#imamyar #imamyarhasanov #mahsa_amini #kamancha #kamancheh #worldmusic
Imamyar & Dr. Khosrowshahi, Prof. of Political Science. Azerbaijani Lecture/Concert at Tyler Junior College (12/5/2022)
~ Essays and comments by the students
A couple of days ago, I had a wonderful chance to attend an Azerbaijani music concert and lecture at TJC. It was an extra credit assignment for my Texas Government class. As for me, I think it should be completely the opposite, and this lecture should be mandatory for both in-person and online classes. The reason is that this concert is one of the most interesting and fascinating things I have seen on our Tyler Junior College campus. Every lucky student had a chance to enrich their knowledge with some interesting facts about Azerbaijani music and Azerbaijan itself. The most important thing, the organization of the event was really well done. First, Professor Khosrowshahi started with an explanation of what music is, especially Azerbaijani. “Without Azerbaijani music, life would be a mistake.” He also added that music is everything - life, language, math, love, communication, etc. Professor Khosrowshahi also gave the audience a brief introduction to Azerbaijani music. Professor K. introduced some of the musical instruments that are a good expression of what true Azerbaijani music is. What is more, one thing that I have memorized the most, is that Azerbaijani music is one of the 27 pieces of music, recognized by UNESCO, and sent by Voyager II to space. These musical pieces represented the Earth’s human heritage. After a short introduction, the most interesting part comes in - the live music performance by Imamyar Hasanov. He is a musician and was born in Azerbaijani, but now lives in San Francisco. He performed around 5 to 6 different melodies. Mr. Hasanov presented a program of instrumental solo improvisations based on traditional Azerbaijani Mugham, played on Kamanche - skin face spike fiddle. Some of the songs were also Persian. The second he started performing, I could not take my eyes and ears off him. The way he plays the instrument, his body language, and his emotions almost made me tear up. He was performing for more than an hour, with small pauses obviously. I was fascinated by the beauty of his performance. It was truly incredible. It has been a long time since I have heard something that beautiful. What is more, behind the scene, there were a few different card boards with a lot of interesting information about Azerbaijan and Iran (because the concert had also slightly touched Iran and its history). The story of a killed woman who was not wearing the hijab in Iran was told at the beginning of the concert. From those boards, I learned what each color of the Azerbaijani flag represents. The blue stripe on the flag represents the country’s Turkic heritage. It also represents the large multicultural society that exists in Azerbaijan. The red stripe on the flag of Azerbaijan symbolizes progress. This color also represents the independence of Azerbaijan. The green on the flag represents Islam since the country of Azerbaijan is nearly 97% Muslim. As I said earlier, I wish this extra credit was not an extra credit, but an important assignment. I have learned so many things from it. I am so happy that I had a chance to listen to the live performance by Mr. Imamyar Hasanov. I had even come to him after the concert and told him that his performance was unbelievable. What is more, it turned out that we both speak the same language, since both of our countries were once under the Soviet Union.
-- Yeva
With professor Khosrowshahi’s informative displays and his insight into the rich culture of Azerbaijan, I felt a better appreciation for the opportunity to hear Imamyar Hasanov play exclusively for us at our college. As Mr. Hasanov began to play the kamancha, I realized that at times throughout my life I have actually heard that sound, never being able to identify just what made it. Watching the kamancha be played was just as professor Khosrowshahi had described: in Imamyar’s hands, he spoke to the kamancha, danced with it, let it speak, and brought forth an impossible array of emotions. He wove stories of sadness, happiness, and love. I caught myself going through meditative moments and then suddenly being thrust up into blistering excitement and eventually lulled into deep reflective sounds. My entire experience from the displays, lecture, and concert were something I will always carry with me. I sincerely feel so fortunate knowing I did not miss the opportunity to learn about Azerbaijani music and hear the kamancha being played.
-- Matthew
3 окт 2024
