ANNOUNCEMENTS > PRESS RELEASES

The Symphony Orchestra of the Kurmangazy Kazakh National Conservatory and Kazakh Traditional Ensemble 'Turan' to perform at MIT

Cambridge, MA...The Symphony Orchestra of the Kurmangazy Kazakh National Conservatory and the Kazakh traditional music ensemble Turan have made the Massachusetts Institute of Technology part of their itinerary for their North American debut tour. The ensembles will perform a free concert at MIT on Sunday, November 22 at 3 p.m. in Kresge Auditorium at 48 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge.

The tour, arranged by IMG Artists, showcases two facets of Kazakhstan’s rich musical culture: the ancient instrumental and vocal folk traditions of its historically nomadic people, and the European tradition of classical music introduced to the country through Russian influence.

"The students from the National Conservatory, all enormously talented, are ecstatic to be coming to the United States," said Charles Letourneau, Director of Special Projects at IMG Artists. "And we are equally excited to be hosting them here. In addition to performing at some of the country's most prestigious concert halls, they will engage in a number of cultural exchange and educational activities."

Under the direction of two rising conductors, French conductor Christophe Mangou and Kazakh conductor Kanat Omarov, the program will begin with the Symphony Orchestra performing Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet -- Overture Fantasy, followed by Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2, featuring Kazakh pianist Jania Aubakirova.

Kazakh traditional music ensemble Turan will perform a traditional composition, titled Kerogly, in addition to traditional songs. Founded in 2008 by a group of students from the Kurmangazy Kazakh National Conservatory, the members of Turan are award-winning folk artists who have performed around the world. Turan performs on ancient Kazakh instruments, including the lute-like zhetygen, sherter, and dombra (all plucked); the kyl kobyz (“the most ancient bowed instrument on earth”); the flute-like sybyzgy and saz syrnay; together with a host of percussive instruments, mouth harps, and throat singing.

The program will continue with the world premiere of Jamilya, a symphonic poem for Turan as soloists with orchestra, by award-winning contemporary Kazakh composer Aktoty Raimkulova. The program will conclude with Rossini's William Tell Overture, and Leonard Bernstein’s Overture to Candide.

About the Symphony Orchestra of the Kurmangazy Kazakh National Conservatory
The Symphony Orchestra of the Kurmangazy Kazakh National Conservatory was founded in 1947. The first leader of the orchestra was Professor K. Babayev. The Orchestra has a vast repertoire spanning Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms, Lizst, Saint-Saens, Bizet, Ravel, Frank, Mahler, Orf, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Musorgsky, Shostakovich, and many others. In recent years the orchestra has been actively collaborating with French conductors Christophe Mangou and Nicolas Kruger as part of its International Program of Cooperation with the Paris National High Conservatory of Music and Dance.

Many members of the Orchestra have participated in the International Student Symphony Orchestra of Central Asia, joining many talented young musicians from Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

International touring has always been a significant part of the Orchestra’s 60-year history. They have performed in the Big Hall of the Moscow State Conservatory and in Tchaikovsky’s hometown of Klin. The strings of the orchestra took part in the Festival of Chamber music in Germany in 2000, and the full orchestra participated in the International Festival of young orchestras (Young Euro Classic) in Berlin. In 2006 the Orchestra performed, with Christophe Mangou conducting, in London’s Barbican Hall.

In 2007, the orchestra appeared in the Ninth International Festival of European Youth Orchestras at the Academy San Felice in Italy, and also gave concerts in Florence, Arezzo, and Montecatinni. In 2008 the orchestra made a successful tour of Germany that included concerts in Kassel, Frankenberg, Bonn, and once again in Berlin’s prestigious Konzerthaus at the International Festival of young orchestras.

For biographies of participating artists, please visit IMG Artists or contact Mona Baroudi at mona.baroudi@sbcglobal.net, (415) 615-2735.

This tour is made possible by Chevron Corporation, the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the ENRC-KOMEK corporative fund, SC Kazkommertsbank, KazRosGas LLP, Lufthansa, Siemens LLP, Yerlan Barlybayev, Kanat Bozumbayev, and the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the United States of America.