The Korkyt Ata Memorial Complex hosted the 7th International Folklore and Music Festival on the theme “Korkyt Zhane Uly Dala Sazy” (Melodies of Korkut and the Great Steppe) in Kazakhstan’s Karmakshy district of Kyzylorda region.

Co-organized by the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation together with the Akimat of the Kyzylorda Region, the festival brought together about 200 art figures from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Türkiye, Uzbekistan, Tuva, and Altai.

Dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Kyzylorda’s proclamation as the capital of Kazakhstan (1925–1927), the festival aimed to promote the rich culture, national music, and spiritual values of the Turkic peoples, while strengthening international cultural ties.

Aktoty Raimkulova, President of the Foundation, and Janmurat Seilov, Head of the Kyzylorda Regional Department of Culture, Archives and Documentation, addressed the opening ceremony, congratulated the participants, and wished them success.

An international scientific and theoretical conference titled “The Heritage of Korkyt: Epic Values Common to the Turkic World” was also held within the festival. Participants included Aktoty Raimkulova; Nurlybek Nalibayev, Governor of Kyzylorda province; and leading scholars and experts from Turkic countries in the fields of culture, history, and literature. Raimkulova emphasized the importance of preserving Korkut Ata’s heritage and promoting it globally.

The event aimed to comprehensively discuss the significance of Korkyt’s heritage and epic traditions in the spiritual and cultural life of Turkic peoples, promote scientific research, and strengthen international cooperation. The conference featured presentations, panel discussions, and the launch of the first series of the project “Heritage of Turkic Folklore” under the title “Turkic Heroic Epic.”

At the conclusion, Ulzhan Baibosynova, an honored cultural figure of Kazakhstan and associate professor at the T. Zhurgenov Kazakh National Academy of Arts, performed the “Koroglu” poem and several makams of the storytellers of the Syr region.

The international festival provided an important platform for strengthening unity and interconnection in epic creativity within the Turkic world and represented a significant step in preserving and popularizing the spiritual heritage of the Turkic peoples.