"Culture knows no borders": more than 50 musicians from BRICS countries perform at the National Centre RUSSIA
A gala concert marking the conclusion of the Russian stage of the international project "BRICS Melody" was held at the National Centre RUSSIA. The event brought together performers playing traditional musical instruments from Russia, Brazil, India, China, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Iran and Indonesia. The highlight of the evening was a joint performance by all participants with the Ulyanovsk State Orchestra of Russian Folk Instruments conducted by Artyom Belov.
"Welcome to the National Centre, which is established by order of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, so that everyone can learn more about Russia, its achievements and take pride in their country. Judging by the audience’s response, we expect the number of participants in "BRICS Melody" to grow next year. Culture knows no borders. It also helps to dispel myths about Russia. For example, musician Saif Al Ali from the United Arab Emirates shared his impressions: before coming here, he believed Russia to be a formidable country inhabited by stern people who never smile. However, during his visit, he discovered that people here are kind and welcoming, and he has now visited our country eight times," said Deputy Director General of the National Centre RUSSIA, Anastasia Zvyagina.
BRICS Melody is the first international project to produce a joint musical album featuring performers from the BRICS countries playing traditional instruments. The creative laboratory and recording of 12 tracks took place in Ulyanovsk from 17 to 22 April.
The Moscow stage began on 24 April at the National Centre RUSSIA with the business forum titled "BRICS Countries: Traditions and Intercultural Dialogue", which brought together more than 1,100 participants and experts. Among them were representatives of public authorities, the diplomatic corps, rectors of leading conservatoires, and leaders of creative industries and youth organisations.
The main event — the concert on the stage of the National Centre RUSSIA — was conceived as a musical journey through the cultural worlds of nine countries. The programme, developed by Artistic Director Artyom Belov, was built around the idea of gradually uniting diverse national timbres into a single musical score.
The prologue, titled "Cultural Heritage of Russia", opened the evening with a performance by the Ulyanovsk State Orchestra of Russian Folk Instruments. The audience heard arrangements of Russian folk melodies and excerpts from an original suite composed specifically for the project. This was followed by the segment "Year of the Peoples of Russia", dedicated to the diversity of musical traditions within the country — from the Karelian kantele to the Dagestani zurna — serving as a symbolic starting point before the "major international dialogue".
International segments were structured as independent stage modules for each participating country. Each performance was preceded by a video presentation in which musicians spoke about the history of their instrument, its cultural context and symbolic meaning. After the introduction, the musician performed accompanied by the orchestra, with arrangements carefully designed so that the timbre of the national instrument would remain distinct while blending organically with the orchestral sound.
"This approach made it possible to preserve the authenticity of each sound — the Iranian daf, the Chinese guzheng, the South African uhadi, the Arab oud, the Indonesian kacapi, the Brazilian pandeiro and the Indian tabla sounded on an equal footing with balalaikas, domras and bayans. A total of 60 different traditional instruments were featured on stage — from widely known to those that exist in only a few examples," noted the project’s author and director, Natalia Aksyonova.
Among the participants were world-class performers: Saif Al Ali (UAE), the official representative of his country at the "Intervision-2025" contest and a virtuoso oud player; Taotao Zhou (China), laureate of the highest Chinese Wenhua award and Doctor of Arts, whose music has been used in nearly a thousand soundtracks, including collaborations with Jackie Chan; Mohamed Elegimi (Egypt), a qanun soloist at The Best FIFA Awards 2025 in Qatar; Bongiwe Lusizi (Mthwakazi) (South Africa), creator of the unique Xhopera genre; Reza Dezaipur (Iran), laureate of the World Daf Festival (Kurdistan); the ensemble "Sangam" (India), five virtuoso performers whose music features in Bollywood films and albums by global stars; the ensemble "Sanggita" (Indonesia), a legendary group with a 40-year history; and Marcos Lami and Kadu Galvan (Brazil), researchers and custodians of Afro-Brazilian traditions.
The evening concluded with a joint performance of the original composition BRICS Melody, written specially for the festival.
The Russian stage of BRICS Melody has now concluded, but the project continues. In autumn 2026, a delegation of Russian and international musicians will travel to India, where concerts, master classes and a presentation of the first joint album — recorded in Ulyanovsk — will take place. It is expected that both returning participants and new performers from BRICS countries will take part in the Indian stage.
The project is organised by the Ulyanovsk regional branch of the Russian Union of Youth together with the National Centre RUSSIA, with the support of the Presidential Foundation for Cultural Initiatives. The co-organiser of the business programme is the project office for international youth cooperation Russia–BRICS, operating under the Creative Industries Foundation of the Ulyanovsk Region.
Event photobank
8 June is a maintenance day at the National Centre RUSSIA.
Seven teams from Russian regions and the near abroad were named winners and runners-up of the II Video Essay Contest "Dreams of the Future".
The II Video Essay Contest "Dreams of the Future" is being held at the National Centre RUSSIA on 7 June.
