Atay Ogonbaev (1900—1949) entered the history of Kyrgyz folk musical culture as a versatile musician, singer, komuz player, and author of beautiful lyrical songs. His best works are distinguished by their spirituality and exquisite style. Songs such as "Burned to Ashes" ("Kuydum chok"), "I Remember" ("Esimde"), "Youth" ("Zhashtar"), "Longing" ("Sagyńych"), "Flower" ("Gul"), "Oh, Nightingale" ("Oy, bulbul") are the highest examples of folk vocal lyricism.
Relying on the mass lyrical song folklore and developing the melodic principles of his teachers Toktogul Satylganov and Abdrakhman Terbishaliev, Atay perfected the style and technique of the Kyrgyz traditional vocal school and earned the right to be called an innovative author in this field. He became, in fact, the first known bright representative of the professional sphere of vocal folklore.
He belongs to the representatives of the northwestern school of traditional musical performance. He was born in the village of Kok-Kashat, now in the Talas district of the Talas region, in a peasant family. At the age of six, he lost his parents and was left in the care of his cousin Sultanaly, who taught the boy to read and write. Atay became interested in playing the komuz under the influence of his grandfather and later the famous komuz player Zhantakbay. The virtuoso komuz player Aydaraly Beyshukurov also had a certain impact on his musical development. However, the decisive role in Ogonbaev's creative fate was played by his meeting with the great Toktogul.
In 1935, Atay Ogonbaev met with artists from the Kyrgyz Musical and Dramatic Theater, which was touring in the Talas region. After listening to him, they highly praised him as a komuz player and singer. On their recommendation, Atay was accepted into the capital theater, and a year later, with the establishment of the philharmonic, he was transferred as a soloist to the orchestra of Kyrgyz folk instruments, led by P. Shubin.
At that time, Atay Ogonbaev created his own works, including the historical-heroic play "The Moan of the String" ("Saadak kakty"), which A. Zataevich recorded from Atay himself in 1936, and Ch. Isabaev recorded from Shekerbek Sherkulov in the 1970s.
Among Atay Ogonbaev's pieces, the kuy titled "Ak tamak, Koks tamak" (the names of birds) attracts special interest from both a wide audience and professionals. In terms of performance techniques, the piece can be called somewhat extravagant: in order to give its images a special vividness, the komuz player seems to transform into the acting, animated characters.
The performance of the kuy is usually accompanied by an introductory story, representing a dialogue between two birds.
Ak tamak. "Listen, I like Talas, but there are no peaches, grapes, or dates here. We should fly south to warmer lands."
Kok tamak. "We are not going anywhere from here. This is my homeland. Manas lived here; he considered Talas the center of the Kyrgyz. Isn't it beautiful here? The mighty Ala-Too, clean air, green valleys, noisy rivers, dense forests."
Then Ak tamak suggests resolving the dispute through a singing contest and wins it... The kuy "Ak tamak, Koks tamak" was performed by Atay Ogonbaev at the Decade of Kyrgyz Art in Moscow in 1939. The concert host Ashiraaly Botaliev recounted: "In the middle of the kuy, Atay took a knife that was lying on the stool and continued to play. The performance became even more interesting. Under the spotlight, the knife sparkled in different colors. The audience warmly welcomed this theatrical performance technique and applauded for a long time."
In 1939, the komuz player was awarded the honorary title of People's Artist of the Republic. At the All-Union competition for folk instrument performers, he was awarded the first prize.
With his ensemble of komuz players, created in 1936, Atay Ogonbaev performed at two decades of Soviet music in the Central Asian republics — in Frunze (1942) and in Tashkent (1944).
