Dombra-shaped fountain to be unveiled in Almaty

"As a sign of respect and love for the national instrument, a dombra fountain was erected in Almaty. It will be located near the Kurmangazy Sagyrbayuly Monument in the square in front of the Great Concert Hall of the Conservatory. According to the creators, the object d'art will bring picturesqueness to one of the country's oldest higher-education institutions, which bears the name of the great kuishi," the ministry said.

The new object is 10.25 meters long and 2.85 meters wide. The fountain will have been launched by the Fountain Day, May 25th, and will operate until mid-September.

There is a good reason why the fountain is shaped as the dombra. The dombra is not just a musical instrument. It is the entire world, the Universe for a Kazakh, his/her whole life. There is a saying that the soul of a Kazakh lives in the sounds of the dombra. According to an ancient custom, every family should have a dombra. The dombra is given a place of honor as the Kazakh people's symbol, which conveys the national code, helping preserve the history and culture of the ancestors from time immemorial.

It is to be recalled that on June 13, 2018, the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, signed the Decree on the National Day of Dombra to be observed on the first Sunday of July. The Kazakh traditional art of Dombra Kuy has been inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.