UNESCO has included in the list of masterpieces of spiritual heritage of the World Heritage Site the cultural heritage of the Boysun region in the Surkhandarya region of Uzbekistan and the Uzbek “Shashmaqom”, which is part of the folklore and folk traditions of Uzbekistan – a musical cycle consisting of many classical music pieces.
As part of the project “Preserving the cultural heritage of Boysun for the future generation of the country”, a scientific expedition, a festival “Boysun bahori” (Spring of Boysun) and a regional conference were organised in Boysun. Scientific books and multimedia discs “Boysun art” and “Musical art of Boysun” were published. A museum and centre for national applied arts was opened in Boysun. A centre for the development of cultural tourism was established and the folklore academy “House of Culture” with modern equipment was opened in Boysun. In 2001, UNESCO recognised the Boysun culture as a “masterpiece of oral and spiritual heritage”. In 2002 the first Boysun-Bahori Folklore and Folk Traditions of Uzbekistan was held.
As part of the project “Preserving and developing Shoshmaqom and passing it on to future generations”, books entitled “The customs of Shoshmaqom and modern times”, “Fakhriddin Sodikov”, “Maqom of Tashkent and Fergana” and “Maqom of Chorezm” were published; a book by Yunus Rajabiy entitled “Shoshmaqom” was prepared for printing and audio discs and video films entitled “Shoshmaqom” were produced.