Contemporary Nomadic Music for International Migrants’ Day – “Kudasha Duman”

For centuries Central Asia has witnessed a constant flow of people across its vast territory; for many, this region is well-known as part of the Silk Road, the ancient trade route that linked China with the Roman Empire.  Today’s “caravans” of migrants along the Silk Road are mostly labourers traveling from poorer to wealthier areas in search of work.    To mark International Migrants’ Day, the UNESCO Almaty Cluster office for Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan would like to share a musical composition that has its origins in this storied land. “Kudasha Duman” was written by contemporary composer and acclaimed “People’s Artist of the Soviet Union” Erkegali Rakhmadiev. “Kudasha Duman” is a contemporary classic, combining elements of ancient Kazakh folk music with classical orchestration.  As Laura Kennedy, Programme Specialist for the Social and Human Sciences notes, “the piece evokes the expanse and movement of the Central Asian steppe while conveying a sense of life and promise.  For this reason we find it to be a fitting tribute to migrants seeking better lives in Eurasia and across the globe.”

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