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History
American Music Week in Bulgaria (AMW in BG) was founded in
1998 with a week celebrating the centennial of George Gershwin's birth.
The 1998 concerts featured Gershwin's compositions together with works by
other established American composers. In
1999, in collaboration with the MusicEXchange initiative of the Soros Center for
the Arts, the festival expanded to include music by Bulgarian composers as well,
and gained a clearer focus on the contemporary musical cultures of the two
countries (Bulgaria and USA) and their interaction.
The 2000 program went even further in the direction of cross-cultural
exchange and collaboration, incorporating performances by several American guest
artists and ensembles based variously in New York City, London, and Amsterdam,
who, together with Bulgarian colleagues, introduced over thirty compositions by
American and Bulgarian composers, most of them previously unperformed or unknown
in Bulgaria. The composers
represented, including natives of Bulgaria and other European countries who are
or were based in the U. S., as well as Americans based in Europe, gave a similar
sense of musicians trading places and perspectives.
In 2001, a multi-directional exploration of the new and unknown of
Bulgarian and American contemporary classical music was again emphasized in the
programming of AMW in BG. New in
the 2001 festival was a concert of music by composers of various nationalities,
united by the work of the seminal American poetess, Emily Dickinson. Guest composers and performers from USA, Holland,
Germany, and Greece interacted with Bulgarian counterparts in an exquisite corpse piece, fusions of Bulgarian folk idioms with
Karnatic elements, and a performance of John Cage's Five to celebrate the
festival's fifth year in 2002. The
Sofia Philharmonic participated in AMW in BG for the first time in 2003, when
the festival concerts were also held in Bulgaria Hall for the first time. (See
lists of works performed, past festival guests, and the 2002 and 2001 festival
schedules below.)
Media Responses to the Festival
Since its inception, American Music Week in Bulgaria has been organized by the
American University in Bulgaria and hosted by the Sofia City Art Gallery, the
American Center in Sofia, and in 2003, Bulgaria Hall (home of the Sofia
Philharmonic). The festival has enjoyed capacity audiences at its concerts
and has received extensive coverage in the broadcast and print media.
One reviewer in Musica Viva Sofia described the 2000 festival as "one of the
most significant events in the musical life of the capital this year."
Bulgarian National Television's (BNTV) hour-long documentary on the 1999
festival emphasized the "spirit of discovery" inherent in the overall
program and in the underlying philosophy of the festival.
Two BNTV documentaries on the 2000 festival gave special attention to the
various modes of improvisation represented and to a series of installations
running parallel to the performances, culminating in the world premiere of
Cynthia Cox's complete multimedia installation, A
Collective Cleansing, with live music composed and performed by Lisa Bielawa.
A BNTV documentary in 2001 focused on the Partch centennial and the
musical influence of Emily Dickinson. In
a retrospective of the first five editions of American Music Week in Bulgaria,
the December 9, 2002, Kultura weekly
declared, "for five years the level has been consistently high, the ideas
original, the hall full with a select public." On the same day a radio
program on the festival was broadcast on Deutschlandfunk in Germany, and
commentators on Bulgarian National Radio’s Metronome
program spoke of AMW in BG as "an established tradition, an
institution."
