Acclaimed jazz and pop singer Camellia Todorova will take fans down memory lane with a concert entitled “Nights in white satin” on 18 May in Hall No. 1 of the National Palace of Culture. She will be performing alongside the Sofia Philharmonic and the Svetoslav Obretenov philharmonic choir with conductor Slavil Dimitrov and the Brazz Association Combo, as well as the New Camellettes vocal group.

“Nights in white satin” is a retrospection of Camellia Todorova’s work, highlighting her emblematic songs from the early 1980s, among them “Whispered dreams”, “Don’t look at me that way, boy” and “World in love” as well as world jazz and soul compositions. Pride of place will be given to her new songs, such as “Beautiful memory”, written for the singer by her daughter Rachel Row. The project is a collaboration with the Brazz Association Combo – a band comprising some of the most active and talented jazz musicians in Bulgaria: Mihail Yossifov – trumpet, Velislav Stoyanov – trombone, Milen Kukosharov – piano, Dimitar Karamfilov – bass guitar, Georgi Markov – drums, as well as the New Camellettes vocal group – four young and talented performers – Katya Krasteva, Elena Sirakova, Martin Kostadinov and Kalin Zhechev, all of them Camellia Todorova’s students at New Bulgarian University.

In May 2011, the Bulgarian jazz singer was bestowed a “Golden Age” award by the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture for her exceptional contribution to art in Bulgaria. Here is Camellia Todorova herself with more about her project:

“The interesting thing is that I shall be singing with so many other performers. This is something different, as the concert will have a more serious sound, it will be romantic, thrilling, befitting the ambiance of the repertoire I have selected from the 1980s and 90s alongside old blues and rock, there will be a variety of styles I have devoted myself to, it will be lots of fun. Some of the arrangements are by Mihail Yossifov, though most are by Slavil Dimitrov. The vocalists from the Camellettes are students of mine. I haven’t been on stage at the National Palace of Culture for a long while and that thought too is exciting. My last concert there was in 2002.”

Camellia Todorova lectures singing at New Bulgarian University, what does she teach her students?

“I love the profession, God has endowed me with the ability of listening and appraising voices. I have endeavoured to teach my students to have patience, because patience is something our profession requires. It is not something you can learn in a day or three, or in a year, it is a long process. One has to be dedicated. And if you don’t have the stamina for it, it is better to give it up because singing is a difficult thing, it is very demanding and takes a lot of work each and every day. I shall sing several of my daughter’s songs. My new song is called “Beautiful memory” and it goes back to a specific time in my life. On stage I shall be telling the story of my life – a retrospection of my feelings and emotions.”

Camellia Todorova also talks about the loss of renowned composer Alexander Bruzitsov who wrote emblematic songs for her throughout her career, about her work through the years and the surprises she has got lined up for her concert:

“I really miss Alexander Bruzitsov and I shall dedicate the concert to him. I shall perform almost all of the songs he has written for me. It is such a loss, I feel as if I have lost my father,” Camellia Todorova says. “In music, things have never been easy, the only way to survive is to go on working. I myself feel a certain amount of satisfaction, though there are projects I have not managed to put through. But there is still time. I am a dreamer and I hope things will move in a positive direction. At the concert I shall sing “Nights in white satin” by the Moody Blues but there will be one more surprise which I won’t spoil now, because I really do want it to be a surprise.”

The audio file contains the following tracks:

-  But I wonder;

-  Whispered dreams;

-  From the beginning.

English version: Milena Daynova