The Formation of Traditions in Applying the Formal and Genre Features of Classical European Music to National Music through Uzeyir Hajibeyli’s Opera Leyli and Majnun

Abstract

Uzeyir Hajibeyli’s creative legacy remains relevant across generations and constitutes one of the richest foundations of Azerbaijani national culture. His innovative contribution lies in redirecting a musical culture that had developed for centuries through oral tradition toward new professional and democratic forms. This article examines how Hajibeyli’s first opera, Leyli and Majnun, established traditions for integrating the formal and genre features of classical European music into Azerbaijani national music. Using historical, comparative, analytical, and descriptive methods, the study considers the opera’s overture, solo, ensemble and choral numbers, orchestral episodes, dramaturgical development, modal system, and use of polyphonic techniques. The analysis shows that the synthesis of mugham with classical opera principles created a new national direction in the genre. The overture introduced elements associated with sonata-allegro form; the choral writing supported the professional development of vocal and choral performance; and the symphonic episodes contributed to the emergence of symphonic thinking in Azerbaijani music. The article concludes that Leyli and Majnun not only defined Hajibeyli’s individual creative path but also laid a foundation for the Azerbaijani school of composition and for the broader integration of national musical culture into world music.