Azerbaijan State Philharmonic named after Muslim Magomayev was built in Baku in 1910-12 under the project “Summer House for Public Meetings”. The Philharmonic Hall in Monte Carlo was chosen as the basis of the project, which by its beauty occupies one of the first places in Europe. An abundance of terraces, verandas, where light and shadow are the means of plastic expression of bulk masses, the building resembles an Italian villa of the Renaissance and fits perfectly not only in the composition of the governor’s garden but also in the entire surrounding architectural landscape.
At present, the Baku Philharmonic is a huge institution, which includes the following groups: Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra named after Uzeyir Hajibeyli, Azerbaijan State Choir, Azerbaijan State Chamber Orchestra named after Gara Garayev, Azerbaijan State Dance Ensemble, Honored Collective named after Fikret Amirov Azerbaijan State Ensemble song and dance, as well as the Azerbaijan State Folk Instruments Orchestra, acting with this ensemble, the Azerbaijan State Piano Trio, the Azerbaijan State String Quartet.
In addition to concerts by groups operating under the Azerbaijan State Philharmonic, performances by famous foreign soloists, musicians, and artists are also held here. The performances of our leading musicians and performing groups in a wide geographic space is also an important contribution to the promotion and development of Azerbaijani musical culture. The Philharmonic has been and is an outpost of the musical culture of many areas, where several generations of Baku people raised their musical taste, ranging from folk mugam to world classical music.
At one time, outstanding musicians of the world performed on the stage of the Baku Philharmonic – A. Goldenweiser, L. Oborin, Bulbul, R. Beibutov, M. Magomaev, Sh. Mamedova, E. Gilels, D. Oistrakh, S. Richter, father and son Rostropovichi and many, many others