When somebody talks about traditional musical tastes in Baku and Absheron first of all he talks about Mugam. Baku musical Mejlisses (Salons) always had peculiar features. Mugam can be performed by an orchestra of national instruments while a classical Mugam-perfoming trio consists from a tar player (tarzan), a singer (khananda) and a kamancha player.

In the following brief sketch by Arif Asadullayev, a kemancha player and chief teacher of Baku Musical Academy, you can find a professional view to how the Garabagh rooted Mugam music came to its heyday in Baku and Absheron.

Kamancha. Click picture to hear the instrument

Mashadi Malik Mansurov (1838-1909) is considered to be a founder of one of the Baku musical Mejlisses of XIX century. He was a person of broad world outlook, and was a predecessor of the skillful performer dynasty. Now his great-grandsons (sons of his grandson Mashadi Suleyman oglu Bahram Mansurov) Eldar (a composer) and Elkhan (a tar player) are worthy followers of Mansurovs' efforts in preservation of this singing genre with oral tradition.

It must be mentioned that musical Mejlisses regularly arranged by different representatives of the Bakihanovs family also have rendered large influence on development of the Azerbaijan national music and Mugam traditions. The Russian traveler - professor I.Berezin in his book "Travel to Dagistan and Trans-Caucasus" writes: "Recently I have heard many Muslim actors performing in Teheran, Cairo, Istanbul, but those singings, which I've heard at Aliyar-beck's place on Absheron, I liked the most. Absheron's (settlement Buzovna, 1844) singer sang many cheerful and sad songs...". Musicians from all areas of Azerbaijan traditionally apply for assessment and blessing to the Baku ustads (specialists) of Mugam performing. Being admitted in Baku means obtaining access to a long creative life.

City of Baku always played a role of a reliable granite bridge serving for interrelation between the states of Europe and Asia. Absheron peninsula in general plays an irreplaceable role in development and distribution of the Azerbaijan music genres based on the oral tradition.
Capital of Azerbaijan - Baku, was a large industrial center, located on the Great Silk Road. In XIX century in connection with detection of oil on Absheron the city infrastructure started to be developed more and more; many creative people from all ends of Azerbaijan begun to flow down to Baku.
Namely for this reason the Baku Mugam Mejlisses have appeared and grew while earlier two other Azerbaijanian towns - Shusha and Shamakhi - were regulating development of the mugam singing art.

Another oral singing genre of the Azerbaijani musical culture is Meykhana (from translator: Meykhana is a traditional oriental version of the modern rap-music). Going deep back into the Dervish art, Meykhana has found a wide development in the end of XIX - beginning of XX centuries. Meykhanas by Aliaga Vahid - famous poet of the XX century, and his followers can be heard till nowadays. The adherence to Meyhana especially is inherent among the music fans of Baku and Absheron.

Gaval, also named Daf - an instrument used by a Mugham singer (Khananda)

Today we can name many representatives of Baku and Absheron region among those who has glorified the Independent Azerbaijan's culture and arts. They are: Gara Garaev, Tofig Guliyev, Jahangir Jahangirov, Arif Malikov, Hayyam Mirzazadeh, Tofig Bakikhanov, Azar Rzayev - composers; Sattar Bahluzadeh, Vajiha Samadova, Tahir Salahov, Farhad Khalilov - artists, Nariman Aliyev, who had paid especially irreplaceable contribution to formation of the Mugam singing art; Ahsan Dadashev, Mammadaga Muradov, Firuz Aliyev, Aga Salim Abdullayev, Mohlat Muslimov - tar players, Shafiga Eivazova, Fakhraddin Dadashev - kemancha players; doctors of the art: Zemfira Safarova, Ramiz Zohrabov, Elhan Bavaev, Rafiga Imrani, who have contributed to founding of the scientific bases of the national tunes and the history of the national music; and many others.