The Balkan tournament of the "Songs from the Turkic World," organized jointly with the International Organization of Turkic Culture (TÜRKSOY) to mark the 10th anniversary of the establishment of Yunus Emre Institute, is underway.

The concert series to be given in the company of the musical folk instruments specific to Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey will take start at Hungary, a new observing member of the Turkic Council, on December 10, 2019. The art lovers in Eastern Europe and the Balkans will embark on a fabulous journey into the music art of the Turkic world with the "Songs from the Turkic World."

The rich and colorful world of the Turkic culture will be featured in the concerts to be held by the ensemble consisting of the traditional folk music singers from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkey thanks to cooperation among the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Turkey, Yunus Emre Institute, and the embassies of TÜRKSOY members in Budapest (December 10), Zagreb (December 11), Tuzla (December 12), Sarajevo (December 13), and Kragujevac (December 15).

With the context of the tournament, Hungarian, Croatian, Bosnian and Serbian peoples will be able to listen to Azerbaijan's "kamança", Kazakhstan's "dombra", Kyrgyzstan's "komuz" and Turkey's "bağlama" on the same stage.

The ensemble's rich repertoire of compositions includes not only the works of famous composers of the Turkic world, but also the folk songs of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Uighur Turks, and during the show, folk dances of various regions will also be staged, building bridges from the Altai to the Balkans and contributing to the unity among peoples.

Dedicated to İstván Mándoki Kongur

TÜRKSOY continues to promote eminent figures who have contributed greatly to the culture, art and literature of the Turkic world for the young generations.

In this context, the book entitled "Kopan Üzengi," written by Kumyk poet Badrutdin Magomedov in memory of Hungary's famous Turkologist İstván Mándoki Kongur, and published by TÜRKSOY, will be promoted and a conference will be held to commemorate İstván Mándoki Kongur and Badrutdin Magomedov at European Representation Office of Turkish Council Secretariat General in Budapest at 15.00 on December 9, 2019.

The book describes the last days of Hungarian Turkologist Kongur, his memories in the Republic of Dagestan of the Russian Federation, where conducted studies, the interviews with Kongur, and the travel notes and contains poems by Kumyk poet Badrutdin Magomedov. The book will be introduced to Europe for the first time.