Kyrgyz musician Bakyt Chytyrbaev came across the kyl-kyjak in his early 20s. While traveling in neighboring Tajikistan he saw it in the hands of a 90-year-old Kyrgyz man. It was an old instrument covered with sheepskin, two strings and the bow made out of horsehairs. The sounds it produced were so unusual for the ears of the young man trained as a professional violinist, that he felt he discovered the instrument for life. He later came to know that before it fell out of grace, kyl-kyjak was widely played by performers who often acted as a theater of one actor, producing the whole variety of sounds of nature and humans.
A few years later, Bakyt switched permanently to kyl-kyjak, made extensive research work, dug out tapes recorded in the 1920s, designed special notes and reproduced them on paper. Subsequently, he wrote the first-ever textbook which he used to teach a few students. He is famed as one of the best among now rare performers of the instrument. But he refuses to play in ensembles because, according to his firm belief, kylkyjak should be played purely as a solo instrument.
Bakyt Chytyrbaev forms part of a duo called Nurak & Bakyt, together with fellow countryman, Nurak Abdrakhmanov.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
