Comparative study of the musical codes of the Turkic world and the formation of a common scientific discourse are important issues. In the future a unified scientific concept for Turkic music and the creation of a digital archive of the legacy of Kalvali Ali Dede are very important directions.

These thoughts were expressed by the Director of the Institute of Folklore of ANAS, Doctor of Philology Hikmat Guliyev, during his speech at the 1^st International Symposium on Traditional Music and Cultural Identity of the Turkic World. In his speech, the scholar mentioned the importance of the event and the importance of scientifically investigating the common values in the musical heritage of the Turkic world. He mentioned that hosting the symposium was a source of great pride for the Institute of Folklore, noting that scholars from Azerbaijan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan had come together to discuss shared cultural memory, musical codes and traditions.

Hikmat Guliyev noted that the symposium, which would feature approximately 80 presentations over two days, was an important scientific platform for preserving the cultural values of the Turkic world and preserving national identity in the context of modern globalization and digitalization. He mentioned that traditional music, folklore and performing arts, exemplified by the Azerbaijani zurna-balaban art, were being brought into the spotlight and that new methodological approaches in this field - musicology, art studies, folklore studies, literary studies and linguistics - need to be formed in the context of Turkology.  

The speaker noted that although musical codes took different forms in different Turkic peoples, they were nourished by the same cultural memory and common roots. Hikmat Guliyev mentioned that the work of Kalvalı Ali Dede was not only a virtuoso performance, but also one of the mythical archetypes of Azerbaijani music in the collective memory. He noted that the symposium also provided a broad opportunity to explore the role of performers and their personal contributions to the creation and development of folk music.