Etnotix is a quartet of rebeck, a female folk singer, a guitarist and a percussionist. Original and catchy, the name of the group is suited to the musical medley of the pieces in its repertoire – a blend of folklore, ethno music, pop and rock. The fans of the young performers have been multiplying. Even though they are yet to have their first standalone concert, the band has performed together with the Chinari folklore ensemble many times.

How was the idea for Etnotix born and what can the audience expect from the concert at Sofia Live Club on 7 April?

Desislava Todorova is from Varna where she graduated rebeck at the music school in the city. She is currently a Bulgarian language and literature student at the St. Kliment Ohridski University in Sofia; in the band she plays second rebeck.

“The idea to set up Etnotix belongs to producer Asen Pavlov and Angel Dobrev – a renowned rebeck player, soloist of the Bulgarian National Radio Folk Music Orchestra. We have been working together for years. Famous names in the genre – Angel Dobrev but also Kostadin Gechev and Kiril Vladov – wrote music especially for us. We have been trying to do covers of world hits, but we also compose music of our own. We also interpret authentic folklore as we see it. When I was at school I often performed Thracian and Strandja folklore. I have been living in Sofia for some time, so it now gives me pleasure to play songs from the Shoppe region. We all have one very important purpose – to safeguard tradition but also to show it up in a new light. We want to popularize folklore music among young people. We have studied at music schools and we are very fond of authentic songs and tunes, but they seem to be more difficult to get across to a broader audience of young people. We, in Etnotix have no qualms combining different styles and we hope to assert a style of our own.”

Lyubomira Pavlova has graduated the Lyubomir Pipkov music school in Sofia where she studied folk singing and then went on to study music pedagogy at the St. Kliment Ohridski University in Sofia.

“To my mind audiences appreciate authentic folklore just as it is. Traditional Bulgarian music is popular in USA, Great Britain and in many other countries. But we want to unfold its potential and demonstrate how it can be combined with just about anything, that it belongs just about anywhere in the world. Many musicians have been making such experiments and they have been a success. For the concert on 7 April we have lined up a host of surprises. Our special guest will be beatbox champion Adriana Nikolova. The music and the lyrics to all pieces are by Angel Dobrev with sound engineer Kiril Dobrev. Let me introduce the other members of the band: Denitsa Hristova – first rebeck and Denitsa Doncheva – third rebeck and backing vocals. Latina Bounevska plays the alto rebeck (an interesting low-pitch musical instrument). Kaloyan Pavlov, percussion, is known to audiences as an excellent dancer and Alexander Kirilov plays the guitar. We are all very excited because this is our first significant performance. It is our opportunity to make good as musicians.”

The audio contains the following pieces:

- Thracian tale;

- Pinch of salt;

- Follow me.

English version: Milena Daynova