Aichurek: the first Kyrgyz opera

Aichurek means "Moon Beauty" in Kyrgyz. The three-act opera was composed jointly by Vladimir Vlasov, Abdylas Maldybaev and Vladimir Fere, to a libretto by Joomart Bokonbaev, Jusup Turusbekov and Kubanychbek Malikov.

Its plot comes from the second part of the Manas epic: the heroine Aichurek defends her people's honour during an enemy invasion.

First staged in 1939, it launched the Kyrgyz Opera and Ballet Theatre and was performed in Moscow the same year. It belongs to the "golden fund" of Kyrgyz music.