The unique audiovisual art project AiTys (since 2023) units Aigerim Tazhi's own poetry, voice, sound art, music, performance on the ancient Kazakh instrument kobyz, and the visual imagery – all created by her.

“Calling the wind from the steppe…” is a fully authorial work by poet Aigerim Tazhi, based on her poem “On the aul’s edge a woman in a mortar pounded millet...”. This art work is the part of her ongoing audiovisual project AiTys (since 2023). The piece was created entirely by her uniting her own poetry, voice, sound art, music, performance on the ancient Kazakh instrument kobyz, and the visual imagery she created.

Poetry, sound art, kobyz performing, music and video by Aigerim Tazhi

The poem in translation

***

On the aul’s* edge a woman in a mortar pounded millet.

To send the chaff flying without stinging her eyes,

she whistled dashingly, calling the wind from the steppe. 

Everyone cursed – she summons the wind again – 

“she’s lured a hurricane”, “she plays with a storm”.

The wind blew over the grain.

A storm cloud was born in the mortar,

it rose above the house,

seeping into people, animals.

Mighty berkuts* flew apart.

Foxes barked.

The samovar’s fire howled like a train.

A swarm of blind husks. The pestle tiredly beat

in the mortar’s cage. The grain grew heavy.

“Enough, that’s it, plenty!” – 

she straightened above it.

Like a hunting dog at the threshold

the wind dropped, exhausted. 

* An aul (аул, pronounced “ah-ool”) is a traditional Kazakh village that historically served as a nomadic settlement.  

* Unlike many others, a traditional Kazakh mortar for pounding grain is a particularly large wooden vessel. It is called “ступа” (stupa) in the original poem.

* The berkut is the Kazakh name for the golden eagle, was once a common sight in the wild and stands as a cultural symbol.

The original poem:

***

В ступе женщина просо толкла на краю аула.

Чтоб труха улетала прочь и глаза не ела,

она лихо свистела, из степи вызывая ветер.

Все ругались – опять вызывает ветер –

«ураган приманила», «играет с бурей».

Ветер дул на зерно.

В недрах ступы рождалась туча,

поднималась над домом,

въедалась в людей, животных.

Разлетались могучие беркуты.

Лаяли лисы.

Костерок в самоваре гудел паровозом.

Рой слепой шелухи. Колотушка устало билась

в клетке чаши. Зерно тяжелело.

«Всё, хватит, много!» –

выпрямлялась над ступой она.

Как охотничий пёс, у порога

ветер падал без сил.

(c) Aigerim Tazhi