Dance Workshop: 1:30pm

at The Movement Center

2134 N Second St, Harrisburg Directions

Emilia Zankina will teach intermediate-level dancing from multiple regions of Bulgaria, with Vlado Mollov providing music for the class. This class is for dancers with some previous experience; spectators/listeners are also welcome.

Workshop Ticket Info:

• $16 General Admission

• $12 SFMS Members

  SFMS Members Save!

• $10 Students

  — ages 3 to 22

• $10 Spectators/Listeners

• Admission is at the door. No advance registration required.
• For more information, call Bart at 717-234-3844
  or email bart.carpenter (at) sfmsfolk.org

Dance Party

at Holy Annunciation Church

721 N Front St, Steelton Directions

6:30 pm — Instruction for Beginners
7:30 pm — Music and Dancing

Music for the evening begins at 7:30 pm, provided by Bulgarika Ensemble. Just prior to the dance, at 6:30 pm, Emilia Zankina will teach a beginner-level class to introduce Bulgarian dancing, rhythms and movement; no prior dance experience is necessary. The evening ticket price is all-inclusive; there is no separate charge for the beginners' dance class.

Bulgarika was formed in 2006 by a group of expatriate Bulgarian musicians based in New York City and Pittsburgh. Each band member has an exceptional history of scholarship and performance and serves as an outstanding representative of his or her musical specialty within the field of Bulgarian music. All are natives of Bulgaria now living and working in the U.S. SFMS dance enthusiasts will recognize Vlado Mollov in the band, and Donka Koleva was a member of Kabile ensemble which played for one of our dances in Harrisburg last fall.

Dance Party Ticket Info:

• $18 General Admission

• $14 SFMS Members

  SFMS Members Save!

• $10 Students

  — ages 3 to 22
• Admission is at the door. No advance registration required.
• For more information, call Bart at 717-234-3844
  or email bart.carpenter (at) sfmsfolk.org

About Emilia Zankina

Emilia Zankina received her dance degree from the State School of Choreography in Sofia and performed with the State of School of Choreography and the National Folk Ensemble, "Filip Kutev." She worked as an assistant choreographer for the Macedonian Folk Ensemble of Sofia, the oldest and largest semi-professional ensemble in the country, where she staged her first choreographies. She was a lead dancer with the Duquesne University Tamburitzans 1995-96 and has performed across the U.S. and Canada. She has choreographed and taught character and classical dance at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and Southwest Ballet School. She has been a company dancer with numerous professional modern dance companies, including Mary Miller Dance Company, Slava Modern Dance, and Pittsburgh Dance Connection, performing in Pittsburgh, Cleveland, New York City, and Chicago. She currently serves as assistant director of Old School Dance School in Pittsburgh.

About Bulgarika

Nikolay Kolev (leader) is a gadulka virtuoso from the village Karavelovo in the Rose Valley in southern Bulgaria. After graduating from the Musical Folklore High School in Shiroka Luka, he performed with the Sliven Ensemble for three years. In 1984, he founded the orchestra Sopot and the wedding band "Rozova Dolina," which became one of the most sought-after groups in Thrace. In 1992 he founded "Balkanski Glasove," a choral group which took first place at the Varna Festival in 1994 and 1995. Nikolay is also an accomplished composer and arranger of folk songs. In 1999, he was the first Bulgarian to be recognized by the Slavic Heritage Council of America for his outstanding contributions in music. He has been termed "the finest Bulgarian gadulka player of his generation" by Balkan scholar Timothy Rice, Professor of Ethnomusicology at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). The gadulka is a pear-shaped stringed instrument carved from a single piece of wood; in contrast to a violin, it is played vertically, and the bow held horizontally with the hair facing the player.

Stoyan Kostov (tambura) has been playing Bulgarian tambura for 35 years. He graduated from the folk music school in Kotel and the Bulgarian national academy, the Plovdiv Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts. After graduation he performed with the Ensemble "Trakiya" in Plovdiv. He subsequently played tambura with the Harmanliska Troika and guitar with the Ograzhden ensemble in Sandanski, where he also directed the "N. Vaptsarov" Folk Ensemble. In contrast to the shorter, smaller Serbian and Croatian tambura, the Bulgaria tambura is a long-necked, fretted instrument that comes with four or eight strings. It is similar to the Greek bouzouki and is very prevalent in the Pirin, Šop and Thrace regions of Bulgaria.

Vladimir Mollov (accordion) was a child virtuoso and at age 7 began taking accordion lessons with the nationally recognized pedagogue Nadejda Nicheva in Kazanluk, Bulgaria. At his later stages of musical development he studied with Peter Marinov, a professor in the National Music Academy; Hristina Danova, a world-renowned accordion artist; and Nedelcho Dimitrov, a laureate of national and international accordion festivals and competitions. At age 13 he placed fourth in the international accordion competition in Vladivostok, Russia. At age 15 placed first in the International Competition for Accordion and Guitar in Asenovgrad, Bulgaria; received fourth place in the World Accordion Competition in Castelfidardo, Italy; and placed second in the national accordion competition in Plovdiv, where he received a special award for virtuosic performance of folk music. During his senior year in high school he received a first award in the national competition for variety music and jazz on accordion in Novi Pazar, Bulgaria. He played for the Duquesne University Tamburitzans 2002-2006 and performed more than 350 shows with the ensemble. He also arranged music for some of the dances and as instrumental numbers on the shows, fulfilled the position of a combo leader and performed a solo piece on every show. He released his first CD, Dreams (Merti) in 2009, a compendium of compositions featuring featuring folklore, jazz and some new experimental fusion styles.

Donka Koleva (vocals) is prized for her rich, clear and melodic voice. A graduate of the Musical Folklore High School in Shiroka Luka, she worked as a soloist with the Sliven Ensemble for three years before directing the chorus of the Sopot Ensemble; she was also soloist with the wedding band "Rozova Dolina." In 1994, she began recording with the Bulgarian National Radio and Television; in 1997, her recording of "Javore" was song of the year. Since emigrating to the U.S., she has taught Thracian-style singing at Balkan music festivals and performed with multiple choral groups, including "Kitka" in California and "Planina" in Colorado.

Maria Koleva (vocals) is also a graduate of the Musical Folklore High School in Shiroka Luka. The daughter of Nikolay and Donka, she is fine singer in her own right and made her first recording with Bulgarian National Radio earlier this year. Born in 1982 in Thrace, she started singing at age 10 and made her first stage appearance at age 11 at the Rose Festival in Karlovo. As a student at Shiroka Luka, she received honors and musical awards, including top prizes at the Teen Folk Music Festival at Albena and recognition at the Chirpan and Plovdiv Music Festivals in 1996 and 1997. A resident of New York City, she also performs with Ivan Milev and other noted Bulgarians in New York. She has been recognized for her great expressive singing and truly melodic and rich tone as well as her stunning performance of Thracian songs.