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Music of Kazakhstan refers to a wide range of musical styles and genres deriving from Kazakhstan.Kazakhstan is home to the Kazakh State Kurmangazy Orchestra of Folk Instruments, the Kazakh State Philharmonic Orchestra, the Kazakh National Opera and the Kazakh State Chamber Orchestra. The folk instrument orchestra was named afterKurmangazy Sagyrbayuly, a well-known composer anddombra player from the 19th century.
Traditional music in Kazakhstan often refers to music of the following genres:
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The most popular traditional instruments are string instruments. First of them is the dombra (домбыра), the most popular and the oldest Kazakh music instrument. Some argue that nomads have used similar two-string instruments more than two thousand years ago.[1] The dombra is a long-necked lute with two strings tuned in the interval of a fourth or sometimes a fifth. The strings are plucked or strummed by the right hand without a plectrum.
The other instrument playing an important role is the Qobyz, which is a bowed instrument held between the legs. It is made of carved wood for the body, animal skin for the resonator, and horse hair for the strings, and the bow. The Qobyz is said to have been invented by the legendary shaman Qorqyt, long before the medieval ages.The "Zhetigen" ("Seven strings") could be seen as a member of the cither family, finding equivalents in China, with the strings being divided each in two parts of different lengths, the bridge being movable and consisting of small bone. There is also a plucked lute called sherter (шертер).
Traditional Kazakh instruments are often used in contemporary music and play a big role in Kazakh music. Traditional orchestras include"Otryrar Sazy", "Kurmangazy Orchestra", "Al-Faraby sazy", and a number of others. Kazakh instruments are used not only by artists but also are an integral part of the life of almost every Kazakh.
The Russian influence on the music life in Kazakhstan can be seen in two spheres:
Controlled by theRussian Empire and then theSoviet Union, Kazakhstan's folk and classical traditions became connected withethnic Russian music and Western European music. Prior to the 20th century, Kazakh folk music was collected and studied byethnographic research teams includingcomposers,music critics andmusicologists. In the first part of the 19th century, Kazakh music was transcribed in linearnotation. Some composers of this era set Kazakh folk songs to Russian-styleEuropean classical music.
Kazakh musicians themselves, however, did not write their own music with notation until 1931. Later, as part of the Soviet Union, certain Kazakh folk culture was encouraged to avoid political and social unrest. The result was a derivative of Kazakh folk music. In 1920,Aleksandr Zatayevich, a Russian official, created major works of art music with melodies and other elements from Kazakh folk music. Beginning in 1928 and accelerating in the 1930s, he also adapted traditional Kazakh instruments for use in Russian-style ensembles (such as increasing the number offrets andstrings). Soon, these styles of modern orchestral playing became the only way for musicians to officially play; Kazakh folk was turned into patriotic, professional and socialist endeavors.[2] In their work, many artists of the early 90's turn to folk music, processing of folk works and songs in the Kazakh language. Thus, the group URKER, appearing on the music scene in 1994, was one of the first to raise the topic of patriotism and the revival of cultural values in their work.
One of the breakthrough musical projects of the 90s was the first international music festival "Asia Dauysy". Having appeared in 1990, the festival was held annually at the Medeo venue, bringing together artists from around the world on its stage. The festival became the starting point in the musical career for many Kazakhstani musicians, such as Nurlan Abdullin and Bauyrzhan Isayev.
In the modern world, the baton of "Asia Dauysy" was picked up by the music festival "A Star of Asia", which is traditionally held at the Medeo venue since 2017.
An equally popular musical project that appeared in the 90s is the annual competition of young performers "Zhas Kanat". Both solo performers and ensembles took part in the competition, and the project itself opened a new generation of singers for the Kazakh stage, such as Zhanna Sattarova, the group "Ayan" and Madina Sadvakasova.[3]
The Musical-Dramatic Training College, founded in 1931, was the first institute of higher education for music in Kazakhstan. Two years later, the Orchestra of Kazakh Folk Musical Instruments was formed[2] The Foundation Asyl Mura is archives and publishes historical recordings of Kazakh music both traditional and classical. The Qurmanghazy Conservatoire is considered one of the leading conservatoires in Almaty.
