Awarded the Order of Chinggis Khaan, the highest state award, and the Mongolian Cultural Ambassador, Morin Khuur Orchestra.
The Morin Khuur Orchestra was founded in 1992 on the initiative of Ts. Batchuluun, People's Artist of Mongolia, with the aim of preserving and transmitting, honoring and developing, and spreading the morin khuur — the melodic expression of the history, daily life, culture and thought of the Mongolian people. Drawing on both Mongolian and international musical instruments, the Ensemble possesses a sonority and character entirely its own, and it presents Mongolia's national art both at home and throughout the world. By Resolution No. 98 of the Government of Mongolia of 25 May 1994, the Ensemble was incorporated into the structure of the Mongolian Philharmonic, within which it continues to work today.
Structure and Composition
The conductors of the Morin Khuur orchestra are D.Tuvshinsaikhan, Merited Worker of Art of Mongolia, and N.Jigjiddorj, Honored Cultural Worker of Mongolia. The Orchestra brings together traditional Mongolian instruments (two-stringed bowed fiddle, hammered dulcimer, plucked half-tube zither, bass horsehead fiddle, horn trumpet) and Western classical instruments (piano, flute, viola and percussion).
Working within the Orchestra, each with its own distinctive voice, are the "Chulugen" Morin Khuur Quartet, the "Khulan" group, the Yatga (plucked half-tube zither) Quintet and the "Arga Bilig" ethno-jazz group. The Orchestra consists of more than 50 artists holding higher professional degrees many of whom have competed successfully and won prizes at professional music competitions both internationally and in Mongolia.
Repertoire
The resonance and timbre of the Morin Khuur Orchestra lend themselves to the performance of Eastern and Western music alike, as well as contemporary new works. Its repertoire extends from song to opera, from biyelgee (traditional Mongolian dance) to ballet, and from traditional morin khuur performance to large-scale forms such as solo pieces, sonatas, concertos and sinfoniettas, alongside music written for stage and screen — documentary and feature films, television films and theatre productions.
Awards
The Orchestra has received numerous distinctions, among them: the Award of the President of Mongolia (2005); the "Goo Maral" Award, the highest honor in all the arts, for the music of the ballet Carmen by G. Bizet – R. Shchedrin – N.Jantsannorov (1999); the "Goo Maral" Award as the finest organization promoting Mongolian art abroad (2010); First Prize at the first national competition of folk chamber musicians, won by the Yatga (plucked half-tube zither) quartet (2004); the honorary title "Pride of Mongolia", conferred following a readers' poll conducted by the newspaper Century News (2004); the honorary title "Delkhii Mongol", conferred following a readers' poll conducted by the newspaper Daily Newspaper (2012); the Grand Prix in the music category of the World Culture Open festival in the Republic of Korea (2004); and, in 2009, the "Khulan" group at Ritmi e Danze dal Mondo.
In 2022, in recognition of its contribution to Mongolia's foreign relations and to the field of culture, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs conferred upon the Morin Khuur Orchestra the title of "Cultural Envoy of Mongolia". By decree of the President of Mongolia, on the first day of the first winter month of 2023 — marking the 861st anniversary of the birth of Chinggis Khaan and Mongolian Pride Day — the Orchestra was awarded the Order of Chinggis Khaan, First Class, the highest state decoration of Mongolia.
Touring
The Orchestra has undertaken 104 tours abroad, performing at Carnegie Hall and the United Nations Hall in New York (USA), the UNESCO Hall in France, the Philharmonic Hall in Vienna (Austria), the "Musikverein" (Russian Federation), the United Nations Hall in Switzerland, the Berlin Philharmonic (Germany), the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow (Russian Federation), the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing (China), Suntory Hall, Across Orchard Hall, Osaka Symphony Hall, Sapporo Symphony Hall, Yokohama Cultural Center and NHK Hall in Japan, the National Theater of the Republic of Korea, the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taiwan, Hong Kong City Hall and Sha Tin Town Hall in Hong Kong, the Sydney Opera House, and the Royal Palace in Austria, as well as in Italy, Canada and Türkiye.
Recordings
The Orchestra has recorded and released the albums "Best 1,2" and "Playing Love 1,2", The folk-song album "Torgony Khee" (Silk Pattern), the album "Mongolian Philharmonic", the collective double album "The Mongolian Philharmonic", the double album "Mongol Ayalguu"(Mongolian Melody), and music for more than thirty albums by composers and performing artists.