The history of the development of musical culture in Kazakhstan begins in ancient times, when sound was perceived as a guide to other worlds and states of mind. Various instrumental and oral practices served as a form of initiation in battles and rituals, music was also given healing properties.

One of the fundamental myths found in many Turkic cultures is the legend of Korkyt-ata, the patron saint of musicians, who, in escape from death, created the first stringed instrument kobyz, and through its sound overcame the boundary of the material world.

The main leitmotif of the program is the search for a different sensitivity of the world. In attempt to re-enchant reality, sound artists collaborate with the elements of nature, algorithms and other non-human agents, blurring the boundaries of the reality and inviting transcendental experiences through deep immersion in sound environments.

The multi-channel installation "Zhylyzhai" (Kokonja, Almaty), inscribed in the landscape of the Botanical Garden, is based on field recordings: kobyz sounding in the stalactite cave "Korkyt-ata", the low-frequency sound of the "Singing dune" in the national park "Altynemel", whistling wind swirls in the dombra, swallows nesting in an abandoned basement, and a wind organ installed in the memorial complex "Korkyt-Ata" in the Kyzylorda region. The central place in the composition is occupied by the wind, using various instruments Kokonja extracts sound, delegating the process of performing the element itself.

The theme of interaction with the inhuman is also being developed in Daria Temirkhan's sound installation "Silver River", located in the Central Exhibition Hall. To create the work, the artist went on an expedition to the Zhaiyk River in Western Kazakhstan, where she recorded the river in three states in time: morning, day and night. Based on the library of underwater sounds of the river, the artist created a composition for a sound installation with spatial sound. The graphic score that Daria worked with during the creation of the composition will also be included in the installation.

The sound was inextricably linked with the mystical perception of reality, which is referred to by many myths in the cosmology of Kazakh folklore. Some vocal practices have traditionally been used as an element of ritual culture. The atonal music of the duo 2vvo (Almaty, Los Angeles) is based on the tradition of throat singing, in which the main role is devoted to the relationship between man and nature: sounds interpreting the steppe, imitation of wind, animals and birds.

The magical perception of nature through deep listening to soundscapes is expressed in the video installation "Kurupira, a forest creature" by artist Felix Blume (Sao Paulo). The exposition of the documentary essay takes place in the Amazon jungle, where the inhabitants of the village of Tauari narrate about the creature Kurupira, which lives high in the trees and abducts people, bewitching them with singing.

Saodat Ismailova's two-channel video installation "Two Horizons", presented in the Kasteyev Museum, tells the legend of Korkyt-Ata from the perspective of the main antagonist of the story “Death”, wandering across the steppe in the image of a boy.

Performative research, blurring the dotted line between art, music and psychoacoustics, addresses the main concepts of sound art and experimental music. Multi-channel sound allows artists to think spatially and create compositions that expand our perception of sound.

A series of live concerts, based, among other things, on panoramic sound, will take place in specially selected acoustic spaces - in the concert hall of the Museum of National Instruments and in the Total Theatre. Kobyz, one of the symbols of the myth of Korkyt-ata, will become the basis of the electro-acoustic atonal performance by qum.arna on the round stage of the Korkut Sound concert. Kokonja will play live based on field recordings from the expedition. The headliner of the program Hongshou Fan (Manchester) will present a performance with the participation of a dombrist based on a neural network algorithm that communicates with the instrumentalist, creating a composition in real time.

The sacred ritual as a total sound performance will combine technogenic sound, traditional divination with kumalak and electro-acoustic music in a joint project of the EEGERU ensemble and the bULt team, with the participation of artist Dmitry Morozov (::vtol::). The concert titled "Music of Fulfillment 41" is built on generative music, where images of patterns, formed during divination, are interpreted into scores, and the sound itself reflects the creation process.

A research exhibition Sound Off (Cultura x Tselinny) curated by Vladislav Sludsky will be opened in a special program, where the topic of sound will be considered in the context of the artistic practice of the Kyzyl Tractor group, pioneers of the contemporary art scene in Kazakhstan, along with other key artists. The intervention exhibition will be presented in the regular exposition of the Museum of National Instruments. It will include video documentation of performances, an archive of photographs and acoustic DIY tools created mainly by Moldagul Narymbetov.

Also, there will take place a showcase, as part of a series of concerts (“Prepared Environments” festival dedicated to John Cage), representing the ”sound artist” community, which unites sound artists in the post-Soviet countries region.

We hope that the extensive program of the Korkut Biennale will unveil new perspectives for the art and music scene of Central Asia, encourage listeners and authors to dive deeply into the world of sound and experimental music.