The Astana Opera's Grand Hall hosted a tribute concert, "Uly dalanyn Uly dauysy," dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the outstanding Kazakh baritone, People's Artist of Kazakhstan, Yermek Serkebayev.
The anniversary evening was part of the Operalia International Music Festival and was one of the key events in the program dedicated to the anniversaries of the founders of national classical art. Soloists, the choir, and the Astana Opera Symphony Orchestra, along with invited international performers, performed on the same stage.
The evening's program included works associated with Yermek Serkebayev for generations of listeners. The stage featured music that became an important part of his creative biography: opera arias, folk songs, and chamber works, revealing the power of his voice, the depth of his stage personas, and the high standard of his national performing school. A special place in the program was given to Figaro's cavatina from Gioachino Rossini's "The Barber of Seville," which has become one of Ermek Serkebayev's signature pieces. A special musical highlight of the evening was Almas Serkebayev's "Paraphrase on the Theme of Figaro" for string orchestra.
The concert featured leading soloists of the Astana Opera, guest artists Avaz Radzhabov, Venera Protasova, and Shokhrukh Yunusov, as well as People's Artist of Kazakhstan Shakhimardan Abilov. People's Artist of Kazakhstan Abzal Mukhitdin and Honored Worker of Kazakhstan Yerbolat Akhmedyarov conducted.
Ermek Serkebayev's wife, Alfiya Baizhanova, highly praised the anniversary evening.
"I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the theater's management and all the artists for this wonderful concert. "Thank you for your love, respect, and the careful preservation of Ermek Bekmukhamedovich's memory. The concert was prepared with great care, and this was felt in every detail," noted Alfiya Baizhanova.