This work is rooted in Shur mugham — a mode of profound interior stillness, one of the great modal achievements of Azerbaijani classical music. And yet it does not remain there. It moves, as the great modal traditions of this civilisational sphere have always moved between one another — fluidly, naturally, without boundary.
This instrumental work takes its name and inspiration from the fifteenth-century palace in Baku where the sage and philosopher Seyid Yahya Bakuvi lived, taught, and was laid to rest. Some places hold their history differently from others — not as monument, but as presence.
This version is a seamless synthesis rooted in Azerbaijani sound, reaching across the classical traditions of a shared civilisational heritage — honoured not as borrowings, but as a single, unified voice.
Its world premiere was in Baku itself, performed as part of Timeless Presence, in partnership with UNESCO. Istanbul, 2025, marks only its second live performance. It remains one of the most technically demanding works the Fons Sophiae Collective performs.
Sami Yusuf with the Fons Sophiae Collective. Live, Istanbul, 2025.
Recorded live at Festival Park Yenikapı, Istanbul.