Mastering the Traditional Culture of East Kazakhstan Region at KAFU

Philology students completed the study of the discipline “Russian Verbal Folk Art”. The final lesson was held at the KAFU media hub with the participation of the “Bastenki” folklore ensemble.

The teacher of the department of pedagogy and psychology Lidiya Misevra developed the concept of the meeting, during which students were able to get to know the traditional culture of the people of the East Kazakhstan region better.

The invited guests were professional vocalists, teachers of music and choral singing of children’s groups (ensemble “Pryalitsa”) – Larisa Prigorodova, Larisa Kokushinskaya, Natalya Sabitova and ethnologist of the Department of Russian Ethnography of the Museum-Reserve – Ekaterina Semibratova.

The members of the ensemble revealed the secret of the name of their band “Bastenki”. It turns out that the local population spoke “baskiy”, hence the name arose, which literally means “good”, “okay”, “pretty”. They talked about the emergence of folk songs in East Kazakhstan, about the environment in which it is still possible to find performers who can sing in the old manner: with the most complex old Russian chants, peculiar dialects.

During the interview, the guests answered a number of questions about the existence of non-material culture, talked about the settlements of our region, which are the richest in folklore material, the specifics of collecting, storing and performing folk lyrical songs. They shared their personal experience of returning to their ancestral roots through folk culture.

The ensemble “Bastenki” performed songs from their repertoire, which includes more than a hundred songs. The subject and genre of them is very diverse – wedding, dance, comic, calendar, prison, hard labor, Cossack, soldier, recruit and others. Almost all genre trends are reflected in the repertoire of the folklore group ”Bastenki”. Within the walls of the Kazakh-American Free University, the song flowed freely, sincerely, as in the old days.

At the end of the meeting, the students of the Russian Language and Literature and Journalism programs, as well as the teachers themselves, became active participants in the folklore performance – they led round dances, sang, played a “kissing” action from folk evenings, experienced complete immersion and contact with the traditional culture of the East Kazakhstan region.

Students-journalists provided a recording of the event for further use for educational purposes on the course “Russian Verbal Folk Art”, and live broadcasts were conducted on social networks to popularize the folk song among the population.

The members of the “Bastenki” ensemble created an indescribable spiritual atmosphere, managed to interest students in Russian folk culture. All members of the team were presented with letters of thanks from the leadership of the university and corporate gifts.

Department of Pedagogy and Psychology