Minsk, 22 January 2022 (TDI): Ambassador of Pakistan to Belarus Sajjad Haider Khan visited the Belarusian State Academy of Music and met with the First Vice-Rector Ms. Elena Kurakina. The meeting was also attended by the Vice-Rector for Scientific work Ms. Nelly Mazaberidze and the Head of the International Cooperation Department Ms. Ruzanna Avanesyan.
The Rector provided a detailed briefing on the Academy work, scope, and performance followed by which a tour of the facility was arranged. The Academy is celebrating the 90th anniversary of its establishment this year.
Moreover, the Ambassador briefed the Vice-Rector on the peculiarities of the educational process in Pakistan.
The parties discussed ways and means for closer collaboration and the possibilities of creating institutional linkages through MOUs between the National Academy of Music and Performing Arts Pakistan and the Belarusian Academy.
CULTURE AND MUSIC FROM PAKISTANÂ
Pakistan established the National Fund in 1994 through an Act of Parliament known as the National Fund for Cultural Heritage Act (Act VIII of 1994). The objective of the fund is to promote the conservation and also the preservation of the national heritage of Pakistan.
Furthermore, the fund also has the purpose to create awareness amongst the people for appreciating the preservation of the archaeological, architectural; and also historical, and cultural heritage of Pakistan.
Moreover, the mission of the fund has seven principal measures. The first one is that the fund will undertake measures to preserve and conserve cultural heritage. The second is to acquire or hold in lease any material and cultural property; then assist in preservation and maintenance of a historical or archaeological monument or site.
Then the fund has to provide financial and technical assistance towards the preservation of national heritage, and for the furtherance of academic, scientific, and intellectual discourses; among other measures.
First, Pakistani literature is one of the richest art forms. Painting and sculpture have made progress as cultural expressions. Popular traditional dances include the bhangra and khatak steps. The Khatak is a dance from the tribal Pashtuns.
Another example of traditional dance is the giddha and kikli associated with women. Then there is the luddi typically to celebrate a victory. Music has been an important part of the culture in Pakistan.
One example could be the ghazal poems that are often put to music with singers like Mehdi Hassan and Ghulam Ali. Another example is the Qawwali, a form of singing associated with Sufism, which is also widely practiced. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, a Qawwali singer became famous in Pakistan and the broader world.
MUSIC FROM BELARUS AND BELARUSIAN STATE ACADEMY OF MUSIC
Belarus has its folk music and a tradition of church music from the 16th century. Since World War II, the development of classical music has been a feature of Belarus. Kulikovich Shchahlow is one of the most notable composers of Belarus.
Another commendable composer is Yawhen Hlyebaw, composer of the opera Your Spring (1963) and the ballet Alpine Ballad (1967). Yawhen Tsikotski, whose works include the operas Mikhas Padhorny (1939–57) and Alesya (1944).
The National Opera and Ballet Theatre in Minsk houses the country’s respected ballet and opera troupes. The Belarusian State Academy of Music is the only university-type higher musical educational institution in the Republic of Belarus.
In 1932, the Academy started its operations, as Kurakina mentioned regarding the celebrations of its 90th Anniversary this year. Today, the Academy is a major educational center, which includes 5 departments, and the Mogilev branch.
It provides professional music training at the first stage of higher education at 22 divisions covering 13 specialties (27 subspecialties). The Academy has a second stage of higher education (under the Master Degree Programs).
Currently, the Academy is working with foreign partners in implementing educational and creative activities, as well as projects on academic mobility. The evidence of this is the more than 40 bilateral cooperation agreements that the Academy currently has.
