Music and Time Annotation << Back Azerbaijani folk dances in the processing of Tofig Kuliyev: to the problem of harmonization of national frets S.A. Mammadova Tofig Kuliyev is an outstanding Azerbaijani composer, who is known far beyond the borders of his homeland. Preserving and masterfully refracting the characteristic national features in European genres, he created his own recognizable and original creative style. The name Tofig Kuliyev is inextricably linked with the emergence and development of jazz in the Azerbaijani musical culture. He is also known as the author of the first notations of Azerbaijani mugham, songs, and dances. In this article the piano transcriptions of Azerbaijani folk dances, which reflects the rich modal system of Azerbaijani traditional music, are analyzed. The composer carefully preserved the modal harmonies, metro-rhythmic and harmonic features of dances, as well as melodic development and ornamentation characteristic of traditional performance. Piano arrangements of Azerbaijani folk dances reveal to us the creative method of the composer, who equally owned both the classical principles of harmonization and the national modal language. Keywords: Tofig Kuliyev, Azerbaijani folk dances, national modal system, harmonization, timbre model, «Shalaho». Contacts: E-mail: zeyneb14@mail.ru Pp. 38-44.