Youth comes but once in a lifetime.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I had the pleasure of listening to Elitsa Stoyneva at Balkan Music Night in March in the Kefana, a space designed for performances.
She performed songs from different regions of Bulgaria. In video #1 are two songs from the Rhodopes, a mountain area near Greece. The second song is Posteno Ludo i Mlado. It has a beautiful, haunting quality that you can imagine echoing from the mountains.
Elitsa was pretty cool. She explained what the songs were about (one of them was quite funny; unfortunately I don't remember the name of the song, so I couldn't provide the video.) She even involved the audience in a song from the Shope region. The second and third songs in the video are an example of Shopi style singing, which involves whooping and long notes (impossible for me to do but it was fun, anyway).
Here she performs with two singers from the United States.
Elitsa is the woman on the left. I actually got to meet her while we were dancing a rachenitsa later on in the evening. Her English is excellent, tinged with a charming Bulgarian accent. Since the music we were dancing to was so loud, I couldn't hear her very well, but from what I gathered, she wasn't familiar with the dance the way we do it here. Different village, you know.
It's fun to sing sad songs. And it's fun to listen to sad songs. Enjoyable. Satisfying. Something.
Richard Thompson
Singing and listening to sad songs is a universal thing, especially when people have been drinking a little too much alcohol. This tends to bring out the maudlin streak. Songs about tragedy and lost love are common to many cultures, and today's post features four folk songs from Bulgaria. They mention the Danube, River of Many Names in the lyrics.
The first song is Dunave, Beli, Dunave, (White Danube) performed by Lyuben Zahariev. I couldn't find the lyrics or a translation of the song. The overall impression that I get is that there is a loss, maybe someone traveling far away leaving a girlfriend behind. If anyone out there has a translation, please post it in the comments section.
Lyuben Zahariev's singing style has often been compared to Kaicho Kamenov, who lived from 1923-1983. Both men were from northwestern Bulgaria, Vidin region.
This song is about about a man watching the fog and dreaming about his lost love: It is titled Kolko sa mÅgli po Dunava (What is the Fog on the Danube? Unfortunately Google Translate is not always 100% accurate, this is the best translation I could find.) Kamenov recorded most of his songs before the advent of color TV. The video is in black and white and shades of gray (fortunately not the Fifty Shades of Gray from that bondage and domination movie that was so popular recently.) Fog is a common phenomenon around large bodies of water, especially during spring and fall. It is white and obscures visibility. Many accidents (both on land and water) occur on foggy days.
The text (in Bulgarian) includes a brief bio of Kamenov, mentions his most popular songs, and shows the album cover. Back in the old days records (anyone remember those?) were 10" in diameter, had one song per side, and the rotational speed was 78 revolutions per minute. The average recording was about three minutes long. We have come a long way since then.
In the next video you get to watch a slideshow while listening to Radka Krai Dunav Stoeshe (Radka Stood Along the Danube). Is she waiting for someone from far away? Was she in love with a fisherman who never returned? This is another song with lyrics that could not be found, but the overall mood of the song is pure blues with accordion, clarinet, and lament. If you watch closely, you can see an ancient photo; most likely this is Radka. What color is the Danube here? The same color as the song.
The video for Oj Dunave Beli is even more colorful, featuring people on a steamboat dressed in period costumes from the early twentieth century. The singer is Daniel Spassov, and is an excerpt from a longer video titled Ide Duhovata Muzika (Here Comes the Brass Band).
I was able to pick up some of the song's meaning, which has to do with nostalgia for the past and one's lost youth.
"Reincarnation is making a comeback."
-British Slogan
Reincarnation is a fascinating concept. Many people believe that they have lived more than one life. It is the same with songs.
Today's post features two popular Bulgarian folk songs that were reincarnated: the older version (sung by a male) and the newer one (sung by a female).
Chia e Tova Mominche was originally performed by Kaicho Kamenov, who lived from 1923-1983. I've heard a number of his recordings on the Bulgarian National Radio. He was from the town of Vinarovo (near Vidin) in northwestern Bulgaria and his specialty was songs from the northern folklore region.
