17.09.2021

Dear participants of the festival!

Dear friends!

Ladies and Gentlemen!

I sincerely congratulate you on the grand opening of the II International Festival of Bakhshi Art in Uzbekistan, the hospitable Karakalpak region, the wonderful city of Nukus, which is becoming more and more beautiful every day.

I express my sincere gratitude to the distinguished guests from such authoritative international organizations as UNESCO, ISESKO, TURKSOY, the CIS Executive Committee and the International Research Center for the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Monuments, as well as more than 260 representatives of folk art, figures of culture and art, who have arrived from around the world, and media workers.

Welcome to Uzbekistan!

Dear friends!

The art of bakhshi, praising the noble ideals of humanism, such eternal values ​​as peace and friendship, kindness and justice, is one of the most ancient types of oral folk art. Therefore, from time immemorial, throughout the world, storytellers and bakhshis have been revered as noble exponents of the soul of the people, uniting different countries and nations with their art.

The universal significance of this unique cultural phenomenon was once again confirmed by the First International Bakhshi Art Festival held in Termez in 2019.

I perceive folk art as a beautiful song that originated at the dawn of mankind, a life-giving source of the culture of every nation.  To preserve its purity and unfading significance, to create all the conditions for the further development of this amazing, fascinating art is not only our task, but also a sacred duty.

I am sure that the festival opening today will serve the achievement of precisely such noble goals.

In recent years, we have been paying a special attention to a deep study of the scientific, theoretical and practical foundations of the art of bakhshi.  The important work begun by our scientists-folklorists in this direction is consistently continuing.

The Republican Bakhshi Art Center and the Bakhshi Art Development Fund, established in 2019 in the country, operate productively.  The state ensembles of bakhshi art are organized in the Republic of Karakalpakstan, Surkhandarya, Kashkadarya and Khorezm regions, regional ensembles in other provinces.

At all children’s schools of music and art, as well as in the Nukus School of Opera and Art, bakhshi deeply study this type of folklore.  In the recently created Uzbek National Institute of Musical Art named after Yunus Rajabi, a department of bakhshi art was opened.  For teachers of this profile, there are advanced training courses at the State Institute of Arts and Culture of Uzbekistan.  The textbooks «Uzbek folk dastans», «Uzbek folk songs» and the multivolume collection «Karakalpak folklore» were published.  In addition, a series of books «Monuments of Uzbek oral folk art» of 100 volumes is being published.

In order to widely popularize a national folklore creativity, a special attention is paid to the effective use of the possibilities of information and communication technologies, television and the Internet, the release of audio and video recordings.

Currently, work is underway to include the national art of bakhshi in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

Dear participants of the festival!

It makes a deep sense that we hold today’s authoritative forum of art on the ancient and eternally young Karakalpak land.

When we talk about Karakalpakstan, first of all, we imagine a unique land where a courageous and hardworking people with great spiritual generosity live.  The unique historical monuments of Tuprakkala, Ayazkala, Katta Guldursunkala and Ellikkala located on this land testify to the ancient civilization and culture that existed here.  Whoever has seen these monuments at least once in his life, listened to dastans and songs of bakhshi, sounding over endless expanses, will forever love this land.

All of us are pleased that thanks to the selfless work of our people, today Karakalpakstan is becoming one of the comfortable regions of Uzbekistan, a modern center of science, culture and tourism, and now the art of bakhshi.

The talented Karakalpak people, who highly value music and art, people of creativity, greet this forum with great warmth.

I sincerely thank the hospitable people of Karakalpakstan, everyone who has worked actively to ensure that today’s celebration of culture and art was held at a high level.

Dear compatriots!

Dear guests!

I am sure that the II International Bakhshi Art Festival, which opens with your participation, will take its rightful place among the world’s cultural forums.

I wish you successful work of the International Scientific and Practical Conference organized as a part of the festival.

Taking this opportunity, I express my sincere gratitude to the distinguished ambassadors of foreign states and representatives of international organizations participating in today’s celebrations.

 I wish all of you a sound health, happiness and new successes!

 

Shavkat Mirziyoyev,

The President of the Republic of Uzbekistan

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