Famous Soviet singer Muslim Magomayev has been commemorated in the Russian capital Moscow. An official ceremony was held at the Magomayev memorial in front of the Azerbaijani embassy in Moscow.
Muslim Mahammad oglu Magomayev, dubbed the "King of Songs" and the "Soviet Sinatra", was a Soviet and Azerbaijani baritone operatic and pop singer of the 1960s and 1970s. He achieved iconic status in Russia and the post-Soviet countries, including his native Azerbaijan, for his vocal talent and charisma.
Magomayev was born in Baku in 1942. He became the art director of the Azerbaijan State Bandstand-Symphonic Orchestra in 1975 and toured in France, Bulgaria, Finland and Canada.
In 1998 Magomayev officially stopped his musical career and gave only a few performances together with his wife. He died on October 25, 2008 in his flat in Moscow of a heart attack.
He was buried in the Alley of Honor in his native city of Baku, next to his grandfather, on October 29.
