He was born on February 6, 1946, in the city of
Baku. In 1969, he graduated from his flute class at the
Baku Academy of Music. In 1971, he joined the
Soviet Armed Forces, immediately becoming a musician in the Song and Dance Ensemble of the
Caspian Flotilla.
Caspian Naval School Shortly before completing his compulsory service, he received an offer from
Rear Admiral Georgy Stepanov, the head of the Caspian Higher Naval School named after
Sergei Kirov (now the
Azerbaijan Higher Naval Academy), to head its band, an offer Akhundzade accepted. During his service in this band, Akhundzade participated in the 1971 and 1983
October Revolution Parades on Moscow's
Red Square. In 1979, a group of students from
Guinea came to study at the school. As the cadets did not know the
Russian language, they could not verbally communicate what the national anthem of Guinea (
Liberté) sounded like (the sheet music was not in the files at the time) to Akhundzade in time for the visit of the Guinean delegation. Akhundzade later asked one of the cadets to hum the anthem, after which he transcribed it and orchestrated it the next day. It made an impression on the school administration, which resulted in Akhundzade being awarded the honorary title of Honored Cultural Worker shortly after this event. Some musicians of the Band of the Caspian Higher Naval School who served under the direction of Akhundzade later became teachers, artists and conductors in various cities and countries, including one who is a director of a military band in
Russia.
Post-independence He began teaching at the Academy of Music in 1989 before being invited to lead the newly formed
Military Band Service of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan in 1992. Since then, he has led the exemplary band during welcoming ceremonies for foreign leaders and led the massed bands during the parades in honor of the 90th, 93rd, 95th, and 100th
anniversary of the
Azerbaijani Armed Forces. On the eve of the 95th-anniversary parade in 2013, he was awarded the rank of
colonel. In a 2019 interview, he declared his intention for his band to perform at a
victory parade in
Shusha's
Jidir Plain should the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict be resolved. His son Rufat (born 1981), serves as an associate band director as well as a teacher at the Department of Breath and Percussion of Baku Music Academy. In early 2024, he retired and was replaced by Rufat as head of the band service. ==Awards and Titles==