Chechen authorities impose strict limits on tempo of musical works

According to the new rules, all musical and dance compositions in Chechnya must comply with a certain tempo, the republic’s Minister of Culture announces.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that in September 2019, Chechen authorities reported that amateur singers Ayub and Askhab Vakharagov were detained for an “explanation conversation” because they violated the ban on performing songs not approved by the republic’s authorities. The Chechen authorities do not prohibit amateur singers from performing, but the officials are against identifying amateur songs with the Chechen culture, the republic’s Ministry of Culture explains.

All musical, vocal, and choreographic compositions in Chechnya must correspond to a tempo of 80 to 116 beats per minute, announces Musa Dadaev, Chechen Minister of Culture.

The above decision has been approved by Ramzan Kadyrov, the “Chechnya Segodnya” (Chechnya Today) news agency reports. Now it is not allowed to distort or change the original lyrics of songs and musical accompaniment without the consent of the authors, and “borrowing musical culture from other peoples is unacceptable,” the Chechen Ministry of Culture reports on its page on the “VKontakte” social network.

Let us remind you that in July 2019, the Chechen Ministry of Culture criticized local amateur performers who publish their recordings on the Internet. Only performers approved by the official commission may perform concerts and publish their songs, the republic’s Ministry of Culture declares. “Amateur of free singing” often “do not fall within the established rules in Chechnya,” the “Grozny” ChGTRK (State TV and Radio Broadcasting Company) reports.