Music – the bright face of Bulgaria

The conductor of the chamber orchestra “Orpheus” of Pernik, Raicho Hristov, is a typical musician. He started playing when he was 6 years old. He graduated form the Music School in Bourgas and the Music Academy in Sofia in choir conducting and after that in orchestra conducting. Specialized in Weimar and Salzburg. For more than 20 years he takes part in the international music seminar at Michaelstein Institute in Blanckenburg, Germany. Accidentally, when he was a student, he came to Pernik to earn some money. Some time later the idea of a chamber orchestra was born. There are favorable conditions – there were people who wanted it, there was someone to do it, there were people to support the idea. And Raicho Hristov creates it. Next year the chamber orchestra will have its 30th anniversary and they are already thinking how to commemorate that occasion. Our conversation began spontaneously from discussions about cultural tourism and then naturally continued with the chamber orchestra – its past, present and future.

I was born in Bourgas and came to Pernik by chance. I had almost no hesitations whether to stay or not. I’ve always thought that if there are people united in a community, there must be also a thing that I can do. What difference does it make if it is not Bourgas, Sofia or Plovdiv? 30 years ago here there was a town of 100 000 people. I learned of its musical traditions, which are unique. I learned that it had a theater and an orchestra, typical urban ceremonies even before it became a town. The first civil orchestra in Bulgaria was born here. Proletarian Pernik had a large symphony orchestra and its last conductor was the eminent Rouslan Raichev.

Chamber orchestra “Orpheus” was created in 1975

In less than a year the orchestra takes part in the international competition for orchestras in the name of Herbert von Carayan in Berlin. This was its birth in the musical context of Bulgaria. People talked about it and our musical guild accepted it. Our engagements began, not only in Pernik and the region, but also in the country and abroad.

Through the years the orchestra builds up a serious repertoire. 14 musicians and a conductor is a very flexible formation because it is small and mobile. And this offers opportunities for a repertoire that can be easily changed and modernized – from the Musical Baroque to the music of the 20th c.

A special pleasure for me was the first performance in Bulgaria of the works of Krassimir Kyurkchiysky, Michail Pekov, Roumen Balyozov and the foreign composers Alfred Schnittke, Kurt Schwen (Berlin), John Metcalf (Wales). Abroad we played for the first time the work of Wilfred Maria Danner (Cologne). These works and the meetings with these musicians are like beautiful interludes.

The orchestra isn’t locked in the narrow space of the town for which it works. We had visiting musicians from all over the world – from America to Japan. We had the support of embassies, cultural centers and, of course, of individuals. And since music is a universal language, these contacts are natural and possible. In this respect the orchestra keeps its doors open. For me the most important thing is that Pernik does not lag behind the Bulgarian criterion for musical events, which is really high. Through the orchestra we want to demonstrate all that is happening in the musical calendar of the country. This is what first performances in Bulgaria are for. But in the same time we want the town to be open to the world. With music this is easy. A few months ago I had an invitation for a performance by an Englishman whom I didn’t know. Mr. Andrew O’Gree found my name and that of the “Orpheus” orchestra in Internet and suggested that we played his work. He is a lover of Bulgarian music and folklore, which he knows very well and presumes that in Bulgaria the piece will be played in the best way. So we will have the premiere in November.

Our music is undoubtedly unique. We are living in a world in which ethno music is very important and supports the feeling of the specificity of the East, the Southeast, or the Orient, if you want. A year ago we had a marvelous concert with Theodosy Spassov. We played his pieces easily because he spoke our musical language. On June 14, in the Salon of the Arts in Sofia, we will play Austrian music with the support of the Austrian Embassy. We have excellent contacts with Goethe Institute. Our town is near Sofia, we have galleries, concert halls and could be good hosts. I expect that in the future we will be as open too.

The people of Pernik and the music

What we are making here lasted for 30 years already because it has public resonance. Today there are musical practices, which shatter the criteria. Generally speaking, music is everywhere. This models the sound atmosphere though not always as aesthetically as we would like. I am making efforts in my work and in my family too to select from the abundance of music that surrounds us what is better, in my view. This is why we organize concerts for children. We don’t have the right to say afterwards that they don’t have a good taste. We visit kindergartens, we visit schools or galleries. I am deeply convinced that these concerts are important. We know what the street is and the media are a disputable environment for music.

We are expecting the TV channel “Mezzo” to come to Pernik. It broadcasts classical music and jazz mainly. We must ensure more comfort for the public, more beauty during concerts. So that the people can find themselves in a different world, different from the one they come from.

All governments so far declared that education and healthcare are their priorities, and culture wasn’t. We are still lagging behind. I think that with approaching 2007 and our European Union membership, with the accession funds and other tactics and strategy, something will change in culture. The great number of talents that are born in the country is a sign that Bulgarian culture and spirituality are very persistent. We visited the Czech Republic recently with the 13-year old soloist Michail Petrov. The public was so excited! And two months before that, in Germany, a Munich newspaper wrote that “he plays perfectly, with an elegant phrasing, caressing the tones and by the manner he produced the sounds we were left with the belief that one big musician was born…” If such talents appear our petty worries are unimportant. This is my optimism. I am happy that people here support me.

We have performed with Mila Georgieva, the violinist. She was a small girl when her father brought her but her performance then indicated that she possessed the manner and sensitiveness of a great performer. Sometimes I am scared by the talent of a small child, it is so great.

What is waiting for us? Now we are preparing a big concert with Vesselin Stambolov, a brilliant pianist, within the May cultural events. On June 1, we will have another day of happiness – the School of Art in Pernik will celebrate its 50th anniversary. We will have a concert with the orchestra in which students of the school will be playing.

Music is the cultural face of Bulgaria. It is its bright face. It is its potential. The potential of a country, which is present in Europe with its spirituality. From the time of Boris Hristov, Raina Kabaivanska, Gena Dimitrova… till today new names appear all the time. When people abroad hear that the performer is Bulgarian, they expect that he or she is a new star. From our tour I understood that a good concert has its importance. All over the world they treat us as messengers of our country. After that many people come to Bulgaria to discover it.

Ekaterina Pavlova