About Sharapat band

About Sharapat Band

The band Sharapat was founded in 2014 by general producer Nurzhan Toyshy with the support of a sponsor whose name, at their request, is not disclosed.

The band’s name was chosen jointly with this sponsor. The instrumental foundation of the project was based on the many years of creative and production experience of Nurzhan Toyshy, who, following the success of the band Aldaspan, turned his attention to the rich variety of string instruments within Kazakh musical culture.

Many of these instruments, in his view, required electrification in order to achieve a full and powerful sound on large concert venues, including stadium stages—an objective that is practically unattainable when using purely acoustic instruments. In addition, while the musical foundation of Aldaspan was built upon traditional Kazakh kyui, in the Sharapat project Nurzhan Toyshy decided to make Kazakh vocal art the core element, integrating it into a modern electro-instrumental sound. During the process of creating the electric zhetygen at the “Shamray” studio in Moscow, a significant number of technical difficulties arose, primarily related to the instrument’s range. Part of these issues was resolved thanks to an idea proposed by Maksat Khasanov—a close associate of Nurzhan Toyshy and the lead electric dombra soloist of Aldaspan.

Maksat suggested integrating a guitar neck directly into the body of the instrument, and this solution was successfully implemented. Subsequently, through Maksat Khasanov’s professional connections at the Almaty Conservatory, the original lineup of Sharapat was formed:

drums — Kanat Botabayev;

vocals, electric rhythm/solo dombra — Yesbol Shanbayev;

electric zhetygen — Rafkhat Izden;

bass electric dombra — Yernar Kakezhanov.

In 2014, the band released its breakthrough debut album “Saryarqa”, which received a positive response and became the starting point of the group’s active concert activity.

The band worked successfully until 2018, performing concerts across Kazakhstan, in China, and even in the United States of America. Despite the achieved success, over time the members of the group faced serious family circumstances that prevented them from continuing full-scale work within the band. The lack of regular rehearsals on the part of the musicians for an entire year ultimately undermined the working process and demotivated Nurzhan Toyshy, as a result of which a decision was made to disband the group in 2018. It should be noted that Kanat Botabayev’s high demand as a percussionist in the opera and ballet theater, along with the extensive international touring associated with this work, Yesbol’s forced necessity to support his family by working three jobs simultaneously, as well as Rafkhat’s return from Almaty to his hometown of Aktau to live with his parents, effectively drained the group of its resources. This is the objective and often harsh reality of everyday life for musicians. Attempts to form a new lineup for the band, undertaken since 2018, were unsuccessful due to Nurzhan Toyshy’s heavy workload at his primary daytime business occupation. In 2020, the pandemic effectively halted the activities of the global music community. In the same year, while searching for new prospects for his musical projects, Nurzhan Toyshy relocated to Los Angeles, where he has since been compelled to focus on providing education for his children, who are students.

Nevertheless, Nurzhan Toyshy has not closed the casting process for musicians in the band Sharapat. The main requirements for potential participants in the project are as follows:

1.   Knowledge of the Kazakh language, Kazakh musical instruments, and the traditions of Kazakh musical culture.

2.   Physical presence in the city of Almaty.

3.   The ability to dedicate a total of at least 4 hours per week to rehearsals (a studio and the necessary equipment are available).

4.   Willingness to work not for a fixed salary, but on a revenue-sharing basis with a 20% share. 5.   Promotion in mass media at the required level will be provided by Nurzhan Toyshy whenever possible (it is recommended to review the band’s media archives and video interviews).