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Works Presented at AMW in BG
Grouped as follows: World Premieres (WP), Bulgarian (or
European) Premieres (BP), Performed
World
Premieres (alphabetical by composer)
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Roumen
Balyosov
Welcome XX Century for
cello solo WP 2000
Roumen
Balyosov/Ching-chu
Hu
Unexpected Encounters for trombone and tape WP 2002
Peter Blauvelt
Serenade for harp and cello WP 2002
Helen
Bledsoe/Valentin Gerov/Roumen Toskov Eight Improvisations for flutes, viola, piano WP 2000
Helen
Bledsoe/Tatiana
Koleva
3 Improvisations
for flute and percussion WP
2000
Dimiter
Christoff
Four Etudes for harp WP 2002
Etudes,
book II, for harp WP 2003
Miroslav Danev
Legenda i Capriccio for piano WP 1999
Valeri
Dimchev
Compositions for tambura and voice WP 2003
Vladimir
Djambazov
Boards and Nails WP 2001
Alexandra Fol
Almost Serial, solo cello WP 1999
Nonet
for percussion WP 2000
Samuel Gardner
At the Canebrake for cello and piano WP 2002
Mihail
Goleminov
Lightwaves II for orchestra WP 2003
Deborah Henson-Conant Baroque
Flamenco for harp and string orchestra WP 1998
Ching-chu Hu
Ribbons for trombone and piano WP 2002
Joseph Klein
Die Tischtuchtolle
(after
Canetti) for violin WP 2001
John Anthony
Lennon
Serpent for soprano saxophone, cello, and harp WP 2002
David Little
Extra Dimensions for flute and percussion WP 2000
Charles
Martin Loeffler
Historiette No. 2 for harp and string quartet WP 2003
G. F. McKay
Snickerty Skip for bassoon WP 2002
Martha
Mavroidi
Compositions for voice, trumpet, bass flute, and percussion WP 2002
Lazar Nikolov
From the Music of Orpheus II for cello solo WP 2002
Piece for
marimba WP 2000
Petros
Ovsepyan
The C of Love for flute and guitar WP 2000
Terry
Winter Owens
Cellestial Music, book I for cello/reader WP 2003
John Knowles
Paine
Romanza and Scherzo for viola and piano
WP 1999
Mihail Pekov
Sonata for violin and harp WP 1999
Three Scenes
for cello, bass, and piano, Op. 168 WP 2000
String
Quartet No. 13 WP 2003
Lyubomir
Pipkov
from Ludus ritmicus, two
cellos WP 1999
Artin
Potourlian
Shepa pepel ot pepelta ti for harp WP 2000
A Rose for
Emily for cello
and piano WP 2001
Florence Price
Fantasy in Purple
(text: L. Hughes) for voice and piano WP
2002
Anna-Maria Ravnopolska-Dean
Haiku Improvisations for harp and reader WP 2003
Alec Roth
Hope
(A Lullaby) for voice and piano WP 2001
Vesselin
Stoyanov
Na selo for cello WP 2002
Ivan Spassov
Homage d'Apollinaire (text:
G. Apollinaire) for voice
and ensemble WP 2000
Krassimir
Taskov
Three
Dickinson Poems
for soprano, clarinet, cello, and harp WP 2001
Roumen Toskov
Gershwin Improvision for cello, harp, and strings WP 1998
Ellington
Improvistion for cello and vibraphone WP 1999
Dimiter Tupkov
Toward Eternity
(text: Alexander Gerov) for
soprano and clarinet WP 2001
Dragomir
Yossifov
Fragmente V for clarinet
and cello WP 2000
Velislav
Zaimov
Trio for oboe, harp, cello
WP 1999
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Bulgarian
(or European) Premieres
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John Adams
Shaker Loops for string orchestra BP 1999
Andrea
Agostini
Microscopes (text:
E. Dickinson) for voice and
ensemble BP 2001
David Baker
Singers of Songs, Weavers of Dreams, cello and percussion BP 1999
Samuel Barber
Fantasy in Purple (text: L. Hughes) for voice and piano BP 2002
Robert Beaser
Cindy for flute
and guitar BP 2000
A
Word is Dead (text: E. Dickinson) for voice and piano BP 2003
Anne La Berge
Piece
