DUSHANBE, July 3, 2012, Asia-Plus – U.S. Ambassador to Tajikistan Ambassador Ken Gross was joined by General Director of Radio Vatan Vera Kulakova-Brannerud and SHAMS lead singer Nobovar Chanorov to judge the Grand Finale of the First American Corner Tajikistan Song Competition.
According to the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe, the event took place at the American Corner (AC) Dushanbe, located in the National Library, on June 28 and was attended by over 150 people.
In celebration of Tajikistan’s talented youth and to promote English language learning through popular culture and music, the United States Embassy in Dushanbe organized a nationwide song competition. In the past two months, regional competitions were held at the six ACs throughout Tajikistan – in Dushanbe, Khujand, Gharm, Qurghon Teppa, Kulob, and Khorog. Over 100 participants between the ages of 16 and 25 took part in the regional competitions. One finalist was chosen from each AC to represent their region in the Grand Finale. The regional winners were: Muqaddas Rahmonova (Dushanbe), Parviz Yusupov (Khujand), Farangez Bobiyeva & Mohira Mahmadjonova (Gharm), Homid Kholov (Qurghon Teppa), Nigorai Salim (Kulob), and Amir Mamadambarov & Juma Mamadonov (Khorog).
In addition to the finalists, some participants from the Dushanbe regional competition took part in the program as well. At the end of the performances, prizes were presented to the top three performers. Third place was given to AC Khujand’s Parviz Yusupov, second was awarded to AC Kulob’s Nigorai Salim, and the grand prize winner of the First American Corner Tajikistan Song Competition was AC Dushanbe’s Muqaddas Rahmonova.
Aside from the individual prizes, the grand prize winner claimed the AC Tajikistan Song Competition Trophy for her Corner. Thus, the trophy will remain at the Dushanbe American Corner until next year’s competition.
ACs are partnerships between the Public Affairs sections of United States Embassies and host institutions. They are dedicated information spaces hosted in schools, libraries, and other partner institutions worldwide to help introduce visitors to the United States. American Corners provide multifunctional platforms for public diplomacy programs and offer access to print, multimedia, and other materials in order to maintain open dialogue and to build bridges of understanding.
American Corners consist of English language book collections from and about the United States. The collections include reference titles, information products from the State Department Office of International Information Programs, works of fiction, business and government publications, and English language learning materials. The Corners also provide free Internet, audio and video products, CDs, and DVDs.
