Photo: A first-year instrumental ensemble, directed by Shahmahmut 

In March 2025, Rachel Harris and Mukaddas Mijit visited the Uzbek National Institute of Musical Arts Named After Yunus Rajabi in Tashkent and were treated to a tour of the Institute’s departments as well as some outstanding performances by current students and teachers. 

Clip: Students of Malika Khanum perform an ensemble dotar piece (excerpt)

Established in 2020, the primary purpose of the Yunus Rajabi Institute is to sustain and develop maqom-based performance and creativity. It holds departments for instrumental and vocal maqom performance, composition, dotar ensemble, and a daston department specialising in Qaraqalpaq and Qashqadaryo traditions. Courses include solo and ensemble performance, and students specialise in a wide range of instruments including dotar, sato, tanbur, doira and chang, as well as oud, qanun, Kashgar rubab, nay and qoshnay. 

Students come from across the country to study with some of the country’s top performers, many of whom came from the Uzbek National Conservatory to teach here. The Institute is imbued with a sense of reverence for the great performers of the 20th century, whose images hang on every wall. We watched a fascinating theatrical tribute to the master musician Turgun Alimatov, which included recreations of some of his compositions:

Clip: Students of Abror Zufarov perform Turgun Alimatov’s Segah (excerpt)

It was good to see the teachers here exploring beyond the canon, encouraging their students to experiment with new approaches and find new ways to connect with the past. We were struck by the students in the vocal department who performed a classic Bukharan song by Abdullah Khatqon in a style very different from the conservatory norms:

Clip: Students of Oktamjon Rasulov sing Bukharan “old style” 

As well as performance, the Institute is focusing on research, with many of its teachers engaged in PhD study alongside their busy performance and teaching schedules. They have an active international outreach programme, with many international concerts, conferences and visiting lectures.

Photo: With teachers and students after Rachel Harris’ talk at the Institute.



 

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