TheKazakh hip hop and rap scene started to emerge in the country after theDissolution of the Soviet Union.[4] Hip-hop easily flourished in Kazakhstan due to the use ofRussian in its songs, which makes it easier for Kazakh rappers to achieve popularity in otherRussian-speaking countries.[4] Kazakh groups such asTristar began to be featured onMTV Russia.[5] Hip-hop is arguably the most popular contemporary music genre in Kazakhstan, especially among the youth.[6][7] In 2013, American rapperKanye West was privately invited by PresidentNursultan Nazarbayev to perform at his grandson's wedding.[8]
In 1995-1999, the Rap Zone group appeared on the music scene, which was the first among many to instill the love of young people for domestic rap music. The band members recorded their albums on cassettes.
Especially breakthrough was their track "Noise-boom-boom-Coup", which became the anthem of young people, and RAP ZONE inscriptions were emblazoned on yard fences, houses and in school diaries.
The popularization of rap in Kazakhstan reached its peak in the 2010s and 2020s. For the most part, current rappers are inspired by Western artists, looking for references in world and national culture, thanks to which rap in Kazakhstan is now quite distinctive and unique. Most often, this genre is in the greatest demand among young people, which from now on is not just played in the background, but consciously and with interest listened to. The most popular artists at the moment are Scriptonite, Hiro, V$XV Prince, De Lacure, etc.
In addition to traditional pop music, hip-hop and r'n'b developed rapidly in Kazakhstan, which found a response in the work of such groups as Ghetto Dogs, Metis's, Not Everything Is Said and the group 101 led by Ivan Breusov.[9]
Later on in the 2010s, Kazakh hip-hop would influence the development of the Q-pop music genre.[10] Well-known Kazakh rappers areJah Khalib, Natan, andScriptonite.[4]
Kazakh rock is a form ofrock music in Kazakhstan, with lyrics written and performed both inKazakh and Russian.[11] Rock music has been popular in Kazakhstan, especially inKaraganda Region, since the 1960s, when it was popularized byThe Beatles.[12][13] During the Soviet era, Kazakhstan was exposed to bothAmerican andRussian rock.[12] Local punk rock was started in Almaty in the late eighties by such bands as The Moloty,Subway andPo-1. Well-known Kazakh rock bands areAdaptatsiya,Ulytau, andUrker.
Q-pop or Qazaq pop is a comparatively new musical genre of Kazakhstan. The term was first coined in 2015. Q-pop originates from K-Pop, hip-hop, Western pop and J-Pop respectively. Kazakhstani entertainment companyJuz Entertainment has been credited as the pioneer of the genre, with its boy groupNinety One debuting in 2015.[14][6] Artists likeZiruza,Mad Men, DNA, Alba and CrystalZ also contribute to the genre.
The prize-winning[15][16][17] Kazakh singerDimash Kudaibergen mixes pop with elements of classical music and traditional Kazakh folk music.[18][19][20] In September 2022, Dimash caused a furor on Twitter after singing the Kazakh anthem beforeGennady Golovkin's boxing bout againstCanelo Alvarez.[21]
Kazakh singer Rukhiya Baydukenova specializes in pop vocals. She was the Grand Prix winner of the 2021 Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk International Festival of Arts, also known as the Slavic Bazaar.[22]
Toi (Той; literally means public gathering) refers to easy-listening folk music with catchy rhythm, usually performed in weddings and festives.[6] This genre is also popular inUzbekistan,Turkmenistan andKyrgyzstan.[23] Well-known Kazakh toi singers areQairat Nurtas, Abdijappar Alqoja,Madina Saduakasova andJazira Baiyrbekova.
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