Shahin Novrasli | |
|---|---|
 "Emanation" release, New York 2017 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | February 10, 1977 Baku, Azerbaijan |
| Genres | Jazz, Jazz-Mugham, Classical |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument | Piano |
| Labels | Jazz Village, PIAS, Disk Union, Eight Islands Records |
| Website | shahinnovrasli |
Shahin Novrasli (born February 10, 1977) is an Azerbaijani jazz pianist, and composer. [1] [2]
Born in Baku, Azerbaijan, on 10 February 1977, Shahin is a descendant of celebrated 19th century Azerbaijani poet Mirza Alesker Novres. His father, professor Novras, and mother, economist Naila, instilled their sons with their own knowledgeable love for good music. At three years old, Shahin was already displaying an interest in music and rhythm. His first major public performance, aged 11, was in Azerbaijan State Philharmonic Hall for a symphony orchestra concert by composer Azer Rzayev. In Gulya Namazova's class at music college, Shahin was a very serious student of classical music and displayed great skill in performing a huge range of works by Mozart, Bach, Chopin, Beethoven, Rachmaninov and other composers. [3] This classical background is often to be heard in his jazz compositions [4] but his love for American music - its jazz, rhythm, harmony - prevails. Combining all the musical skills, from playing to composing, jazz opened the way for Shahin to express his inner world, his music and it was not long in becoming the main focus of his creativity. [5]
From 15 to 19 Shahin immersed himself in his favoured music, listening to the great pianists: Ahmad Jamal, Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans, Keith Jarrett, Chick Corea; all the while studying harmony and composition. Graduating from the Bulbul Music School, he moved on to the Azerbaijan State Music Academy. Here he also dedicated time to analysing the music of the legendary Azerbaijani jazz pianist Vagif Mustafazadeh, creator of a synthesis of jazz and traditional Azerbaijani Mugham music. Vagif's compositions still feature in Shahin's repertoire. [6]
From 1997 he began to play in America and Europe in different formats: solo, [7] trio, quartet.... [8] There have also been experiments; adding different instruments to the group, [9] including his own voice. Shahin has recorded three live albums: Live in Moscow, Live in Prague Castle and Jz'Mu, Live in Baku. There is also the experimental album Eternal Way, and Bayati, [10] recorded while living and touring in America and released on the French Bee Jazz label. His detailed study of mugham added another ingredient to his compositions and concerts, [11] furthering the mix of West and East.
A defining moment in Shahin's work and career was his meeting with Ahmad Jamal. [12] [13] [14] In 2014 in America, Shahin met Jamal's manager Laura Hess-Hay; she introduced him to Ahmad Jamal, who rated his music highly [15] and is to this day he representing Shahin to the world. [16]
"He is one of the great pianists what I ever heard of" - Ahmad Jamal - [12]
Jamal also co-produced his 2017 album "Emanation", [17] which received UK Vibe award as "Best Jazz Albums of 2017", [18] album was released on the French label Jazz Village, PIAS. [19] In 2019, September 13 on Jazz Village,(PIAS) alongside Jamal's "Ballades" Shahin released his album " From Baku to New York City", produced by Ahmad Jamal. [20] [21]
In 2007, Shahin married Natavan Novrasli, classical singer, an Honored Artist of Azerbaijan, soloist with the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater. [22] They have two sons, born in 2008 and 2015.
| Year recorded | Title | Label | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Jz'Mu | Shahin Novrasli | Trio with Ruslan Huseynov (bass), Iskender Aleskerov (drums) |
| 2001 | Live in Moscow | Shahin Novrasli | Trio with Nathan Peck (bass), Sasha Mashin (drums) |
| 2003 | Eternal Way | Buta | Quintet with Nathan Peck (bass), Sasha mashin (drums), Arslan Novrasli (tar), Nurlan Novrasli (kamancha) |
| 2012 | Live in Prague Castle | Shahin Novrasli | Quartet with Nathan Peck (bass), Sasha Mashin (drums), Chris Hemingwey (sax) |
| 2017 | Emanation | Jazz Village, PIAS | Quintet with James Cammack (bass). Andre Ceccarelli (drums), Irakli Koiava (percussion), Didier Lockwood (violin) |
| 2019 | From Baku to New York City | Jazz Village, PIAS | Trio with James Cammack (bass), Herlin Riley (drums) |
| 2022 | BAYATI | Eight Islands Records, Disk Union | Trio with Nathan Peck (bass), Ari Hoenig (drums) |
Ahmad Jamal was an American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader, and educator. For six decades, he was one of the most successful small-group leaders in jazz. He was a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Jazz Master and won a Lifetime Achievement Grammy for his contributions to music history.
