Franghiz Ali-Zadeh

Franghiz Ali Aga Kïzï Ali-Zadeh (born 28 May 1947) is an Azerbaijani composer and pianist of contemporary classical music, chairperson of the Composers Union of Azerbaijan. Her music synthesizes Western classical modernist techniques with the Azerbaijani mugham art music. Among her better known works are the chamber piece Gabil Sajahy (1979) for cello and piano, as well as the ballet Empty Cradle (1993); she has also written instrumental, vocal and film music. She is best known for her works that combine the musical tradition of the Azerbaijani mugham and 20th century Western compositional techniques, especially those of Arnold Schoenberg and Gara Garayev. This synthesis-style began in the 1970s, prior to which she primarily engaged with soly Western European modernism. Among her compositions is the opera Karabakhname (2007). Ali-Zadeh's works were long published by Hans Sikorski, now a part of Boosey & Hawkes.