The music of shepherd's flute virtuoso and composer Theodosii Spassov is amazingly diverse and his creative circles so broad that it is hard to sum up what he does in a few words. He often switches from project to project and these tend to differ widely. Asked how he manages to adapt his artistic mind to this challenging variety, he comes up with his win-win formula - “living in the present continuous tense”. To him even his 55th birthday is no reason to make new plans but for sure he will mark it with his family and closest friends.

„As a young man I used to draw a balance now and then and found certain logic in my development”, the famous musician tells us. “I found out that once every five years there was some sort of important change taking place. At age 25 though I stopped drawing balance but I know changes continue to take place. I never look back; I have left the tides of the past coming and going. I have promoted a talent to erase things past and to live in the present, however with a light dream about tomorrow. The western model of planning far ahead exhausts me. There is nothing fatal not having a tight agenda in music. Things happen naturally, and projects sort of arrange themselves. After all, life comes up with a plethora of opportunity.”

Theodosii Spassov has been lucky to receive early acknowledgement and popularity. Even before turning 30, he already had had strong experience performing to large audiences. He has appeared to play at weddings, at Bulgaria's top classical music stage, Bulgaria Hall in Sofia, as well as at international jazz festivals. How does he think of his youth?  

„It was a carefree time, my parents were still alive, and they were very supportive. A had a tight schedule of recordings, weddings, concerts, etc. I associate my youth with one of my favorite places, the City of Plovdiv and the Academy of Music there located just above the Roman Amphitheater in the Old Town. Of course, I have changed a lot. A man ought to change, develop and beat his conservatism. I was brought up in a conservative and patriarchal home with love for folklore. At the Filip Kutev National School of Folklore Art in the town of Kotel and at the Academy of Music I was studying traditions in-depth, though I was already been thinking of alternative ways of expression. I understand life as a constant pursuit of perfection, and of nobility of the soul. We ought to dedicate out lives to perfection, love, work and human kindness. The more kindness we cultivate in ourselves, the more divinity arrives to reflect it.” 

Let us recall that Theodosii Spassov has teamed up and played with musicians such as Trilok Gurtu, Dave Liebman, Glen Moore, Mino Cinelu, Billy Cobham, Kazumi Watanabe and many others. For three years he was on the lineup of the celebrated Irish show Riverdance. From among Bulgarian musicians he has on many occasions worked with Yildiz Ibrahimova, Ivo Papazov-Ibryama, Petar Ralchev, Acoustic Version, Milcho Leviev, Simeon Shterev etc. In just a few days jointly with rebec player Peyo Peev and five Hungarian musicians Theodosii Spassov is starting a concert tour of the country. Here are the details:

„The project is entitled Danube Brotherhood, an initiative of the Hungarian Cultural Center in Sofia and the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the national days of Bulgaria and Hungary, both marked in March. Our team includes Hungarian performers Nikola Parov (multi-instrumentalist), his singer wife Agnes Herczku, Mihaly Borbely (an exceptional jazz saxophonist, and a multi-instrumentalist). Mihaly is with his trio including Miklos Lukacs (cimbalom) and Andras Des (percussion). We are going to play our own compositions and one of them is devoted to Hungarian composer Bela Bartok on the occasion of his 135th birth anniversary.” 

The concert tour begins on 9 March in Gabrovo and continues in seven Bulgarian cities including Varna, Plovdiv and Veliko Tarnovo. The project will be presented in Hungary as well.

English Daniela Konstantinova

The audio contains the following pieces:

1.  Graovo Dance in the rendition of Theodosii Spassov (shepherd's flute), Stoyan Yankulov (percussion) and Georgi Donchev (double bass)

2.  The Boza Maker, Theodosii Spassov

3.  The Sand Girl and Racing with the Danube from the suite The Sand Girl in the rendition of Theodosii Spassov and a string orchestra from the Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra

4.  Four Cats and a Moon, Theodosii Spassov and Hemus Collective