Wednesday, 28 January 2009

Killer Opening Songs (Aziza Mustafa Zadeh - Always)

If Killer Opening Songs could give Aziza Mustafa Zadeh another middle name (assuming Mustafah is her middle name) it would be 'passion'. If she could have two surnames like us, denizens of the Spanish-speaking Americas, they would be 'intensity' and 'vim'. Because that's what K.O.S. feels everytime it plays one of Aziza's records.

K.O.S. first became acquainted with this Azerbaijani musician's oeuvre when it borrowed a CD from its local library entitled 'Women in Jazz'. Her track 'Marriage Suite' stood out immediately. A musical love affair between K.O.S. and the composer ensued from that day onwards which remains until now as fresh as ever.

From an early age Aziza was exposed to music via her two parents. Her father, Vagif, was a pianist and composer and her mother, Eliza, was a classically-trained singer from Georgia. Although Aziza was a Bach and Chopin enthusiast when she was little, she showed an inclination towards improvisation as she grew up. At 17 she won the prestigious Thelonius Monk competition in Washington DC playing the famous musician's compositions but in her own style. Around that time she moved to Germany with her mother and that's when she started to develop her distinctive musical direction.

This week Killer Opening Songs brings you the first track from her 1993 album 'Always'. This record earned Azia many accolades, amongst them: the ECHO Award and the German Phono Association's Jazz Award. This was followed in 1995 by 'Dance of Fire', another regular listen en la casa de Killer Openings Songs. A mild uproar was caused by Aziza's decision to appear with little more than long tendrils of hair on the cover of her follow-up album 'Seventh Truth'. Far from apologising and keeping a low profile, Mustafa Zadeh went on the offensive and in response to the public outcry (mainly in her native Azerbaijan) she retorted à propos de the risqué artwork: 'It means people are starting to wake up a bit. I'm so glad. Actually, I find it amusing! Why all the fuss? '

Returning to this week's offering now, the reason why K.O.S. finds this track so alluring is that on this clip the Azerbi composer has stripped the music down to just the piano. And believe K.O.S. when it tells you that although the album version is brilliant this live performance is a hundred times better. Her technique reminds K.O.S. of a river in that the notes meander around and curl their lips at our attentive ears. Just like a river, this song carries long-forgotten tales from the countries whence it originates: Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. And above all, this tune, like a copious flow, makes us feel the same sense of magnitude and awe that overpowers us when we look at a river; the pleasure of boundless freedom. Enjoy.


For earlier editions of Killer Opening Songs click on any of the links below

Killer Opening Songs (D'Angelo's Brown Sugar)

Killer Opening Songs (Sinéad O'Connor's 'Fire on Babylon')

Killer Opening Songs (Queen's Mustapha)

Killer Opening Songs (Caetano Veloso-Haiti)

Killer Opening Songs (David Bowie - Unwashed and S...

Killer Opening Songs (Massive Attack - Safe From H...

Killer Opening Songs (Bob Brozman)

Killer Opening Songs (Vanessa da Mata - Vermelho)

Killer Opening Songs (The Beatles-Help!)

Killer Opening Songs (Souad Massi-Raoui)

Killer Opening Songs (Habib Koité - Batoumambé)

Killer Opening Songs (Mary Black - No Frontiers)

Killer Opening Songs (Chico Buarque & Milton Nasci...

Killer Opening Songs (David Gilmour - Shine On You...

Killer Opening Songs (Ernesto Lecuona - 'La Compar...

Killer Opening Songs (Chopin 'Fantaisie-Impromptu ...

Killer Opening Songs (He Loves Me by Jill Scott)

Killer Opening Songs (Tracy Chapman - Talkin' 'bout A Revolution)

Killer Opening Songs (Patti Smith - Gloria)

Killer Opening Song (Silvio Rodriguez - Canción del Elegido

Killer Opening Songs (Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit)

Killer Opening Songs (Fela Kuti and Jethro Tull - Jam Session)

Killer Opening Songs (Sting - A Thousand Years)

Killer Opening Songs (Rodrigo y Gabriela - Tamacun)

Killer Opening Songs (Susheela Raman - Ganapati)

Copyright 2009

Posted by at
Labels: , , , , , , ,

26 comments:

  1. Catherine29 January 2009 at 05:05

    This is a totally new artist for me...and I really liked this track...what is her singing voice like?? presumably there are vocals on other tracks?? thanks for the introduction...and have you dug out those Mexican shirts from the bottom of your wardrobe yet??

