Rauf Babayev (II)

Rauf Babayev was born in Gyumri, West Azerbaijan.

He studied at the Asaf Zeynalli Music School (1953–1957) and the Percussion Department of the Azerbaijan State Conservatory (1957–1962).

Since 1957, he has been working as a musician at the Azerbaijan State Russian Drama Theater. He was a soloist-vocalist of the Azerbaijan State Pop-Symphonic Orchestra (1960–1962), a soloist of the Azerbaijan State Philharmonic (1962–1964), the Dagestan State Philharmonic (1965), a vocalist of the "Gaya" pop ensemble of the Azerbaijan State Philharmonic (1965-1968), a soloist-vocalist of the "Gaya" quartet of the Azerbaijan Radio and Television Committee (1968–1972), the "Gaya" state ensemble (1972–1987), and the "Gaya" state pop-symphonic orchestra under the Baku City Department of Culture (1987–2001). Since 2001, he has been the director and artistic director of the "Gaya" state orchestra, since 2003, the "Beri Bakh" vocal group of the "Gaya" state ensemble, and since 2007, the artistic director of the State "Gaya" ensemble of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Honored Artist (1978), People's Artist (2006), laureate of the Order of Glory (2017) Rauf Babayev died in 2020 and was buried in the Second Alley of Honor.