The International Jazz Festival in Bishkek, Jazz Bishkek Spring, was initially conceived as an “ethnojazz” festival, according to Keneshbek Almakuchukov, one of its founders and organizers. To explore the idea, the organizers launched a jazz laboratory and encouraged local musicians to experiment by fusing jazz with local folk music traditions. They tried using folk instruments to perform jazz standards, but those trained in folk music often did not feel the jazz vibe. Conversely, jazz musicians who were fluent in the jazz language struggled to genuinely connect with the local folk idiom. It also includes workshops at local music schools and afterparties in beer clubs, since Bishkek currently lacks a dedicated jazz venue.