Although they started their respective professional careers separately, their paths crossed very early on – first as ballet dancers and later as choreographers. Today, Rafiga Akhundova and Maksoud Mamedov are known as the premier ballet couple of Azerbaijan.

After graduating from the Baku School of Choreography, they both received state scholarships to the famous Bolshoi Theater’s School of Choreography in Moscow. There, Rafiga Akhundova pursued her studies under the guidance of Professor Sulamiph Messerer, while Maksud Mamedov studied classical ballet under Professor Nikolay Tarasov.

In 1952 they began their careers as leading soloists of the Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theater in Baku. Their unforgettable and brilliant appearances together in such ballets as Swan Lake, Giselle and Don Quixote, received international acclaim. One of the outstanding highlights of their dancing career was their performance in Seven Beauties by Kara Karaev.

On his own, Maksud Mamedov accepted several invitations to join the Bolshoi Ballet on its tours throughout the former U.S.S.R., as well as in Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia and Japan.

By 1968, Rafiga Akhundova and Maksud Mamedov left the stage to work solely as Choreographers. The result was highly successful productions such as Shadows of Gobustan by Faraj Karaev, Caspian Ballet by Tofik Bakikhanov and Azerbaijan Suite by Rauf Hajiev. These were performed at the International Dance Festival in Paris 1969, and received a prestigious award from the Parisian Academy of Dance. The following year these works were performed in France, Monaco and Luxembourg.

In 1971 the choreographer-couple undertook a major project with the then newly established Algerian National Ballet Company. Under their direction, the first Algerian ballet ever, Three Revolutions, was produced.

During the 1970’s and 1980’s, the couple staged several works in Baku, such as Kaleidoscope by Faraj Karaev, Babek by Akshin Alizadeh, and also new choreographic versions of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, Kara Karaev’s Seven Beauties and The Path of Thunder. In addition, several choreographic miniatures were staged such as Mugam with music by Nazim Aliverdibekov, which was performed worldwide by such distinguished ballet stars as Vladimir Vassiliyev, Yekaterina Maksimova, and Galina Mezentseva, among others.

During their careers, the couple has also worked as guest choreographers or ballet masters in the cities of Malmö and Göteborg in Sweden (1975), and Novosibirisk, Russia (1976), Cairo, Egypt (1979), Antwerp, Belgium (1980-81), Ankara, Izmir and Istanbul, Turkey (1991, 1994, 1998).

In 1999 Rafiga Akhundova and Maksud Mamedov established “Dance Laboratory”, an independent modern dance group, which staged its first performance in Baku the same year. Between 1990-1996, Rafiga Akhundova held the position of Chief Choreographer at the Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theatre. During the period of 2000-2002 she has been the artistic leader of the Baku School of Choreography.

Rafiga Akhundova and maksud Mamedov took part in the premiere production of Les Ballets Persans in 2002. Their full concert ballets "Seven Beauties" and "Babek" were staged for the first time in Scandinavia as any choreography from the former Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan.