Iliana Bozhanova was born in the village of Gâlâbovo near Stara Zagora (Thrace) and now lives in Plovdiv. She grew up in a family of musicians and singers and obtained a Master's degree from the Plovdiv Academy of Dance and Fine Arts. Iliana has performed with several folk ensembles in Bulgaria including the Rachenitsa Ensemble directed by Dimitâr Doichinov. She is currently the artistic director and choreographer of the Voivodintsi Ensemble near Plovdiv. She has taught numerous workshops throughout Europe as well as in Israel, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and North America presenting mostly authentic village material which she has collected. She is the coordinator of the dance program at the annual summer Folk Music and Dance Seminar held at the Plovdiv Academy of Dance and Fine Arts. For their first Quebec appearance, Iliana and Todor will present exciting dances from all regions of Bulgaria from their recent CD «Ogân» (Fire) featuring some of Bulgaria's finest folk musicians.
Official website : www.ilianabozhanova.com
Todor Yankov was born in Plovdiv and raised in the village of Dobrolâk in the Rhodope mountains where his father,Vassil Yankov, was a renowned gajda player. At age 10, Todor learned to play the kaval and the gajda and later took on the accordion which became his main instrument. He has played and sung with several professional folk bands. Since 2004, he co-directs with Iliana Bozhanova, the Voivodintsi Folk Ensemble near Plovdiv.
For this special edition of Saint-Lazare, we will have an exciting dance party on Saturday night with our featured Bulgarian folk orchestra «Na megdana» especially created for this occasion.
It will be composed of:
Nikolay Kolev is a famous gâdulka virtuoso from the village of Karavelovo in the Rose Valley of Bulgaria. After graduating from the Shiroka Lâka Music School, he performed with the Sliven Folk Ensemble for three years. In 1984, he founded the Sopot orchestra and the Rozova Dolina wedding band (svatbarski orkestâr) which became one of the most sought-after groups in Thrace. In 1992, he formed Balkanski Glasove (Balkan Voices) the singing group which took first place at the Varna Festival in 1994 and 1995. Nikolay is also an accomplished composer and arranger of folk songs which have been performed on Bulgarian National Radio by respected professional artists. In 2008, he toured the USA with the Kabile Band along with other Bulgarian master players. Nikolay and his wife Donka (a respected folk singer) now live in New York City. Their own performing group «Kolev Family» (with their two daughters Maria and Penka) were in Montreal in 2002 for a radio concert produced by Radio-Canada.
With her powerful and melodic voice, Donka Koleva is recognized and respected for her vast knowledge of Thracian traditional songs. She was born in the village of Tâzha near Stara Zagora and is a graduate of the Shiroka Lâka Music School. She has performed with the Sliven Folk Ensemble and was also choral director for the Sopot Ensemble. She is a featured soloist of the Bulgarian National Radio and in 1997, her recording of the folk song «Javore» was voted «song of the year». She also toured the USA with the Kabile Bulgarian Folk Orchestra. She is much in demand as a teacher. She has taught hundreds of students at the annual summer music camps sponsored by the East European Folklife Center.
Vassil Bebelekov was born in the Rhodope mountain town of Devin. He was inspired to a life of folk music and village traditions by his grandfather who played kaba gajda. Vassil also studied at the famous Shiroka Lâka Folk Music School and later became a soloist with the Trakya State Ensemble in Plovdiv. He was a member of the Philipopolis band with top professional folk musicians and many of his recordings are at the National Radio archives. For several years he taught at the Music Dept. of the Univ. of California in Los Angeles. He currently lives near San Francisco with his wife Maria, a fine singer of Rhodope folk songs.
Vassil Markov (kaval), Nikola Markov (tambura, saxophone) and Petâr Markov (accordéon and tâpan). These three brothers have lived in Montreal for several years. They grew up in the Thracian region of Bulgaria where they performed with several Folk Ensembles and wedding bands. They are also well-known as members of the professional groups Traky and Soleil Tzigane, which have a large following on the Montreal world music scene.
We are also pleased to offer you during the Saturday night dance party, a «mini-performance» of the Folk Dance Group «Bâlgari» from the «Paissi Hilendarski» Bulgarian-Canadian Center of Montreal. This performing group was formed in 2002 by members of Montreal's Bulgarian community who share a passion for Bulgarian folk dance and traditions. The group's choreographer is Tsanko Stoyanov, who studied at the Plovdiv Choreography School and is a former professional dancer and choreographer with the «Tundzha» Ensemble in Yambol, Thrace. Website.