On August 27, Astana hosted the grand closing ceremony of the 79th Coupe Mondiale Accordion Competition, held with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan and organized by the “Qazaqconcert” concert organization.

The ceremony was attended by Azamat Sailauuly Belkairov, Chairman of the Culture Committee of the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan, who delivered a congratulatory address. In his speech, the Chairman noted that Kazakhstan has traditionally placed particular emphasis on culture and spirituality. He highlighted the numerous significant projects implemented in the cultural sector this year, with the international competition serving as one of the most notable examples. Azamat Belkairov also emphasized that the Ministry of Culture and Information consistently supports international cultural initiatives and expressed confidence that Kazakhstan would continue hosting large-scale projects of this kind. On behalf of the Ministry, he extended special thanks to the Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes (CIA), the jury members, the “Qazaqconcert” team that organized the competition, all participants, and the sponsors.

During the evening, the winners of the Senior category were awarded, with the first, second, and third-place winners announced. Mirco Patarini, President of the Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes (CIA), presented special prizes.

In the “Classical Music Ensemble” category, first place was awarded to the Siberian Bayan Quartet from the Russian Federation. In the “Junior Virtuoso Entertainment Music” category, the winner was Davide Di Giacomo from Italy. In the “Junior Coupe Mondiale” category, first place went to Futa Mizutani from Japan. In the “Senior Virtuoso Entertainment Music” category, the winner was Đorđe Perić from Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the “Masters Coupe Mondiale” category, first place was awarded to Timur Setrakov from the Russian Federation. In the “World Music Ensemble” category, the Kazakh trio Scythians took first place. In the main “Coupe Mondiale” category, first place was won by Zhandos Sauyt of Kazakhstan.

A special part of the ceremony featured performances by the first-place winners in all seven categories. The world’s finest bayan and accordion players came together on one stage in the capital of Kazakhstan, demonstrating an outstanding level of musicianship.

The final concert brought together national music and world classical repertoire. Performances featured the “Astana Sazy” Kazakh State Folklore Ensemble, the Samga and Saz&Soul groups, the ballet ensemble of “Gulder”, Klara Tulenbayeva, Nuray Sheru, and creative ensembles of Qazaqconcert.

The highlight of the evening was a joint performance of Kurmangazy’s kui “Adai” by more than 40 bayan players. The grand ceremony concluded with Eskendir Khasangaliyev’s song “Atameken.”

At the conclusion of the event, a floral arrangement was presented on behalf of Aida Balayeva, Minister of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

A total of 147 applications were submitted for the international competition, including 126 from solo performers and 21 from ensembles. The ensembles comprised 62 musicians. Taking into account participants who competed in multiple categories, the total number of unique performers was 153, of whom 32 participated in several categories, either as soloists and/or as members of ensembles.

Hosting the competition in Kazakhstan created broad opportunities for young Kazakh performers to participate in this prestigious international competition without additional organizational difficulties. As a result, 40 performers from Kazakhstan took part in the competition.

Representatives of 16 countries participated in the competition: Kazakhstan, Russia, China, Portugal, Italy, Montenegro, Serbia, Croatia, Switzerland, Japan, Uzbekistan, Brazil, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kyrgyzstan, North Macedonia, and Belarus.

As part of the international competition, 46 delegates of the Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes also travelled to Astana. They included prominent figures in bayan and accordion performance from Italy, Finland, France, China, Australia, Russia, Serbia, Germany, Austria, New Zealand, and other countries.

The international delegation included Mirco Patarini, President of the Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes; Kimmo Mattila, Jacques Mornet, Nathalie Bouchet, Viktor Romanko, Alexander Selivanov, Grayson Masefield, Harley Jones, and other prominent representatives of the international bayan and accordion community. Kazakhstan was represented on the jury by renowned arts figure and Professor Anatoly Gaisin, as well as Saule Smakova, Samgar Tolqynkhan, Zhamilya Chaldaeva, and Damir Sultanov.

The official opening ceremony of the competition took place on August 24. The event was attended by Aibek Zheksenaliyevich Sydykov, Vice Minister of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan, who conveyed a welcoming address from Aida Galymovna Balayeva, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Following the official ceremony, the main part of the competition — the competitive auditions — began.

On the second day, the competition programme began at 8:30 a.m. and continued until the evening. That same day, as part of the international competition, a solo concert was held by talented accordionist Olzhas Nurlanov, winner of the 2021 Coupe Mondiale.

On the third day, alongside the competitive auditions, masterclasses were conducted by leading figures in the bayan and accordion world. The masterclasses were led by international competition winner and Associate Professor at the Tianjin Conservatory of Music Rui Liu; President of the Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes Mirco Patarini; Professor at the Kurmangazy Kazakh National Conservatory Anatoly Gaisin; and Associate Professor at the Russian Academy of Music Alexander Selivanov.

Participants and young musicians had the opportunity to exchange professional experience with leading bayan and accordion performers from different countries and gain insight into the finer aspects of performance technique.

The total prize fund of the competition amounted to 16 million tenge. In the main Coupe Mondiale category, the cash prizes were €3,000 for first place, €2,000 for second place, and €1,000 for third place.

Hosting an international competition of this scale required significant financial resources. Part of the funding was provided by the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan, while the project also received important support from sponsors. JSC Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan served as the General Sponsor. The competition was also supported by Vita Bottlers and other partners.