Revoriy Chemchoev

Revoriy Gavrilyevich Chemchoev — Chömchöö Uus is a Folk Master of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) and an international-class khomus maker from the Vilyuysky District. He holds the Excellence in Culture of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) badge, is an Honorary Citizen of the Vilyuysky District and has received a grant from the president of the republic.

Chemchoev began as a woodworker and started making traditional Sakha jewellery from nickel silver in 1980. In 1986, he met Ivan Fyodorovich Zakharov — Kylyady Uus, who shared khomus-making techniques with him and offered practical guidance. Chemchoev gained further experience at a makers’ seminar held in Vilyuysk in 1988.

In 1991, Chemchoev won the first international “Best Jaw Harp in the World” competition in Yakutsk. He subsequently participated in international jaw harp congresses, including the 1998 congress in Austria. In recognition of his contribution to the republic’s culture, he received the Excellence in Culture of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) badge in 1998 and the badge for Contribution to the Development of Folk Art in 2005.

In 1991, Chemchoev founded the “Uhuyaan” workshop, which gradually developed into a place where schoolchildren and young makers from different parts of Yakutia could study the craft. Among those who continued their training under him was Mikhail Nikolayevich Maltsev — Kylaan Uus, who later also became a Folk Master and a winner of international competitions.

Chemchoev’s best-known work is the khomus selected for a journey to the International Space Station in 2011. The instrument was launched aboard Soyuz TMA-03M on 21 December and spent more than six months in orbit. Cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko learned to play the khomus especially for the mission and performed a melody with it aboard the station. After its return, the instrument was given a place of honour at the Museum and Center of the Khomus of the Peoples of the World, while one of the replicas made by Chemchoev was donated to the Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics in Moscow.

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