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born in Baku (Azerbaijan) in 1943, he graduated with
distinction from the Azerbaijan State Conservatory (now the Baku Music
Academy), where he studied composition at both undergraduate and
postgraduate level under the guidance of his father, Kara Karaev. He
lectured in composition, instrumentation and polyphony in Baku from 1966 to
2000, since 1994 as professor of composition. Since 1991 he has lived in
Baku and Moscow, where he is a professor at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory. In
2003 he also started teaching at the State Conservatory in Kazan.
In 1994–96 he served as vice-chairman of the Association of
Contemporary Music in Moscow. In 1995 he was a co-founder and president of
the ‘Yeni Musiqi’ Society for Contemporary Music in Baku. He was
also artistic director of the BaKaRa Ensemble in Baku. In 1991 he worked as
composer-in-residence in the Folkwang-Hochschule in Essen.
The music of Karaev has attracted many prominent conductors including
Gennady Rozhdestviensky, Valery Sinaysky, Alexander Lazarev, Maxim
Shostakovich, R. Abdullayev, J. Metzmacher, R. de Leeuw, E. Spanjaard, and
D. Sachs. It has been performed throughout the former Soviet Union, in many
European countries, the United States, South America and Japan. His
commissions have included those from the Bolshoi Theatre Ensemble, the
Studio for New Music in Moscow, Ensemble Modern, Nieuw Ensemble, the Schönberg
Ensemble, Quatuor Danel and the New York group Continuum.
Selected works (since 1984): waiting for…, stage
music (1983–86), in memoriam, suite for string quartet in memory of
Alban Berg (1984), …a crumb of music for george crumb for ensemble
(1985), klänge einer traurigen nacht for ensemble (1989), …alla
‘nostalgia’, chamber concerto in memory of Andrey Tarkovsky
(1989), the (moz)art of elite, postludio for orchestra (1990), postludio I
for orchestra (1990), aus…, three fragments for clarinet/bassethorn/bass
clarinet and vibraphone/marimba (1990), postludio ii for orchestra (1990),
der stand der dinge for ensemble (1991), musik für die stadt forst for two
pianos (1991), postludio iii
for orchestra (1991), ist es genug?... for ensemble (1993), postludia
iv–vii for various instrumental groups (1993–98), musik für
jacqueline und peter for vibraphone/marimba and piano (1997), …monsieur
bee line – eccentric for piano (1997), xutba, mugam ve sura for
ensemble (1997), 5 stücke mit kanons v. arnold schönberg for ensemble
(1998), (k)ein kleines schauspiel for two guitars and bass flute (1998), schönheit
– utopie? for solo guitar (1999), are you alive yet, herr minister?!
for solo violin (2000), ton und verklärung for orchestra and tape (2000),
verklärung und tod for orchestra and tape (2001), malheur me bat for voice
and guitar (2001), cancion di cuna for soprano and ensemble, with words by
F. Garcia Lorca (2001), are you alive yet, herr minister?! for ensemble
(2001), malheur me bat for two a cappella choirs (2001), postludio viii
(2001), babylon tower for ensemble (2002), stranger, performance to a text
by Ivan Akhmetyev (2002), stafette (relay race) for percussion ensemble
(2003), malheur me bat for two marimbas and two vibraphones (2003), drei
bagatellen for piano solo and five instruments (2003), …monsieur bee
line – eccentric or Are you alive yet, herr minister? for flute and
piano (2003), postludio ix (2003), postludio x (2004).
Postludia (version of 2004)
At the basis of the composition there is anagram of a woman’s name.
A quotation from Edvard Grieg’s piano piece about a little girl
introduces a faint note of sad tenderness and melancholy to the colour of
the work.
The composition has more than 10 performance versions. The
‘on-stage’ music could be performed on the piano, piano and
clarinet, piano and double bass, or piano, clarinet and double bass; the
‘off-stage’music on the piano, vibraphone, guitar, string
quartet or trio, duo or by practically any combination of 3 to 4 instruments.
Thus, the version for Ensemble Reconciel Wien is scored for flute, trombone,
violin and cello.
Faraj Karaev
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