Kazan entered the UNESCO Creative Cities Network

The capital of Tatarstan among 66 cities from all over the world joined the creative cities network in the field of music.

The capital of Tatarstan among 66 cities from around the world was designated in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN). The network unites cities which recognize creativity as a major factor of the development -music, arts and crafts, folk art, design, cinematography, literature, media art or gastronomy.

Kazan entered the network in the field of music. Among the Russian cities in addition to the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan, there is also Kargopol in the field of decorative, applied and folk art.

Kazan has applied for the 2019 UCCN membership in the creative field music in June. The UNESCO Creative Cities Network was launched in 2004. Currently, it consists of 246 cities.

The cultural life of the capital of Tatarstan is saturated with a huge number of musical events of the international level, including the Opera festival named after Fyodor Shalyapin, classical ballet festival named after Rudolf Nureyev, the festival of modern music “Europe-Asia”, the festival “White lilac” named after Sergei Rachmaninoff, the festival of modern music “Concordia” named after Sofia Gubaydullina, the open-air festival “Golden autumn”, "L'arte de larco", the festival of new Tatar culture Tat Cult Fest, as well as the festival “Delicious Kazan”, the literary festival “Aksyonov-fest”, book festivals CSC “Smena” and the international festival of Muslim cinema.

9 theaters, 34 state museums, private galleries, State concert hall and 2 philharmonic halls are open to the public in Kazan. The Kazan State Symphony orchestra and the Kazan State chamber orchestra “La Primavera” are famous far beyond Kazan. 17 municipal centers of culture and leisure, 392 clubs, as well as 50 children's art schools, Kazan State Conservatory and a music school provide the opportunity for a creative self-realization.

The creative cities work together towards a common objective: placing creativity and cultural industries at the heart of their development plans at the local level and cooperating actively at the international level, according to the UNESCO website. “All over the world, these cities, each in its way, make culture the pillar, not an accessory, of their strategy,” says UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. “This favours political and social innovation and is particularly important for the young generations”.

The member cities of the network represent all continents and regions with different income levels and population. They work together towards a common mission: to make cities safe, inclusive and sustainable according to the United Nations 2030 agenda for a sustainable development. The UNESCO creative cities make a tangible contribution to the achievement of the sustainable development goals through innovative thinking and action. A complete list of the 66 new cities that have joined the UCCN is available on the UNESCO website.