In the post-October period, a new stage begins in the study of Kyrgyz musical folklore, laying the foundations for the formation of a musicology school in Kyrgyzstan.
In the field of folklore studies, researchers faced several tasks: collecting and recording samples of folklore, studying the artistic parameters of folk music and the principles of their use in compositional creativity, and promoting folklore.
Comprehensive research on the ethnic history, everyday life, and culture of the Kyrgyz was conducted by prominent Russian scholars V. Bartold, A. Bernshteyn, and S. Abramzon. At the same time, the government of the Turkestan Autonomous Republic began to implement a series of special measures aimed at studying local musical traditions.
Thus, in early 1919, the Semirechensk regional department's commission on national affairs adopted a resolution to convene akyns in January 1920 in the city of Verny (now Almaty) to record their works.
Practically immediately after the formation of the Kyrgyz ASSR, targeted and systematic work began on collecting and studying folklore. In May 1926, the scientific commission of the Department of Public Education reported: "At the moment, the following work is urgently being carried out: all outstanding musicians of Kyrgyzstan are being registered; contracts are being concluded with singers of major poems; negotiations have begun with specialists in musical art for the transcription of Kyrgyz melodies into notation and for the systematization of national instruments."
In 1920, the Academic Center of the Kyrgyz Commissariat of Education was established in Orenburg, attracting the well-known musicologist and composer Aleksandr Viktorovich Zataevich (1869—1936). Over 16 years, he recorded 2,600 melodies and instrumental pieces from the peoples of Central Asia, Altai, and Siberia, commented on them, created about a hundred artistic arrangements of folk melodies, and published several books and articles related to folklore.
Zataevich's passion for his work and genuine admiration for the folk genius, enthusiasm, and human and professional sensitivity as a folklorist, as well as his ability to connect with folk performers, could not help but evoke mutual sympathy from the musicians who collaborated with him.
It should be noted that field expeditions were conducted in a complex geopolitical situation, requiring the overcoming of organizational difficulties. "I recorded everywhere: at home, at the piano, but most often at various courses, in dormitories, schools, barracks; I recorded in the summer on the high idyllic banks of the Ural, and in winter on dark, dirty bunks or torn carpets of night shelters, and amidst the hustle and bustle of the market, and in the theater corridor, in short, everywhere I encountered any valuable source to enrich my song collection and wanted to take advantage of the singer's suitable mood," Zataevich recalled about his work on the first collection.
Zataevich first turned to Kyrgyz folklore in 1924. Eight samples of the song genre, recorded in Moscow from Kyrgyz youth, were included in the collection "1000 Songs of the Kyrgyz People" (referring to both Kazakhs and Kyrgyz). It had a significant public and scientific resonance. "Your work is colossal," wrote B. Asafyev, "in terms of energy expenditure, tirelessness, and inhuman persistence — it is truly epic." Romain Rolland called Zataevich's tireless work a "musical feat," the content of which goes far beyond local issues, just as the activities of M. Balakirev, B. Bartók, and Komitas did in their time.
At the same time, the collection of Kazakh and Kyrgyz melodies immediately raised a number of important issues concerning the folklore tradition as a whole. Such properties, which Zataevich calls "free meter," "asymmetrical periods," "unconditional diatonism," and "multiplication of variants," later became the subject of detailed scientific research. Some of them were already touched upon by A. Zataevich and A. Kastal'skiy in the introduction, preface, and comments to "1000 Songs."
In 1928, at the invitation of the People's Commissariat of Education of the Kyrgyz ASSR, A. Zataevich arrived in the capital of the republic and recorded samples from professional folk musicians and students for the collection "250 Kyrgyz Instrumental Pieces and Melodies," published in 1934.
The significance of Zataevich's work is hard to overestimate; he laid the groundwork for a systematic collection, recording, and study of Kyrgyz folk music. He was the first to document such a vast layer of existing folklore, classified the genres of folk music, its expressive means, and instrumentation. Along the way, the author provided vivid literary sketches of folk customs and included legends and tales.
Among the Kyrgyz musicians from whom the scholar recorded samples of folklore were Murataaly Kureneev, Karamoldo Orozov, Zholoy Boogachinov, and Abdylas Maldybaev. He was the only folklorist to work directly with Toktogul Satylganov, from whom he recorded 18 melodies. Zataevich left for posterity living verbal portraits of akyns and singers, providing each of them with a qualified assessment.
In 1936, A. Zataevich prepared for publication 173 new folklore recordings, among which were melodies and improvisations by Atai Ogonbaev, Moldobasan Musulmankulov, Ybrai Tumanov, Kadyk Akiyev, and Musa Bayetov.
The scholar noted the bright melodic gift and singing talent of the young Jumamudyn Sheraliyev, who later became a well-known ırchy. He involved dozens of amateur musicians — representatives of mass folk creativity — in his work. The article published at that time by Zataevich, "Notes of a Collector of Kyrgyz Music," became a legacy and guidance for those who would continue his work.
Zataevich's practical activity as an ethnologist bears the imprint of its time, reflecting the corresponding level of scientific development, while also opening up prospects for an entire scientific direction — Kyrgyz musical folklore studies.
The notation system used by Zataevich can no longer be considered perfect today: sound recording equipment was not used, many elements of instrumental pieces and vocal texts were not documented, and there was a high degree of subjectivity in translating auditory impressions into musical notation. As for the latter, the scholar himself warns of possible criticisms: "...In the matter of reproducing on paper song treasures that have not yet been captured by anyone, and in general — known to very few, ...more than in any other matter, an element of internal co-creation, enthusiastic and comprehensive empathy for the performance is necessary, without which any recording will only be a cold and lifeless protocol."
Zataevich primarily captured the melody (theme) of the folk piece, while in the comments he characterized its emotional and figurative content. The style of Zataevich's recordings, with all the merits and shortcomings of his methodology, significantly influenced further research by ethnomusicologists who chose his collections as material for study. Moreover, composers from Kyrgyzstan and other republics have repeatedly used folk melodies from Zataevich's collections in their compositions. The scholar's works became reference books for many musicians.
The conclusions made by the folklorist based on a vast volume of recordings have not lost their scientific and cognitive significance. Zataevich preferred instrumental genres, believing that here the musical talent of the Kyrgyz people was most clearly manifested. At the same time, he provided initial descriptions of almost all genres (less detailed for epic and akyn song creation). Characterizing the theoretical and practical work of the first folklorist in Kyrgyzstan, V. Vinogradov emphasizes its "artistic, cultural, and historical value."
