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Georgetown University

Juiliard School of Music

Silk Road Festival

Imamyar Hasanov was born in Baku, Azerbaijan in 1975. He started playing the kamancha at the age of 7 and eventually became the youngest soloist in Azerbaijan's National Orchestra and National Dance Ensemble. He has a Master's Degree in Art and Conducting National Music from the Azerbaijan State Conservatory. During his conservatory studies, he worked with Professor Agha Jabrayil Abasaliyev, who instructed him in the art of mugham. Imamyar is a dynamic virtuoso who performs Azerbaijani and Middle Eastern traditional improvisations as well as European classics for the first time as a kamancha soloist. He organized the first tar, kamancha, and piano instrumental trio in Azerbaijan named ''Gala" which took first place in several national and classical music competitions in Azerbaijan in 1996. In addition, he has participated in folk music festivals in Canada, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Turkey and the USA. In 2005 he performed at the concert "Undiscovered Treasure: Kamancha of Azerbaijan" held at Georgetown University as well as the Silk Road Festival in Indiana and the World Music Festival in San Francisco.