Aziza Mustafa Zadeh is an Azerbaijani singer, pianist, and composer who plays a fusion of jazz and mugham with classical and avant-garde influences.
Fikret Mashadi Jamil oghlu Amirov was a prominent Soviet and Azerbaijani composer.
Mugham or Mughamat is one of the many classical compositions from Azerbaijan, contrasting with tasnif and ashik.
Tofig Alakbar oglu Guliyev was a Soviet and Azerbaijani composer, pianist, and conductor.
Vagif Mustafazadeh, also known as Vaqif Mustafa-Zadeh, was a Soviet-Azerbaijani jazz pianist and composer, acclaimed for fusing jazz and the traditional Azerbaijani folk music known as mugham. According to many world famous jazz musicians, Mustafazadeh is one of the pioneers and "the architect of jazz in Azerbaijan".
Isfar Rzayev-Sarabski is an Azerbaijani pianist and composer, winner of the Solo Piano Competition of the Montreux Jazz Festival in 2009, Honorary Artist of Azerbaijan (2010), and receiver of the Zirva State Prize (2010). He is the great-grandson of Huseyngulu Sarabski, celebrated Azerbaijani opera singer, actor and one of the founders of opera in the Islamic world.
The Azerbaijani jazz is a popular variety of jazz, widespread in Azerbaijan. It covers a broad range of styles and often features a blend with traditional Azeri music. Among modern famed Azeri jazz musicians are Aziza Mustafazadeh, who was influenced by Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett, Rain Sultanov, Isfar Sarabski, Shahin Novrasli.
Rafig Farzi oglu Babayev was an Azerbaijani jazz musician, composer, conductor, arranger, author of scores for films, and People's Artist of Azerbaijan (1993).
Rain Aladdin oglu Sultanov is an Azerbaijani jazz saxophonist and Honorary Artist of Azerbaijan.
Salman Huseyn oglu Gambarov is an Azerbaijani jazz pianist and composer.
Opera in Azerbaijan has a history dating back to the 19th century Russian Empire.
The Jazz mugham is a variant of a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing Azerbaijani jazz with mugham, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations, often using wind and vocal music and displaying a high level of instrumental technique.
Aghabala Aghasaid oghlu was an Azerbaijani singer of folk music and mugam.
Baku Jazz Center was founded in the year of 2002. The goal of creating it was to improve and keep up the jazz culture in Azerbaijan. Approximately, there are live jazz performances every evening. The center has jazz musicians and performers working in different jazz styles. Sometimes jazz concerts and movies are displayed on a large screen in the center.
Mugham trio or mugham triads is a classical ensemble of three Azerbaijani national musical instruments: tar, kamancheh, and qaval performers. It is a traditional musical group of Azerbaijani musicians who perform the mugham repertoire and represent the ensemble of khanandas and sazandas.
The festivals in Azerbaijan are held throughout the year in different regions of the country. The city of Baku is considered as the most important center of the festivals due to their scale and types. The festivals in each region, on the other hand, represent its own local characteristics mostly related to its food, fruit and so on.
Zhara Festival is a five-day music festival which takes place in Azerbaijan, near the coast of Caspian Sea every year. “Zhara” was founded in 2016 by Grigory Leps, Sergey Kozhevnikov, and Emin Aghalarov. Drawing 10,000 attendees to each year's festival, "Zhara" is one of the largest music festivals held within Commonwealth of Independent States countries. One of the main guests of this festival was Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the Russian Federation's president.
Aida Huseynova was a musicologist, pianist, and ethnomusicologist from Azerbaijan.
Golden Autumn-69 — a musical week held on October 23–29, 1969 in the Palace of Hand Games of Baku in pop, mugham and jazz genres. The festival was held by the All-Union Communist Youth Union of Lenin and the Culture Department of the Baku City Executive Committee.
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