Year: 2024

🌌 This week, we completed work on a unique calendar that brings together traditional Kyrgyz perceptions of celestial bodies and stars. The project became truly inspiring thanks to the efforts of a group of young female artists led by Asel Kitayeva. The artists created visual representations of the planets in the Solar System, drawing on legends and stories collected by astronomer and lecturer Abakir Kalybekov from Kyrgyz National University. The calendar is both visually stunning and informative, aiming to introduce youth and other enthusiasts to the rich heritage of Kyrgyz…

🎶 Final Concert: On November 18, the final concert of the “Koŋur Unduuluk” project was held at the Theater of Musical Drama, marking a vibrant conclusion to the initiative. The event began with a presentation by Cholpon Turumbayeva, who shared the goals and outcomes of the research dedicated to the traditional Koŋur sound. A highlight of the evening was an excerpt from the Manas epic about the Kyrgyz orchestra, performed by the renowned manaschy Doolot Sydykov. The Altyn Nur ensemble presented 10 original compositions on reconstructed instruments, including komuzes and…

🎶 Report Concert: On November 11, the first of two planned report concerts within the project to integrate Koñur Ün into orchestral sound took place at the B. Beishenalieva University of Arts and Culture. Following performances by the orchestra and the four-string komuz ensemble, the university’s faculty engaged in a lively discussion on the future prospects of researching the traditional sound of Koñur and the necessity of continuing efforts to restore and reconstruct Kyrgyz traditional instruments. 📰 Digitizing issues of the Erkin Too newspaper: The Aigine Cultural Research Center continues…

📰 Last week, 100 years after the first issue of the newspaper Erkin-Too, the Aigine Cultural Research Center began digitizing its early editions. This process has been both exciting and challenging: on one hand, there was the fear of damaging the fragile, well-worn pages; on the other, we could feel the spirit of that era when our ancestors dreamed of freedom and Kyrgyzstan’s independence. The Aigine team will continue digitizing issues of Erkin-Too from 1924 to 1927. We are deeply grateful to Ainura Askarova, director of the National Library named…