"Kharibulbul" Music Festival is an international music festival held in Shusha.

It is not a coincidence that the venue of choice for the festival is the city of Shusha. Shusha is the cradle of Azerbaijani culture, the homeland of many prominent figures, musicians, architects, artists and writers, personalities who have made invaluable contributions to the world's cultural treasury.
 
The mission of the Kharibulbul International Folklore Festival is to revive and preserve national cultural traditions; to demonstrate the multicultural environment of Azerbaijan, created by various peoples living together; to form a creative environment where talents are discovered, professional experiences are shared, and new artistic values emerge by bringing together traditional and contemporary music genres; to transform the city of Shusha, considered the center of Azerbaijani culture, into an international cultural dialogue space aimed at promoting the city's contribution to world culture after its liberation from occupation. 
      
The first "Kharibulbul" music festival in Shusha was held in May 1989, in connection with the 100th anniversary of the birth of the famous singer Seyid Shushinski. Along with local performers, the first festival was attended by music groups from the Kirghiz SSR, Kazakh SSR, Bashkir SSR, Lithuanian SSR, and Belarusian SSR. Overall, nearly 100 participants took part in the festival. Concerts were held in 7 venues constructed in the Jidir Duzu plain. The festival was opened with the famous mugham "Karabakh shikestesi" in the Jidir Duzu plain. Karabakh horse races and wrestling competitions were held on the first day of the event. The audience of the first festival was mainly residents of Shusha.

In 1990, the "Kharibulbul" festival gained international status. The invitation of folk groups from Japan, the USA, Turkey, Germany, Israel, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Austria, and Afghanistan to the second festival evoked great interest. Due to the dire situation in Shusha in the wake of the start of the Karabakh conflict, the concerts were organized in Aghdam. Many festival concerts were also held in Barda and Aghjabadi. About 170 delegates from different countries attended the second festival. The festival, carrying international status, was considered one of the significant cultural events not only in Azerbaijan but also in the USSR. 

The third festival took place in the city of Aghdam in 1991. About 300 delegates from 25 countries participated in the third "Kharibulbul" festival held in 1991. Artists from the United States and Australia also attended the festival. Due to the large number of spectators, the festival's main concerts were held in stadiums. The final concerts of the second and third festivals were held at the Republic Palace in Baku (now Heydar Aliyev Palace) in 1990-1991.

The fourth festival was due to start in Baku on 15 May 1992 and was expected to be the most spectacular event ever held. Five hundred people from more than 30 countries were scheduled to attend. However, due to the occupation of Shusha by Armenian troops on 8 May of the same year, it was not possible to organize the "Kharibulbul" festival. The festival was held only briefly at the Imarat complex in Aghdam.

It took many years of waiting to return to the traditional festival days in Shusha. After the restoration of our territorial integrity during the 44-day Patriotic War and the liberation of the city of Shusha from Armenian occupation, President Ilham Aliyev declared Shusha the cultural capital of the country with his Decree dated May 7, 2021. With this decree, the "Kharibulbul" festival was restored. Thus, the foundation for the spiritual revival of Shusha and the Karabakh land as a whole was laid. On May 12 and 13, 2021, the "Kharibulbul" festival took place in Shusha for the first time after liberation from occupation. On the first day of the 4th festival, which was held on the Jidir Duzu plain of Shusha, national dances and mugham performances were presented, concerts of folk musical groups representing various regions of Azerbaijan and national minorities were held, and video screenings featuring performances of Azerbaijani singers recorded in Shusha in different years were demonstrated. Classical music compositions of Azerbaijani composers were presented on the second day of the festival. The concert featured performances by the Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra and Azerbaijan State Choir, as well as well-known vocal singers and other soloists. Among the guests invited to the event were many public and cultural figures, prominent personalities from Karabakh, including Shusha. 

The 5th Kharibulbul International Folklore Festival held on May 12-14, 2022, in the "Year of Shusha" on the occasion of the 270th anniversary of the city of Shusha following the Presidential Order, featured performances of ethno-electronic music, folk-jazz, folk-rock, folk-pop, and various other rich world music genres. The festival took place in two different venues in Shusha - the Main and Small stages - where dance and music groups from 9 different countries performed. Among them were performances by the Azerbaijan State Dance Ensemble, State Song and Dance Ensemble, various local regional groups, as well as music groups from Turkey, Mali, Tunisia, Georgia, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Bulgaria, Egypt, and France, with their concert programs.

The 6th Kharibulbul International Music Festival organized by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Ministry of Culture was held in Shusha, the cultural capital of Azerbaijan, on May 9-11, 2023. 

The festival days were attended by creative collectives from the member countries of TURKSOY (Joint Administration of Turkic Culture and Art), as well as Turkic-speaking countries and peoples of the region. Alongside Azerbaijan, the festival was represented by Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Hungary, the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia within the Republic of Moldova (Gagauz Yeri), Uzbekistan, as well as the Autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan of Uzbekistan, Altai, Khakassia, Sakha (Yakutia), Tatarstan, and Tuva Republics of the Russian Federation, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Turkey, and Turkmenistan. 
 
During the festival days, various pavilions were created on different themes such as "Flag", "Heroism", "Karabakh Assembly", "Poetry", "Dede Qorqud", "Dervishes", and "Molla Nasreddin". Various artistic presentations and performances were held in these pavilions. Additionally, different concert programs, exhibitions, and film screenings were held in Jidir Duzu plain, in front of Uzeyir Hajibeyli’s statue, Bulbul's house museum and other places of Shusha.

Today, Shusha is recognized internationally as a significant place where music festivals, poetry celebrations, and prominent international events take place, and where historic declarations are signed. The whole world now considers Shusha a symbol of Azerbaijan's victory, peace, progress, and culture.

The "Kharibulbul" music festival held in Shusha not only stands as one of the most significant cultural events in the history of Azerbaijan but also serves as a grand celebration of the historic Victory.

Recommended literature:

1. Şuşa tarixin obyektivində / layihənin müəl., tərt. T. Axundov ; red. G. Mehdiyeva. - Bakı : Təhsil NPM, 2022. - 256 s.
2. Şuşa - Azərbaycanın mədəniyyət paytaxtı = Shusha - the Cultural Capital of Azerbaijan / Bakı Beynəlxalq Multikulturalizm Mərkəzi [et al.] ; red. heyyəti: R. Ənvərli [et al.] ; ideya müəl. A. Kərimov ; layihənin rəh. A. Cəfərli. - Bakı : n. y., n. i. y. - 203 s.
3. Əhmədov, Elçin İldırım oğlu. Şuşa - Azərbaycanın tarixi və strateji əhəmiyyəti, mədəniyyət paytaxtı / E. İ. Əhmədov ; elmi red. K. K. Şükürov ; Azərbaycan Respublikası Mədəniyyət Nazirliyi. - Yeniləşdirilmiş və təkmilləşdirilmiş II nəşr. - Bakı : Aspoliqraf, 2022. - 472 s.
4. Zeynalov, Fazil. Şuşa - müqəddəs Azərbaycan şəhəri / F. Zeynalov ; red. C. Ə. Bəhramov. - Bakı : Azərnəşr, 2022. - 172 s.
5. Şuşa Azərbaycanın tarix və mədəniyyət incisidir / Azərbaycan Respublikası Mədəniyyət və Turizm Nazirliyi ; tərt.: Z. Abbasov, M. Çəmənli ; elmi məsl. Y. M. Mahmudov ; məsl. B. Səfərov. - Bakı : Təhsil, 2012. - 48 s.