The video is an excerpt from the Bulgarian TV program Ide Nashenskata Muzika, hosted by Daniel Spasov (the guy at the end of the video with the microphone) and Milen Ivanov. The hosts of the show are also folk singers.
They devote a part of the show to artists from the past. It's broadcast most Saturdays and uploaded onto the Bulgarian National Television website by early afternoon, and features music from every folklore region of the country. I don't understand what the melting ice has to do with the song, but it sure looks wintry out there!
This is the same song by Lyuti Chushki, a group of folk musicians from the Washington DC area. They paid a visit to Mt. Holyoke College in South Hadley some years ago. During the day, they gave tupan and singing lessons, an intro to Bulgarian ethnomusicology, and in the evening a concert and a dance party. I enjoyed it very much.
The next song is Myatalo Lenche Jabuka, performed by two great artists of the mid-20th century, Boris Mashalov (vocals) and Boris Karlov (accordion).
Nikolina Chakardakova's version of Myatalo Lenche is the one we play at dances. The link goes to her website (in Bulgarian), and you can find videos of her songs there.
Unfortunately, you won't see the artist in the video, although her recording was used for the performance. The song is about a girl, Lenche, who throws an apple in the hope of finding a man to marry. An old man catches it instead. The plot revolves around the girl's mother sending the old man into the woods hoping that a bear will eat him.(In the stage performance the "bear" removes his "head", revealing a handsome young man.)
The dance is a rachenitsa, the national dance of Bulgaria.
It is as if we were fated to be a trio even before we were born.
Mitra Bisserov (during interview with Bulgarian National Radio)
I love music from the Pirin region (southwest Bulgaria). I have to admit, though, that it's an acquired taste; my family does not feel the same way about it.
Recently a program on the Bulgarian National Radio featured the Bisserov sisters. They come from a large musical family and specialize in music and songs from the Pirin region.
According to what I heard in the BNR interview, they have performed all over the world and gave their first performance in Cuba. In one of my previous posts, I mentioned how much Bulgarians admire music from Latin America. I am sure people from Latin America feel the same about Bulgarian folk music.
Video # 1 features two songs from the Pirin region. The instrumentation is unique to this area with the three tamburas (string instrument which resembles a lute) and tarambuka (small drum).
In the next video, the Bisserovs do some amazing things with their vocal cords. Song #1 sounds like the Bulgarian version of yodeling. The Pirin is a mountainous region, and yodeling was a way to call the cows or sheep home from a day at the pasture. Certain sounds echo well, and carry across long distances. Yodeling is certainly more reliable than cell phone service in remote mountain areas...
Song #2 is in 11/16 (kopanitsa rhythm), song #3 is a devetorka (9/16) and song #4 is in rachenitsa rhythm (7/16). Bulgarian music is well-known for its odd rhythms, and the dances are built around them.
Seeing people dressed in elaborate embroidered costumes is probably par for the course when riding the subway in Sofia. I grew up New York City, where the underground rapid transit system is over a century old and smells like rat droppings and stale urine. The Sofia metro is gorgeous compared to New York's.
This video alternates between the Bisserovs wearing "civilian clothes" and folk costumes. There is a scene at 1:40 where the ladies link hands and dance rachenitsa.
For more information about the Bisserov family you can visit their website, where you can read about the history of the group and listen to some samples of their songs.
By the way, if you are in Sofia on the 9th of December, the Bisserovs will be giving a 35th anniversary concert at the Sredets Culture House.
The Alien Diaries will be taking a break for most of December; the next post will be published shortly before New Year 2014. There are almost 200 posts here and and many people don't want to go out when it's cold and snowy outside. Here's the antidote to winter: get a cup of your favorite hot beverage, sit down in front of your computer, turn up the heat, and read my blog.
K.D. Brown: Visionary, a photo created with Bulgarian textile cloth
Light in Nature creates the movement of colors.
Robert Delaunay
Today's post was inspired by the Bulgarian National Radio. They had a program recently on color symbolism in Bulgarian folklore several weeks ago and you can find the link here:
Red is mentioned quite often in Bulgarian folk songs, often in connection with wine. A powerful, attention getting, and vibrant color (see photo above), red is the color of fire, passion, wine and blood. I've noticed lots of red in Bulgarian folk costumes as well. It is considered a lucky color.
Rusi Kosi is a song about a blonde who has no comb, and no powder for her white face (by the way, white has several meanings in Bulgarian, and in this case a white face is a beautiful face). She wonders when her mother will find her a man to marry who will buy her the comb and the powder. The girl's name is Elena, and she has to bring the red wine and two red apples. The translation comes from Bulgarian by way of German and it's from the Songbook for Nearsighted People, a compilation of international folk song lyrics by Birgitt Karlson.
The full moon rises, red, orange, and then white in the song Izgryala e Mesechinka while the young woman picks a colorful bouquet in the moonlit garden. This is a modern version of a beautiful Bulgarian folk song played on a gadulka and a guitar, and the lady who plays the gadulka, Hristina Beleva, has a very pretty voice. The dance in the video is a rachenitsa, the national dance of Bulgaria, with the irregular rhythm of 7/8 (apple-apple-pineapple).
The next video is so colorful it will draw you right in. The song is Dunave, Beli Dunave, which means White Danube. Most people associate the Danube with the color blue, maybe because it rhymes so well (in English and in German), however when I actually saw the river, it was a totally different group of colors (more like green, gold, and gray). In the video, however, it looks blue and sometimes white.
I often wondered why there were several Bulgarian folk songs on this topic; until I found out that white can also mean beautiful. White in Bulgarian folklore has a lot of symbolism, according to the Bulgarian National Radio: "the white color also means joy, grandeur and beauty", as well as purity and innocence.
The River of Many Names is also very colorful, and in addition to the aforementioned colors, it can also be white on foggy days. In Oriahovo, where the was video was taken, the performers had to wait two hours for the fog to burn off so they could shoot it. By the way the composer Diko Iliev lived for many years in this town, and the piece Dunavsko Horo composed there. The reason brass music is so popular in northwestern Bulgaria is due to the influence of Diko Iliev.
The dancers wear colorful and elaborate embroidered costumes; this and the brass band music are a treat for the eyes and ears. Unfortunately, I couldn't find the translation for the song, if anyone can tell me where to find it, please post it in the comments section.
The eyes have it in this video, with a very attractive dark-eyed woman who flashes those orbs around while pouring the wine. The singer is Daniel Spasov, who co-hosts a weekly folklore show on Bulgarian television, Ide Nashenskata Muzika, along with Milen Ivanov.
If you enjoyed this you may also like:
The "Flavors" of Bulgarian Rachenitsa (parts 1 and 2)
Part 1: About rachenitsa, the national dance of Bulgaria
Part 2 Masculine, Feminine and Flirty (rachenitsa as a courtship dance)
The River of Many Names (parts 2 and 4) features folk songs and dances from Bulgaria about the Danube. It's a very colorful excursion into the world of Bulgarian folk music.
Brass bands are all very well in their place - outdoors and several miles away.
Thomas Beecham
I guess Thomas Beechman wouldn't have liked the music in today's post. But then, he was one of those symphony orchestra conductors who turned up his nose at everything except classical music. I enjoy brass music, and I like it played loud, when it's accompanied by singing, its even better :)
While wandering through the Universe of YouTube, I found these excerpts on video from the album Ide Duhovata Muzika (Here Comes the Brass Band).These are modern interpretations of Bulgarian folk songs from the Vidin region performed by Daniel Spasov.
Brass music is very popular in northwestern Bulgaria because of the influence of the composer Diko Iliev. He composed many dance pieces for brass ensembles, and incorporated folklore motifs from this region into his music.
The visuals in these videos are exceptionally well done and enjoyable to watch, and the music is a delight to listen to. Turn up your speakers and enjoy!
