Baigali Serkebayev was born in
Alma-Ata, Kazakh SSR, on June 27, 1958. His family was that of
Ermek Bekmukhamedovich Serkebayev, an opera singer. His father wished for Baigali to become a pianist or a conductor. Baigali started playing the piano at age 5; he is now a graduate of
Kulyash Baiseitova's music academy and
Kurmangazy Almaty Conservatoire (Piano). After completion of his course at the conservatoire, Baigali Serkebayev joined Aray, a band led by the Kazakh composer and conductor Taskyn Okapov. The band performed with singer
Roza Rymbayeva. Aray broke up in 1982, and Roza suggested that Baigali should form and lead a new band. Despite the situation, the band kept the name "Aray" until 1987, when it became Alma-Ata. A year later, it released its first album, titled Put’ bez Ostanovok (The Non-Stop Journey), and changed its name to Almata-Studio. In 1990, one of the band's songs, "Julia," attracted the attention of
Alla Pugacheva, who first invited the band to join her musical theater, and then to the Christmas Meetings TV show, where Almata-Studio was presented as the best band in the Soviet Union. During the same year, Aleksey Berkovich, a director and cameraman, proposed to make a feature-length musical movie named
Julia. The movie was shot in
Almaty,
Odesa, and
London. Baigali Serkebayev later became the producer of The Jigits, another Kazakhstani boy band, which consisted of graduates of the Star Factory in
Almaty. In August 2015, Baigali Serkebayev and his eldest daughter, Kamila, established the
Ermek Serkebayev Foundation for Culture and Arts to support young performers, promote their education and development, establish grants and scholarships, and organize public concerts in Kazakhstan and abroad. ==Family==