The cover story of the latest issue of OCA Magazine’s special edition, OCA People, features Mariiam Tobokelova, an outstanding Kyrgyz musician and komuz player, and a veteran member of the Eurasian Creative Guild (London).
OCA Magazine is a quarterly magazine published in London since 2009 by Silk Road Media Group with the support of the Eurasian Creative Guild.
After the graduation from the Kyrgyz National Conservatory, Mariiam Tobokelova’s creative journey has never stopped. She has composed traditional kuu, dastans, and songs, performed at state concerts, and collaborated with the Kyrgyz television and radio company.
“My life has been inseparably linked to the komuz – the unique national instrument of the Kyrgyz people. For me, it is not just an instrument, but the living voice of the steppe, the mountains, and ancient traditions that I strive to convey through my music,” she says.
As far back as 1988, Mariiam had the honour of performing in Turkey at a folk instruments competition, where she was awarded a prize and received a gold watch from the President of Turkey. “It was not only a recognition of my work but also an opportunity to show the world the beauty of Kyrgyz culture. Today, I continue this path through music and speak of what is eternal,” she says.
In Mariiam’s words, “playing the komuz is, for me, a dialogue with the audience – sincere and profound – where I share the deepest part of myself. My komuz is not a museum artifact but the voice of my people, refracted through the prism of my life and feelings.”
