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Dragostin Folk choir grabs second prize in Manchester

Photo: Архив
For the first time in 10 years a Bulgarian choir has reached the finals of the Let the Peoples Sing Choral Competition, organised by the European Broadcasting Union and BBC. Choirs from 7 countries reached the finals – Bulgaria, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Estonia, and the US. The Bulgaroian choir grabbed the second prize.

The 20-minute programme of Dragostin Folk at the semi-final included 5 Bulgarian choir songs. The finalists had to perform different songs at the final, which was a 3-hour concert, broadcast live.

The first edition of the Let the Peoples Sing competition took place in London in 1961 and it is one of the most prestigious forums for choral music. For many years recordings of the performances were used by the jury. Since 2001 all competitors sing live at the final in a grand concert. According to Dragostin Folk conductor, Stefan Dragostinov, for the first time in the 50-year history of the competition, it has opened widely its doors to folklore, jazz, gospel, and ethno music.

A number of Bulgarian choirs have taken part in the contest during the years. The Rodna pesen and Bodra smiana choirs, as well as the Sofia Chamber Choir, the Children’s choir from Dobrich and others have won awards in the contest.

Dragostin Folk was nominated for participation in the contest by the Bulgarian National Radio. The choir was created 20 years ago by composer and conductor Stefan Dragostinov. It includes 11 singers and 5 musicians and has so far participated in a number of international music events.

Stefan Dragostinov is a world famous composer and winner of a number of prestigious awards. He is also famous around the world for his series of 11 folklore albums. Now we offer you some of the songs performed by the Dragostin Folk choir in Manchester.

English: Alexander Markov
По публикацията работи: Valya Bozhilova


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