Foreword of publication author

Azerbaijan achieved unseen success in the field of cultural construction. This obtainment is expressed by rapid upsurge and rampant development of Azerbaijani music art in the brightest way. At present time Azerbaijan is distinguished by the prospering day by day rich musical culture not only in the East, but all over the globe. .

Musical culture of Azerbaijan, making up one of the branches of panhuman culture, entered the world treasure-house of musical art as an invaluable collar of pearls. Show experience of classical and folk performers, highly artistic works of Azerbaijani composers sound worldwide today. .

Musical art is known to inspire and enrich everyday life and spiritual world of the people, waken feelings of artistic excitement and intense emotional experiences in their hearts and consciousness. .

Music science studies common problems of musical art, including true reflection of social realm by means of musical-artistic expressiveness, defining music canonical standards and theses, as well as analyzes music development process in society. Azerbaijan music knowledge comprehends several interrelated spheres of scientific activity. .

1) Theory of music includes a complex of studies about musical compositions in terms of their inherent inner logic and arrangement, as well as about separate elements of musical language and facilities of musical expressiveness. .

2) History of music reproduces the picture of musical art's progress. It includes: description of the course of music's historical evolution and periodization; characterization of prevailing musical-esthetic views, trends, styles, genres, etc.; .

3) Music ethnography is one of the titles of scientific discipline, dedicated to fixation, systemization, and investigation of folk music and, wider, studying of traditional-oral music cultures. It is known in various countries called: musical folkloristics, musical ethnology, comparative music knowledge; .

4) Knowledge of music instruments is a discipline, studying principles of construction of musical instruments, methods of sounds emission and peculiarities of the performing art, history and existence of the folk instruments; .

5) Musical acoustics is a science, studying objective physical regularities of music related to its performance and comprehension. It studies the pitch, volume, timbre and value of musical tones, musical systems, etc.; .

6) Musical psychology studies the problems of comprehension, understanding and awareness of music. .

7) Musical critics measuring the phenomena of musical art, becomes a part of any research on music, which analyzes and proposes its conclusions, thoughts about the nature of the contemporary musical compositions with coverage of problems, related to their artistic subject-matter, idea maturity. .

It is known, how great is our need in precise and shrewd words-terms, which in semasiological aspect convey their inner meaning really and exactly, properly expressing thoughts on the problems, directly connected with musical activity. .

In 1956 the Dictionary of Music Terms, compiled by me as a manuscript, was first published under the instruction of Committee on Terminology within the Presidium of Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan SSR. Previously, it was for improvement sent to competent organizations and institutions, including composers, musicologists and research assistances, who showed interest in the matter of music terms creation. .

In arrears of time this dictionary was widely discussed with the participation of the prominent music specialists of the republic at the research council of Azerbaijan State Conservatoire named after Uzeyir Hajibeyov, at the musicological chair of Architecture and Art Institute. Semasiological expression of the separate terms in the Azerbaijani language, later provoking the atmosphere of disputes and disagreements at the Committee's meeting on Terminology, was specified in partnership with music specialists in the course of debates. .

More precise term use becomes necessary for reduction of things to order in our musical life and practice. We have plenty of reasons for that: shortage of literature on history and theory of musical art in the Azerbaijani language, occasions of mixed use of terms in existing textbooks on music, in newspaper articles, on the radio broadcasting. .

Music Dictionary is one of the first initiatives, presented on this way. According to the current challenge, put by the author, the Dictionary should consist of the full collection of music terms, applying in the national musical practice. It is designed to comprise terminological and classified lexical material, applied in musical-social life of our nation, which was checked, corrected, qualified, and narrowed down to a single form. .

Music Dictionary consists of three parts. .

Azerbaijani nation is known to have a rich musical culture, originated in high antiquity. Having passed through thickness of age-old evolution, it is along with contemporary many-voice music, actively enabled in everyday life of the society. .

Small musical passages in the form of simple and extremely primitive songs were adopted during the workflow of aboriginal public. Later there appeared new musical genres and forms, reflecting various aspects of life and customs of the ordinary people, particular circumstances of social mode of various walks of life at the constant change of historical conditions. .

Music is a sample of the high art, begotten at the most active participation of the nation. .

Ashig creativity and mugham are genetically connected to each other, like two monolithically eminent trunks, nourished by the same roots of the huge luxurious tree. The rich musical heritage of the people is to be learnt and investigated just in synthesis and organic interconnection of these two majestic Beginnings. .

1. History. The principle problem of this section consists in the presentation of musical art as one of the inseparable fields of universal historical culture of Azerbaijan. One of the most important problems for this reason is scientific development and coverage of the main periods of evolution of ashig creativity, folk music, genetically closely associated with mugham, including such genres as tesnifs, rengs, dirings, songs, etc. .

Here we shall have to use ancient music books, including those on history and theory of music, published in the Near East. The author, taking into consideration this important moment, counted possible to comprise in the Dictionary contents the terms, happened in the ancient treatises, but rarely used in today's musical practice. .

2. Theory The question of stepped musical development is known to be directly connected with formation of our music. So the next important moment in studying of musical heritage is a specific investigation of its theory. At that, the most important thing is the true interpretation of mugham as one of the intonation sources of the Azerbaijani musical language, which the whole Azerbaijani folk music is based on. .

That is why the major part of theoretical researches concerns the sphere of studying of structural particularities of mughams, their functional correlations and performance methods. .

So it is not occasional that Uzeyir Hajibeyov, the founder of Azerbaijani professional music, the great scientist and musicologist, dedicated his book "Fundamentals of Azerbaijani national music", as a product of many-year investigations, to explanation of mugham's nature.

Pages: 1 2 3