LOVING LIFE

Many people know Vafa Araz-gyzy Mammadova-Gavrilova—Vice-President of the Baku Singer-Songwriter Club since 2017, current coordinator of cultural programmes for children and adults, director of Stolitsa.rt, laureate of national and international competitions, composer of many melodies, and performing artist.

They know her as an approachable, outgoing, principled, and reliable friend, comrade, colleague, and partner across various initiatives in culture, art, and entertainment. Vafa hanim is capable of inspiring both colleagues and audiences with her creative energy and positive outlook on life. She is a wonderful companion in any project or event. Unsurprisingly, her presence is felt by others as a source of inspiration and good cheer.

"What were you like at three or four years old? How did your family remember you?"

"There are no secrets here. My parents told me some things, but I remember a fair amount myself. I was a restless child, raised in an atmosphere of absolute and harmonious love shared between my parents and showered upon me."

"Do you still keep vivid emotional episodes from your early childhood?"

"There isn't just one such episode, so they all blend into one large artistic canvas. These were trips with my mother and father to gather wild thyme. I close my eyes and see a beautiful landscape with the vibrant colours of nature. A moment later, I feel the fragrance of the herb floating in the air."

"You have a well-developed imagination and a sharp mind that helps you quickly learn and master new skills in your profession as an organiser and producer of cultural and mass events. Have you ever regretted replacing your financially stable secure life—I mean as a lawyer—with the one of an artist?"

"Why are you asking this question?"

"Because the world of an artist is ambiguous by its very nature."

"Then let us show creative initiative, and everything will change!"

"I like your optimism!"

"Me too…"

"All of your staged evenings integrate various forms of art: singing, dance, dramatic recitation, and theatrical performance. Which of these is closest and most compelling to you as a performer?"

"If you'd asked me back in 2008, I would have answered without hesitation that it was singing. But today I say: all of them!"

"So all the 'revolutionary turns' you made regarding yourself and your work in the social sphere began with the guitar and the Singer-Songwriter Club?"

"Much earlier, actually. I was not even 18 when I first read Françoise Sagan’s works: A Little Sun in Cold Water, Bonjour Tristesse, Do You Like Brahms?, The Guardian Angel… I was so struck by the prose written by the French author in the last century, yet so understandable to me and my peers in the 21st century, that… Analysing the past today, I can say that Françoise Quoirez (Sagan being her pen name) played no small role in my creative and professional destiny. She opened up the world to me, making me realise that one must not feel fear of life. Because, as the heroine of the novel A Little Sun in Cold Water says: 'Life is like waves in the sea. One carries you up, another pulls you down…'"

"I must reread it; I don’t remember that line. Are you saying that Sagan’s work had a decisive influence on your decision to radically change your life?"

"I'd say not her work as a whole, but her Word, which was heard by me. The Word awakened my imagination and the desire to live. Here and now. Not sometime later in an unclear future, but precisely here and precisely now!"

"And yet, as a graduate of Baku State University, a certified lawyer with years of experience and practice, you suddenly decided to reshape your life. Since 2017, you have been Vice-President of the Singer-Songwriter Club in Baku, and since 2021, director of Stolitsa.rt, where your projects were staged: A Little Sun in Cold Water, Amadeus, In the Cherry Orchard, The Pushkin Ball, My Friend Samad Vurghun, the Rezo Gabriadze tribute evening Do You Know, Mama, Where I’ve Been?, and others. In addition, annual concert programmes for Victory Day. Have you never regretted radically changing your social status?"

"No, not even once. Because I am doing what I love, fulfilling an enlightening role. I believe this is not even a job or work, but a mission. After all, enlightenments have always been needed by the world: in the times of Ancient Egypt, and in the 21st century."

"I completely agree with you! If it’s not a secret, tell me, what are you working on right now?"

"Today, I began working on a new project. But it feels almost unethical to talk about it just yet…"