Those who regularly follow the this blog will recognize the first song, Kune Mome (and I bet they are asking me why I don't get tired of it?) This classic was performed by Kaicho Kamenov many years ago. The updated version, sung by Daniel Spasov includes a riverside sunset scene from Vidin along with a woman dressed in a long skirt and a big floppy hat, presumable the romantic interest :)
Na zdrave! Drink up...Don't ask why the person who posted this video translated it as "Alewife." According to Wikipedia, an alewife is a species of fish in the herring family. Actually it seems like the singer is involved in a flirtation with the barmaid, who's doing a good job of getting him drunk, not only with the wine but with those eyes....
The next song is a lively number about a young man and his wild escapades, which include fooling around on the mother of his child. Does he wake up on Sunday morning to regret them? Not if his dreams look like this with folk dancers and the fortress of Baba Vida as a backdrop. Of course the dreams wouldn't have all that text moving across the screen.
The last video in this post is something in a totally different mood. It's titled Dunave (Danube), a very mellow and dreamy song about the River of Many Names. Although it's not typical Bulgarian folk music I have included it here because of the beautiful and unusual videography. This is a riverboat excursion into surreality.
If you enjoyed this you may also like:
Modern versions ofTraditional Bulgarian Folk Songs Part 3: (hear a vintage recording of Kaicho Kamenov's Kune Mome along with a lively modern brass version)
While wandering through the Universe of YouTube, I found some Bulgarian folk songs performed by Kaicho Kamenov. These vintage recordings were probably done during the 1950's and 60's.
He was born in 1923 in the village of Vinarovo, an area know for the cultivation of wine grapes, and lived until 1983.
I am not normally a fan of love songs but these two got my attention. The first, Kune Mome is a lively, flirtatious number in rachenitsa rhythm (7/8 for you music theorists out there). Rachenitsa is also the national dance of Bulgaria, to get a feel for it, say the words apple-apple pineapple.
My guess (judging from weird Google translation that I found) is that the man is trying to seduce Kune with some wine and rakia. Even without the booze, this guy is totally smitten.
This hauntingly beautiful, but sad song is in a totally different mood, which describes the pain of a young man who has lost the woman he loves to another man as he watches fog settle on the Danube. Fog can be romantic or depressing depending on your situation. It creates mysterious and beautiful landscapes, and you often find it near bodies of water, especially during spring and fall, when there is a big difference between the air and water temperatures.
Here is another song in an introspective mood, Dunave, beli Dunave (White Danube) performed by Kaicho Kamenov...the fog is just about gone here...
If you'd like to hear more songs performed by Kaicho Kamenov click this link (in Bulgarian).It will take you to the Bulgarian National Radio's website. The first four songs are by Kamenov. There are also some songs by Lyuben Zahariev, born nearly thirty years later, from the same region, who sings in a similar style.
Kaicho Kamenov also sang about the rebels (haidouks) who fought for the liberation of Bulgaria against the Ottomans. One of these songs can be found here, it is the last video on this post.
There are also some Bulgarian folk songs about the Danube, the River of Many Names. This post also features two songs protraying two completely different moods. You'll especially enjoy the dancers in elaborate embroidered costumes. They had to wait two hours for the fog to lift before they could perform.
(water wheel, but where's the water? Photo from Wikipedia Commons)
Bulgarians will create folk songs about almost everything and everything. Today's topic is songs about water wheels and millers.
The water mill, or wheel, was used to make power to grind the grain, back in the days before electricity. Harnessing the power of running water was a very clever thing to do, and it's a renewable, non-polluting energy source. The water wheel is the forerunner of today's hydroelectric plants.
In the first video, twins Iva and Eva Valentinova perform a lively song about a water wheel, called "vodenitsa" in Bulgarian. There is plenty of dancing as well, and you can actually see the water wheel in action at the very beginning of the video.
The second song is about a miller in love with a girl...but there's no water to grind the corn! Somehow the lyrics got lost in translation, when I checked them out using Google Translate, the English didn't translate well. It doesn't matter, really, the song is a delight to listen to. The best thing about Bulgarian folk songs is that you can dance to most of them. The dance done to this song is a Devetorka. (If you want to see a Devetorka, there is a link to it in one of my previous posts; check out the list further down.)
For more on water mills in Bulgarian folklore, check out this link from Bulgarian National Radio. (Notice that they mistakenly called them windmills). The stories about them are quite interesting, and the songs are great to listen to.
