization, we must explain the essence of ashiq to the world, work with UNESCO and other international cultural institutions, combine all the surveys carried out in this sphere and present the results to the international community."

Unique arts

Scientists who addressed the round table raised various issues. For example, the well-known scientist and researcher, senior scientist at the Arts and Architecture Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan, UNESCO expert on non-material heritage and ethno-musicologist, Sanubar Bagirova, described the ashiq art as "something addressed to the global audience". She said that ashiq schools existed in neighbouring countries as well: Goyca, Tabriz, Borcali and so on. Historical evidence allows us to say that ashiqs of other nationalities, for example, Armenian ashiqs, composed their verses in Azerbaijan and in the Azerbaijani poetic style! At the same time, she said that the number of ashiqs has fallen sharply in Northern Azerbaijan in recent times and the quality of this unique art has also, sadly, deteriorated. At the same time, she observed that the contest of ashiq music organised by Lider TV, despite all its shortcomings, is the first initiative of this type and, as such, is a valuable contribution.

The speakers stressed that ashiq art is also unique because every exponent is multifunctional. An ashiq is at once a composer, poet, singer and musician. Suffice to say that not a single wedding party in the regions of our country is held without one. The unique quality of Azerbaijan's ashiq art, apart from the fact that the language and poetry of ashiq stories have been appropriated by our regional neighbours (and not only by them), is proven by the fact that the musical instruments used by Azerbaijani ashiqs are conspicuous for their particular form and structure, making it impossible to confuse them with any other instruments.

The researchers reminded participants that the timeless significance of ashiq is evidenced by its melodies, which permeate many works by modern Azerbaijani composers - from the first national opera to the Third Symphony by Qara Qarayev. Another interesting aspect of the subject was noted by the scientists: the Azerbaijani ashiq singing of the last three centuries demonstrates, among other things, an astonishing gender balance in folk music. At the beginning of the 19th century, alongside the men, there were female ashiqs in the remotest parts of Azerbaijan, not to mention the famous Ashiq Pari Maclis, which brought together the most talented girls and women and became a kind of Azerbaijani version of the ancient circle of Sappho. In a word, for 200 years now, a female singer has been nothing unusual among ashiqs, whereas professional actresses first appeared in the country's national theatre only in the 1930s. Before then, women's roles were played by men, starting with the crazily brave pioneer Sarabski. It is notable that the situation is exactly the opposite nowadays: there are hundreds of women in the cinema, theatre and pop music in Azerbaijan nowadays, while there is only one "sazwoman" - a professional female ashiq. This is Ulduz Aliyeva, who has created a draft programme on the teaching of ashiq skills.

Art, ozan and special school

And now for the projects. During the round table discussion, there were proposals to search for new forms, to create an ashiq encyclopaedia, an ashiq-ozan centre in Baku, with branches in the regions of the country, a special school, and to increase state support.

It was clear that the proposals were well-prepared and, in essence, these were fully developed projects of one sort or another. For example, the participants in the round table were given a chance to examine several slides of ashiq costumes made by students of the Arts Academy. One of the sketches was unanimously approved. It was the least pretentious and stylish, but it was closer than all the others to the classical image of an ashiq. Specialists' opinions will be taken into account when this issue is officially decided.

At the end of the discussions, a concert was held. There were a number of performances by well-known ashiqs of Azerbaijan who had attended the event - a rare gift from real masters to true connoisseurs. The concert began with the composition "Garayli", performed by the Gadabay ensemble of ashiqs, led by the prominent artist and presidential scholarship holder, Isfandiyar Rustamov. Then we heard ashiq voices from Tovuz, Ganca, Kalbacar, Goyca, Borcali, Qazax and Sirvan…

The highlight of the programme was a performance by the famous Ashiq Alasgar. The old master sang with a young voice, playing his old saz, which we think may be older than its owner. Ashiq is a man's profession but, among the 20 best singers, Ulduz Aliyeva, the only female ashiq in the country, stood out. She represented the Gadabay hearth of Ashiq and sang "Sonmaz", together with Galandar Zeynalov. We found out at the concert that an ashiq does not necessarily have to wear a tall hat, high boots and peg-top trousers. This was proven by the young ashiq Ramin Qarayev. He represented the Borcali hearth and performed "Misri", coming on stage in an ordinary suit. This did not spoil our impression of his brilliant performance. The concert held during the event was the best illustration of the words of the scientists who had spoken to the effect that ashiq does not bend the knee to time.