Caravan of Mugham Melodies

The opening piece on this disc, ‘Mugham Beste – Nigar’, is a song about mugham itself, saying that these Arabic modes are the music of the people and that while ‘life is transient, art is enduring’. It is gorgeously sung by Gülyanaq Mammadova, alternating her phrases with the plaintive, reedy sound of the balaban, or duduk, so popular in Transcaucasia. It’s remarkable how Azeri mugham has suddenly become more prominent in recent years. It’s partly because independent Azerbaijan is supporting their national music, but it’s also thanks to the success of Alim Qasimov and rising star Gochag Askarov at international festivals.

The second piece, ‘Mugham Qatar & Tesnif’, takes its text from the famous love story of Leila and Majnun and is a bit of a mugham showpiece, performed by Gulyanaq Mammadova as if she were on fire. This kind of ornamented style might be overwhelming for some, but it’s adored by mugham aficionados. Mugham is an art of great sophistication, halfway between folk and classical – demanding long hours of practice and highly developed skills. This disc of shorter mugham highlights is a good way into the genre, featuring three top vocalists: Gulyanaq Mammadova again, the silky-voiced Kamila Nabiyeva and Rovshan Mammadov (no relation to Gulyanaq), who performs a heroic ‘Mugham Shushtar’, also with lyrics from the Leila and Majnun story.

In mugham the instrumentalists are also hugely important and often provide a welcome relief from those over-decorated vocals. There are three magnificent players taking solos on the instrumental tracks on this record: Ramiz Guliyev on tar (lute), Munis Sharifov on kamancha (spike fiddle) and Mirjavad Jafarov on oud (lute). With its variety of repertoire and performers, this album is a great introduction to the art of Azeri mugham.