A brass band and people in elaborate embroidered costumes dancing a Devetorka (in the first video) on the banks of the River of Many Names is one of the highlights of this post.
If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.
Loren Eiseley
To live is to be musical, starting with the blood dancing in your veins. Everything living has a rhythm. Do you feel your music? ―
Michael Jackson
World Water Day is tomorrow, so this post will be about Bulgarian folk songs related to a body of water, the Danube, the river which forms the boundary between Bulgaria and Romania.
For information on World Water Day, click on the following link:
There is definitely something a little bit magic about the Danube, the River of Many Names. Judging from the number of songs and instrumental pieces written about this river, it is an important source of inspiration for musicians (as well as artists in general).
Today's post features two Bulgarian folk songs that I found during one of my forays in the Universe of YouTube.
The first song (and dance) is a lively, feel-good piece from northern Bulgaria, accompanied by a brass ensemble, and sung by Ilian Mihov. Brass music is very popular in this part of Bulgaria (composer Diko Iliev was also a native of this region and he wrote some very well-known pieces for brass, the most well-known being Dunavsko Horo.)
According to a review I read (via translation) on signal.bg, this performance took place in Oryahovo, a town where Diko Iliev lived for many years and where he found the inspiration for Dunavsko. Here's a excerpt from the website. A little is lost in translation, but not much.
Video for Dunave is realized in Oryahovo and it involved local dance group "Spring" community center "Hope 1871" and the brass band from Lovech - birthplace of the singer. Much fog proved an obstacle to the pictures, but the participants patiently waited for 2 hours. The picture completely meets the elevated mood of the song. The presence of different age participants passing ships, fishermen and boatmen, visually complement the song.......
Dunave is entirely a piece of copyright Ilian Mihov the rhythm of the White Rose.(note: the song White Rose бÑла ÑПза is a popular Bulgarian pop-folk song, in the rhythm of the dance Devetorka). Song is a typical sound of the Danube region. Idea of text are pleasant feelings and childhood memories near the majestic river and its strong attraction. "I think the Danube is our river and we have to sing, like all peoples who live along it. tried to make contemporary Bulgarian song in the spirit of folk music that is respectful to the population of the Danube region, which I think the authors are obligors. I hope it becomes part of the celebrations of the people and the dance attracts young and old....."
Anyway, this video is a delight to watch with the scenery, the music (the band is very good!), and the dancers in colorful folk costumes. By the way, the dance is a Devetorka, very popular in the Balkans, with an odd time signature, 9/8.
If you're interested in complex Balkan and Middle Eastern rhythms, check out this website.
The next song, Dunave, Beli Dunave caught my attention because it's also in an asymmetric rhythm, the Pajduško. By the way there are other Bulgarian folk songs with this title, and you will find them on this blog (see one of the links listed at the end of this post). Pajduško is a dance very popular in the Balkans and has an odd time signature, 5/16. (quick-slow).
I couldn't find a writeup or the lyrics of this song. The title means "White Danube" and from what I've seen on the Internet (as well as personal observations) the Danube is a river of many colors as well as many names. Go figure out this one. I can understand blue, green, gold or even gray, but white? If you have an answer for me, please post it in the "comments" section. Inquiring minds want to know :)
Since I understand only a few words of Bulgarian, from what I could gather, this is probably a love song and something in a completely different mood than the previous video. The slideshow is very well put together, and some of the photos look like they were taken during flood season, when Dunav goes wild, destroying everything in its path.
If you enjoyed this you may also like The Travels of Pajduško Horo:
In keeping with Blog Action Day, today's post will be about food. Since food is such a general subject I decided to focus on that multinational and multicultural staple, Capsicum, otherwise known as the pepper. They come in many varieties from the sweet bell pepper, the somewhat hotter jalapeño, and then there's the hottest pepper in the world, the ghost chili. Capsaicin is the chemical in hot peppers that makes them spicy. It has medicinal qualities and can be used to treat minor aches and pains. Ironically it's also the same substance that fires up your mouth when you eat a hot pepper.
