“The Nart Saga as the Source of the Abkhaz Musical Culture”

Abstract

PhD Condidate, Professor, Corresponding member Academic of the International Academy of Sciences “Ararat” of Paris, Leading Researcher at the Center for Comprehensive Art Research (Saratov, Russia), Chanba Nodar Victor. - “The Nart Saga as the Source of the Abkhaz Musical Culture”. Reading through the "musical" pages of the "Nart Saga", one is convinced that since ancient times music has been an integral part of human life. We learn about the genesis of music and its presence in people's lives. The true value of the "Nart Saga" is that it is an inexhaustible source of the fundamental principles of the philosophy and musical culture of the Abkhaz people. In conclusion, I suggest we return to "Azar" memorial song, generally regarded as an attribute of the memorial ceremony, performed, in particular, during the races held as the commemoration of the deceased man, where mental relaxation was not allowed. Therefore, the song about the horse named Azar is more of a heroic than a mourning character. The song consists of two contrasting parts; it starts with the expressive solo introduction of improvisational character followed by epic and stately three-part male choral chorus. Like many songs, "Azar" is sung with refrain words. Untranslatable refrains or minimal text component of the song naturally gives the melody a leading role. Also, I would like to mention, that according to Nart Saga "Azar" was created by two heroic women - Gunda and Khanda.