Yudik Mullodzhanov (born June 18, 1942) is a tenor, violinist, and music teacher. He is known, within his community, as the "Bukharian Pavarotti".
Yudik Ribievich Mullodzhanov[1] was born in 1942 in Dushanbe, Tajikistan to a Bukharian Jewish family.
In 1959, he entered Music College in Dushanbe and graduated in 1965. After graduation, he was accepted to the Gnesin's Academy of Music (aka Gnesin's Institute) to study viola under the tutelage of Professor Alexander Vasiliyevich Bagrintsev. He graduated from the Gnesin's Academy of Music in 1970.
While in the conservatory studying viola, he studied singing under the tutelage of Professor Mordvinov Vladimir Ivanovich. He also worked in the music school of Krasnoarmeyski (Moscow region) at the time of his study. After graduating the Gnesin's Academy of Music, Mullodzhanov worked as a teacher of violin and viola at SMS - Special Music School for gifted children in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. At the same time he worked as a violin teacher in the Music College and also in the Art Institute of Tajikistan of Mirzo Tursunzade.
Mullodzhanov works as a teacher of violin, piano and voice. He performs as a singer at different concerts, festivals and weddings. On October 2, 1999, he was invited to perform for the President of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, when the President was in New York. On April 30, 1995, he performed at Yeshiva Music School.
His repertoire includes Russian, Italian, Tajik, and English songs. In the past few years he has released two CDs ("O Sole Mio"[2] and "Respublikai Man" [3]), where he sings many of his favorite songs. He has also made video recordings of his singing.[4]
His father, Ribi Mullodzhanov Rubinovich (1900–1976), was a Rabbi and a Kolantar (leader) of a community of Bukharian Jews in Dushanbe for 40 years. Ribi Rubinovich was also a World War II veteran. He had a good singing voice, and sang Jewish prayer songs, Zohar, and classical Tajik-Jewish songs. His mother, Zulay Avramova Mallayeva-Mullodzhanova (1909–1950), was a religious woman who raised six children.
Yudik's aunt, Shoista Mullodzhanova, "People's Artist of Tajikistan," is a legendary Shashmakom singer. She has numerous awards, including a Gold Medal on the World Festival of youth and students (1957), a graduate degree cum laud from the Moscow Conservatory, and many government awards. Yudik's cousin, Rosa Mullodzhanova, is an honored artist of Tajikistan and is a soprano opera singer. In 1971, she graduated Moscow Conservatory with honors and is currently performing at different events.
All of his children studied at Music School #3 in Dushanbe. Two, Ruben and Shoista, continued their musical education in New York, where Ruben graduated the Music School of Lucy Moses, and Shoista graduated as a piano performance major from the Aaron Copland School of Music (Queens College). His wife, Tamara Yusupova, a pianist and teacher, received her Masters Degree from the Gnesin's Academy of Music. Upon graduation, Tamara Yusupova worked in the Special Music School for gifted children in Dushanbe.
On September 29, 1994 Yudik and his family emigrated to New York City. They all reside in Queens, which has a strong Bukharan community.