Holy Annunciation Church

721 N Front St, Steelton Directions

• $16 General Admission

• $12 SFMS Members

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• $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

Background

Kabile is a bitov (traditional wedding) band formed in 1978. Based in the village of Kabile, near Yambol, the group specialized in performing native music on traditional village instruments, resulting in an acoustic experience quite different from that played on Western instruments influenced by American jazz. This form of Bulgarian wedding music has attracted worldwide attention and scholarship for its incredible virtuosity and musicianship. During its heyday, the band played almost every weekend at weddings, baptisms and cultural festivals in Thrace.

In late 2007, the two émigrés returned to Bulgaria to record Kabile Reunion with their former band members. The debut CD contains 11 of the most popular numbers from their years as a group and includes both vocal and instrumental versions of native Bulgarian songs. The CD is self-produced; the 2007 tour is funded in part with travel and visa assistance from the Eastern European Folklife Center (EEFC), a nonprofit organization based in California.

The band plays all the instruments of a traditional Bulgarian village band. The gaida is a bagpipe made of goat skin and pipes. The vtapan is a large wooden drum covered with sheep or goat skin and played with two specially designed drumming sticks: the kukuda is a pipe-shaped stick of walnut and the pracka is a thin switch, usually made of dogwood or willow. The kaval is a flute-like instrument open at both ends, played by blowing on the smaller, sharpened end. The gadulka is a pear-shaped string instrument, played vertically in front of the musician. These four instruments have a centuries-old history in Bulgarian folk music; as a "modern" addition, the band also includes the accordion (ca. 1832).

About the Band

Dzhenko Andreev (gaida) is a graduate of the Filip Koutev High School of Music in Kotel, Bulgaria, one of the two prestigious music high schools in Bulgaria. Founded in 1967, the school was the first high school in Bulgaria to offer a full curriculum of traditional Bulgarian music. Over the five-year course of study, students generally specialize in a specific instrument or type of music. Regional folk music and dance ensembles, which preserve local styles, have much support throughout Bulgaria. Mr. Andreev has been a member of the Sliven Ensemble for over 20 years and has toured with them internationally.

Ivan Handzhiev (vocals, accordion) is also a graduate of the Filip Koutev High School of Music and the Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts in Plovdiv, the country's most prestigious university-level institution for folk music. Handzhiev also served on the faculty of Filip Koutev High School as a music instructor for more than 25 years.

Angel Krastev (tapan) was born and raised in Yambol. He learned to play tapan from the village masters and as a child participated in many music festivals. In high school he formed a popular bitov band that was much in demand for festivals, weddings and other public events. He has served as a soloist with the Yambol Ensemble since 1973.

Nikolay Doktorov (kaval) is a graduate of the Filip Koutev High School of Music and the Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts. He currently serves on the faculty of the High School "Anton Strashimirov" in Varna, Bulgaria, where he teaches kaval and conducts folk orchestra. He is also the conductor of several regional ensembles in Varna, including the Folk Ensemble Pendary and the Folk Orchestra "Spektar" of the Union of the Blind in Bulgaria.

Nikolay Kolev (gadulka) graduated from the prestigious Musical Folklore High School in Shiroka Luka. He is considered one of the foremost gadulka players in the world. In 1985 he formed the wedding ensemble Rozova Dolina, and in 1992 the prize-winning ensemble Balkanski Glasove. Nikolay has accompanied many well-known singers, including Vulkana Stojanova, Roumen Rodopski and Todor Kozhuharov.

Donka Koleva also graduated from the Musical Folklore High School in Shiroka Luka and performed for three years with the Sliven Ensemble for Folk Songs and Dances. She was the director of the Folk Song Chorus of Sopot and has been a featured soloist on Bulgarian Radio and Television. She has participated in many singing competitions in Bulgaria and Europe. Her voice has been featured on numerous recordings and in 1997 her recording of 'Javore' was named "Song of the Year" in the Bulgarian national radio competition.

Since emigrating to the U.S. in 1995, Nikolay Kolev and Donka Koleva have played an active role in fostering Bulgarian music across the country. They teach workshops in their respective fields and perform solo and together. They also perform as a quartet with their two daughters, Based in New York City, they perform as a duo and as a family quartet with their daughters, Penka and Maria.