Boysun. Masterpieces of Central Asia
BAKHSHI (P.33)
One of the most interesting phenomenon of Boysun culture is the art of “bakhshi”. These are folk artists who perform in the classical Turkic genre of sung improvisation with accompanied by the two-string dombra, a popular music instrument. Bakhshi singing is remarkable, with a very ancient guttural manner of performance that imitates the growling of a predatory animal. There has even been preserved an original genre of performance called “shaman-bakhshi” which is similar to shamanic singing. The Boysun-Sherabad school of bakhshi is one of the most famous schools in Uzbekistan. Two performers from Boysun have the title “People’s bakhshi of Uzbekistan”. They are Uzbeks of the Kungrad clan – Shoberdi Boltaev from Munchak and Abdunazar Poenov from Khomkon. Bakhshi are distinguished by their skill in performing songs-lectures as well as for merry improvisations addressed to the audience. In their creation the traditions of the great Turkic legends are still alive. Here in Boysun, in the 18th – 19th centuries the epic story of the Uzbek people “Alpomish” had been completed. Each bakhshi in his own style tells in a song stories about the warrior Alpomish and his faithful wife Barchinoy. On big celebrations and weddings Boysun bakhshis are often asked to perform the melody “Camel kneels down”. According to the legend, during the long journey of a caravan a girl complained of boredom. A young man in the caravan who had fallen in love with her took a dombra and played the melody that enchanted both people and animals. Enchanted by the music, the camel on which the girl was sitting kneeled down on the earth.
|
|