    ReplyDelete
  2. A Cuban In London29 January 2009 at 09:22

    Hahaha (Mexican shirts)! Too long ago. Best to let those dogs lie.

    She sings indeed and her voice is as good as her piano-playing. I recommend the three CDs I mentioned in my review. 'Seventh Truth' is just piano an voice.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Polly29 January 2009 at 11:42

    This track is really great, thanks for introducing Aziza to me, I have not heard of her before. I have rather neglected music (or rather discovering new music) lately and something needs to be done about that!

    And I wish my piano playing was as good as hers...

    Thanks for that!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Tess Kincaid29 January 2009 at 12:25

    Where has she been hiding? I LOVE her! I play the piano like this in my dreams, you know. I'm putting her albums on my wishlist.

    And I think you are right on the Guardian journalist! Don't you think I deserve a bit of his/her paycheck? ;^)

    ReplyDelete
  5. A Cuban In London29 January 2009 at 12:26

    Many thanks, Polly, for you kind comment.

    ReplyDelete
  6. A Cuban In London29 January 2009 at 12:27

    Oh, yes, willow, if I was you I would definitely get in touch with the paper :-).

    Many thanks.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  7. GeNeRaCiOn AsErE30 January 2009 at 04:24

    Ah, disfrutando del excelente performance y aprendiendo siempre con artículos.
    Un abrazo, la pandilla. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  8. A Cuban In London30 January 2009 at 09:21

    Muchas gracias a ti, aseresOn.

    Saludos desde Londres.

    ReplyDelete
  9. My Inspired Reality30 January 2009 at 12:52

    Thank you for introducing this wonderful artist. Many thanks for visiting my blog too:)

    As for the slide show, just got to www.slide.com and you will find instructions on how to create your own slide show:):)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Lyn30 January 2009 at 12:52

    More than gorgeous! A lost/found Beethoven Sonata, perhaps? What a sound.
    Thanks many times over.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Susana30 January 2009 at 13:17

    Hola Cubanito! Gracias por este post, no conocía a Aziza! Oye, y gracias por tu amable mensaje. Me alegro que te guste Elis Regina. Aguas de Março es una de esas canciones que no nos cansamos nunca de escuchar. Es preciosa, verdad?

    ReplyDelete
  12. A Cuban In London30 January 2009 at 14:55

    Thank you very much everyone for your kind comments.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Cecile/DreamCreateRepeat30 January 2009 at 15:24

    Boy, her classical training shines through on this piece. Just beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  14. A Cuban In London30 January 2009 at 15:31

    Many thanks, cecile for your lovely comment.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Aguaya30 January 2009 at 16:14

    Cuban, tú siempre sacando de abajo de la manga buena música...
    Un abrazo musical,
    AB

    ReplyDelete
  16. A Cuban In London30 January 2009 at 16:18

    Muchas gracias, agu. Mira tu que esta cantante vive en tu tierra adoptiva :-).

    Saludos desde Londres.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Aguaya30 January 2009 at 16:21

    Yo no sabía de ella... tú sabes: aquí le tiran más en los medios a lo de American Idol en versión alemana :-(
    Otro abrazo!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Raph G. Neckmann30 January 2009 at 16:58

    What an amazing pianist! I would love to hear her singing also. Thanks for the introduction to her music.

    Thank you also for your visit and kind comment on my blog.

    ReplyDelete
  19. A Cuban In London30 January 2009 at 20:38

    You're very welcome, Raph.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Unknown31 January 2009 at 13:44

    She's just great! I really enjoyed the video. Thank you for letting me know her!

    ReplyDelete
  21. A Cuban In London31 January 2009 at 16:45

    Thanks, JM, for your kind comment.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Unknown2 February 2009 at 05:12

    yes, like a river indeed. i'm always amazed with what people can do with those piano keys.

    ReplyDelete
  23. A Cuban In London2 February 2009 at 18:16

    Thanks, fly, for your kind comment.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Eufrates del Valle3 February 2009 at 13:12

    Wow! She's spectacular! Terrific! Thanks for introducing her to me.

    I saw some cosmetic changes in your page, good ones. Greeting from New York!

    ReplyDelete
  25. A Cuban In London3 February 2009 at 15:25

    Thanks, don eu, yes, I had to revamp the blog a little.

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Unknown24 August 2009 at 23:00

    Aziza will be performing in London 20 sep 2009 cadogan hall

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...