Peppers are used in a wide variety of cuisines, such as Latin American, Italian, Chinese,and Eastern European. They add flavor and sometimes heat, depending on the type. The milder ones are used in salads, and the hot ones as a garnish, or an ingredient. They are very nutritious. Peppers have Vitamin C and beta carotene, and are a good source of dietary fiber. Did I forget to mention they also taste good?
Bulgarians are quite fond of peppers. They are eaten raw in salads, or stuffed with rice, vegetables and cheese and baked.
One of the key ingredients in the Shopska Salad is red sweet peppers (either raw or roasted). Shopska Salad is very easy to prepare, and the ingredients can be found in any supermarket: sweet red peppers, tomatoes, white brined cheese (similar to the Greek Feta), onions, cucumbers and parsley, mixed with sunflower oil and vinegar. The colors in the Shopska salad are also the colors of the Bulgarian flag.
There is also a relish made from hot peppers, Lyutenitsa, which is usually spread on bread. It is a traditional Bulgarian staple; pepper concoctions similar to this are very popular all over the Balkans, and known under different names with slightly different recipes. There is Serbian ajvar, Romanian ZacuscÄ, and Turkish Biber salçası.
Peppers, sweet and hot, are very important in Bulgarian culture, and also in their folk music. Here are some pepper songs from the Universe of YouTube. Although some people in the United States have never heard of Bulgaria (and probably think it's a planet in outer space), Bulgarian traditional music is quite popular among folk dancers in this country (and around the world).
The first song, Dilmano Dilbero, is a lighthearted ditty about a girl planting peppers.
There is a phenomenal group from the Washington, DC area who performs Bulgarian folk music. The name of the band is Lyuti Chushki, which translates to hot peppers in English and their music is quite spicy, kick it up a notch! At the end of the video you can hear their signature song, which is, of course, about hot peppers!
Here is some more music from Lyuti Chushki along with a link to their website.
The theme for today's post is modern versions of traditional Bulgarian folk songs.
Some of these modern interpretations are quite interesting, creative and unusual. The first song, Katerino Mome, sung by Tatiana Sarbinska, is familiar to those in the international folk dance community. The dance for this is Arap.
I first heard Katerino Mome performed by Desislava on the Bulgarian National Radio several years ago. I didn't care for this performance at first, because I was used to the traditional version. After listening to this a few times, I found that I liked Desislava's dynamic and passionate interpretation of Katerino Mome as much as the original.
The next song is Izgryala e Mesechinka, traditionally performed without background music (a capella) by a women's choral group. In this video, the ladies are accompanied by a drum, which does not detract at all from their beautiful voices. The dance for this song is a rachenitsa. I couldn't find a link to the lyrics, but it's essentially a song about the full moon rising, big, beautiful and orange, while a girl picks flowers in the garden.
Another version of Izgryala e Mesechinka, this time with one female singer accompanied by five men. Four of them play traditional folk instruments (gadulka, accordion, kaval, and tambura). One of them keeps time on what looks like a metal cup, and the other plays guitar. The non-traditional instruments and the solo female give this song a unique and modern intepretation that is delightful to listen to!
The next song is a traditional version of Dunave, Beli Dunave. It is a song about the Danube, River of Many Names. Despite its popularity on YouTube, I couldn't find the lyrics or a translation. The rhythm for this is 5/8, and the dance is Pajduško Horo.
This is the modern version which was probably played at clubs all over Bulgaria. What really makes it unusual the techno music accompanied by a gaida (bagpipe). This is definitely an unusual take on a traditional song and took some getting used to, although I like it a lot now. If you listen to it more than once or twice it will take up residence in your head and stay with you all day. It's a very catchy tune.
If you like variations on a theme, check out this post.
If you love Balkan music and dance you have come to the right place! The Alien Diaries began in February 2010 and is updated at least twice a month.
This blog is dedicated to the memory of my cat Fatso (see avatar), who passed away on April 9, 2011 from congestive heart failure. He was the inspiration for several of my early posts.
Don't forget to check out my second blog, Light and Shadow, for some humor, satire, photos and poetry!
