Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus
Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus
Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus
Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus
Afag Abbasova, the Honoured Artist of Azerbaijan, soloist of the Azerbaijani State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre, will sing the role of Nedda in a performance of Ruggero Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci on 5 November.
Interesting facts:
She has performed roles in 12 productions for four years of her work at the theatre.
Afag Abbasova’s parents are teachers. No one in her family thought that she would ever take up opera singing.
As a child, she dreamt of becoming an investigator and paid great attention to the subjects necessary to enter the faculty of law.
Having finished nine years of a secondary school, she became a student of the faculty of drawing at a pedagogical school. She also sang in the school choir. One day its performance was attended by the minister of education who said, ‘This girl should study music rather than drawing. The music college is the right place for her.’
She was enrolled on the third year of the college, not knowing the rudiments of music, and she learnt everything within just two years.
She continued her studies at Baku Music Academy. Having graduated from the academy, it took her quite a time to find a job.
Once she came to the Opera and Ballet Theatre to listen to the Azerbaijani prima donna Garina Kerimova who was flawless as Tosca. During the intermission, she dared to come to the director of the theatre, Akif Melikov, and asked for being auditioned. She had her auditions the next day. The singer performed the arias from Tosca, Sevil, Cio-Cio-San. She was not only hired at once, but also offered the lead role in La traviata.
She has been on tour in Russia, Belarus, France, Germany, the UK, Austria, Turkey, Greece, Italy, the USA, Georgia, Moldova, Kazakhstan, etc.
Afag Abbasova received the title of the Honoured Artist of Azerbaijan in Minsk. She participated in the Minsk International Christmas Opera Forum. Before entering the stage, she was given a call from Azerbaijan and congratulated on receiving the title.
Afag Abbasova is a winner of several international vocal competitions. In 2012, she was granted the Youth Prize founded by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Azerbaijan. Since 2013 she has received the presidential scholarship.
Her repertoire includes Violetta in Giuseppe Verdi’s La traviata; Mimì in La bohème, Giorgetta in Il tabarro by Giacomo Puccini; Leonora in Verdi’s Il trovatore; Nedda in Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo; Adina in L'elisir d'amore by Gaetano Donizetti; the title role in Sevil by Fikret Amirov.
After the article by Ulkar Aliyeva (Azerbaijani News)
