Rauf Israfil oglu Atakishiyev was a Soviet

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

 Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

i singer

Singing

Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...

, pianist

Pianist

A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...

, singer-soloist

Solo (music)

In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...

, People's Artist

People's Artist

People's Artist is a honorary title in the Soviet Union, Union republics, in some other Eastern bloc states , as well as in a number of post-Soviet states, modeled after the title of the People's Artist of the USSR....

 of the Azerbaijan SSR (1967), professor (1972).

Biography

Rauf Atakishiyev was born on July 15, 1925, in Goychay city

Goychay (city)

Goychay is a city and municipality in and the capital of the Goychay Rayon of Azerbaijan...

 of the Azerbaijan SSR. In 1943 he entered Azerbaijan State Conservatoire

Baku Academy of Music

The Hajibeyov Baku Academy of Music is a music school in Baku, Azerbaijan. It was established in 1920 in Baku and was previously known as the Hajibeyov Azerbaijan State Conservatoire.-History:...

. From 1946, he studied at Moscow State Conservatoire

Moscow Conservatory

The Moscow Conservatory is a higher musical education institution in Moscow, and the second oldest conservatory in Russia after St. Petersburg Conservatory. Along with the St...

 at fortepiano

Fortepiano

Fortepiano designates the early version of the piano, from its invention by the Italian instrument maker Bartolomeo Cristofori around 1700 up to the early 19th century. It was the instrument for which Haydn, Mozart, and the early Beethoven wrote their piano music...

 class of K. Igumnov

Konstantin Igumnov

Konstantin Nicolayevich Igumnov was a Russian virtuoso pianist and the teacher of many famous Russian pianists.Igumnov studied under Nikolai Zverev, and at Moscow Conservatory under Alexander Siloti and Pavel Pabst. He took theory and composition courses from Sergei Taneyev, Anton Arensky and...

 and at vocal

Human voice

The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...

 class of A.Nezhdanova

Antonina Nezhdanova

Antonina Vasilievna Nezhdanova was a Russian lyric-coloratura soprano. An outstanding opera singer, she represented the Russian vocal school at its best....

. In 1952, after graduation from graduate school, he returned to Baku

Baku

Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...

 and began to perform as pianist and singer-soloist at Opera and Ballet Theatre. From 1953, he began to teach at Azerbaijan State Conservatoire. From 1969, he was in charge of special fortepiano cathedra. In 1967, Atakishiyev acquired People’s Artist of the Azerbaijan SSR status. In 1972, he was given a professor’s degree of Azerbaijan State Conservatoire. Atakishiyev was awarded the Jubilee Medal of Lenin

Vladimir Lenin

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and communist politician who led the October Revolution of 1917. As leader of the Bolsheviks, he headed the Soviet state during its initial years , as it fought to establish control of Russia in the Russian Civil War and worked to create a...

, the Order of Friendship of Peoples

Order of Friendship of Peoples

The Order of Friendship of Peoples was an order of the Soviet Union, and was awarded to persons , organizations, enterprises, military units, as well as administrative subdivisions of the USSR for accomplishments in strengthening of inter-ethnic and international friendship and cooperation, for...

, honorary diplomas of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR and the Moldavian SSR. Atakishiyev died on February 3, 1994.