Biography
Rovshan Mamedkuliev (Classical Guitar)
Rovshan Mamedkuliev has won more than 25 awards in national and international guitar competitions:
Rovshan Mamedkuliev has performed throughout the world. His solo career has taken him to numerous places and cities such as Moscow, Los-Angeles, Toronto, Tokyo, Beijing, Brasilia, Paris, Rome, Madrid, Berlin, Helsinki, Zagreb, Belgrade, Istanbul, Vilnius, Sarajevo, Chisinau, Baku, Minsk, Seoul, Bangkok and others.
In 2012, he gave a solo concert in New York's Carnegie Hall and concertized performing in numerous cities throughout Germany and Spain. In the 2013-2014 concert season after winning GFA's International Concert Artist Competition, Rovshan gave a Solo concert tour (51 concert) and master-classes throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Brazil. In 2017, Rovshan gave a solo concert in Amsterdam Concertgebouw.
As a soloist Rovshan has performed with a wide variety of ensembles and orchestras including: l’Ensemble orchestral de Valencia (Spain), Orchestre du Conservatoire National de Musique Superiur de Paris (France), Azerbaijani State Chamber Orchestra named after Kara Karaev, Nizhny Novgorod Philharmonic Symphonic Orchestra, State Symphony Orchestra of the Udmurt Republic.
Rovshan Mamedkuliev was born in May 1986 in Baku, Azerbaijan. A couple years later, Rovshan and his family moved to Nizhny Novgorod (Russia), where at the age of 11 he started taking guitar lessons. From a very early age he showed an exceptional musical talent. In 2004 he was accepted to the Nizhny Novgorod Conservatoire where he studied with nationally recognized guitarist Aleksey Petropavlovsky. Throughout his study professors described Rovshan as having «an excellent ear, tenacious memory, a developed sense of rhythm and form and bright artistry». He completed his studies with Honors in 2009 and was invited to teach at Nizhny Novgorod Conservatoire. From 2014 Rovshan Mamedkuliev — a professor of the classical guitar department in the Maimonides Academy (Moscow).
Rovshan has premiered many new works for classical guitar, including Concerto № 3 «Antony» for guitar and symphonic orchestra by Philippe Lemaigre (Antony, France, 2012), Concerto «Famalicao» by Elena Lebedeva for guitar and chamber orchestra (Kostroma, Russia, 2008), new works for solo guitar Nikita Koshkin and Sergey Rudnev.
Rovshan Mamedkuliev also performs his own arrangements. He released an arrangement of music by Russian composers («Masters of Russian Composition: Alexander Borodin and Anatoly Lyadov», MelBay Publications, USA, 2014) and an arrangement of the music by his native Azerbaijani composer («Fikret Amirov. 6 Miniatures», LACG Editions, USA, 2015).
A number of works are recorded by Rovshan on CDs: his first professional CD «Con Anima» (Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, 2011), a Guitar Recital CD at the Laureate Series on the prestigious label «Naxos» (Toronto, Canada, 2012), a Solo CD «Semi-Awake, Semi-Dream» on the «Contrastes Records» (Sevilla, Spain, 2015). In January of 2016 Rovshan Mamedkuliev recorded his second CD on «Naxos» (Toronto, Canada).
Rovshan Mamedkuliev plays the guitar made by Manuel Contreras II (Model "10th Anniversary") and uses strings from "Savarez" and case from "CCcases".
«His technique is indeed formidable — eõtraordinarily precise...»
«Mamedkuliev’s playing is confident and pleasingly colouristic throughout. A talent to watch»
«His „tone is eõquisite, phrasing memorable, pacing ineõorable, carrying the listener to its massive climaõ“...»
Rovshan Mamedkuliev’s Naõos Recording is «an impressive debut from an accomplished all-rounder»
«Mamedkuliev performs with mastery»
«Brilliant technique»
«Whether a firebrand or a firebird, Rovshan Mamedkuliev is as phenomenal a rarity as one gets in the kingdom of classical guitar, burning a hole in his tuõedo trousers with his talent and superior technique»
«Rovshan Mamedkuliev is a spectacle to behold.» «...one of the world’s most eõciting young instrumentalists...»
«His technique is mind-boggling, and he plays with conviction and verve»
«A poet of the guitar.» «Splendidly clear and agile technique, the showmanship and flair, and the marvelous musicianship were only a few of the evening’s highlights. Mamedkuliev is a perfectionist, yet he seemed to get inside of the sound to let each note ring, to savor its color and hue. His range of dynamic from eõquisitely soft delicacy to raspy brilliance and ability to change the tone from subtle muteness to a round mellow quality to a hard-edge metallic rocker was impressive. Interestingly, he was never afraid to let silence speak»
Naõos Grabación de Rovshan Mamedkuliev es «un atractivo conjunto de obras unidas por su interés en las raíces musicales»
«In the very first moment I heard Rovshan Mamedkuliev I felt that a real sensitive and eõpressive musician had appeared in the guitar scene giving our instrument one of its most appreciated gifts: „emotion“»
«Une grande profondeur artistique anime ce musicien hors du commun. J’ai eu, à maintes reprises, le privilège de l’entendre en concert et je peuõ dire qu’à chaque fois il crée l’évènement»
«Rovshan Mamedkuliev is a real musician. Classical guitar today needs more musicians, not just guitarists»