for flute BP 2002
Lisa Bielawa
Music for Cynthia
Cox’s multimedia
installation A Collective Cleansing BP 2000
Genesis Again
for violin and voice BP 2000
Dusan
Bogdanovich
Jazz Sonatina for guitar BP 2002
William Bolcom
Graceful Ghost Rag
for piano BP 1999
It
Briefly Entered… (text: J. Kenyon) for voice and piano BP 2003
Sonata
No. 3 for violin and piano BP 2003
Margaret Bonds
Three Dream Portraits (text: L. Hughes) for voice and piano BP 2002
Christopher
Cook
Clowns for
trombone BP 2002
John
Cage
Solos from Song Books BP 2000
Dream for
piano BP 2001
Five
for five players
BP 2002
John Alden
Carpenter Four
Negro Songs (text: L. Hughes) for voice and piano BP 2002
Eliott Carter
Sonata for Violoncello and Piano
BP 1998
Gra
for trombone BP 2002
Henry Cowell
Aeolian Harp for piano BP 2001
Homage
to Iran for violin and piano BP 2003
George Crumb
Makrokosmos, vol. I for piano BP 1999
Sebastian
Currier
Aftersong for violin and piano BP 2000
Robert Dick
Flames Must Not
Encircle Sides for flute BP 2002
Gerardo Dirie
Il Radio feriva il tiempo for guitar BP 2000
Si un Dia el
Olvido for guitar
BP 2000
David Dramm
Thrash and Variations for flute and boombox BP 2000
Morton Feldman
For Franz Kline for
ensemble BP 2001
Viola in my
life III for
viola and piano BP 2002
Arthur Foote
Suite, Op. 63 for string orchestra BP 1998
Ballade
in F minor for violin and piano BP 2003
Don Freund
Stirrings for
guitar BP 2000
George
Gershwin
Three Preludes arr. for piano trio BP 1998
Louis M.
Gottschalk
Le Bananier for piano BP 1999
Bruce Hamilton
Wintermute for
trombone BP 2002
Roy Harris
Trio for piano, violin and violoncello
BP 1998
Lee
Hoiby
A Shining Place (five Dickinson songs) for voice and piano BP 2003
Joaquim Homs
Dos Poemes d'Emily Dickinson (in Catalan) BP 2001
Charles Ives
Largo for violin,
clarinet,
and piano BP 2001
Charles
Ives/William Schuman Variations on “America” for orchestra BP 2003
Stefania
De Kenessey
The Muse is not Amused (text: L. Rodgers) for voice and piano BP
2003
Leon Kirchner
For Solo Cello BP 1999
Joseph Klein
Der Wasserhehler
(after Canetti) for ocarina
BP 2000
Penka Kouneva
String Quartet No. 1 BP 1999
Raga for piano
BP 2000
Jonathan
Kramer Serbelloni
Serenade for violin, clarinet and piano BP
2000
Ernst Krenek
Suite for guitar
BP 2000
Henri Lazarof
Cadence IV for piano BP 1999
Gijs Levelt
Chajes for flute, trumpet, voice and percussion BP 2002
No
Go for trumpet, bass flute, and voice BP 2002
Stan
Link
Groundswell (text: M. Jarman) for soprano, reader, and computer BP 2003
Alvin Lucier
Music for piano
and two slow sweep pure wave oscillators BP 2002
Erik Lund
Truth Relations
for trombone BP 2002
Tod Machover
Deplacements for
guitar BP 2000
Edward
MacDowell
Piano Pieces BP 1998
Daniel
Gregory Mason Sonata in C minor, Op. 14 for violin and piano BP 2003
Ned McGowan
Moonrise
for flute BP 2002
Urban
Turban for voice, flute, and trumpet BP 2002
Parasite
for voice, trumpet, and bass flute BP 2002
George F.
McKay
Variations on
a Pentatonic Theme for cello
and string orch.
BP 1998
Caricature
Suite for piano BP
1999
Dorothy Rudd
Moore
A Little Whimsy for
piano BP 2000
Conlon
Nancarrow
Three Two-part
Studies for piano BP 2002
Lior Navok
The
Sea of Sunset for voice, trombone, doublebass, and piano BP 2001
Harry Partch
Exordium from Delusion of the Fury (video) BP 2001
Mark Philips
T. Rex for
trombone and tape BP 2002
Florence
Price
Song to the Dark Virgin (text: L. Hughes) BP 2002
Petros
Ovsepyan
And now the shadow of the
pillar, part IV, cello and harp BP 1999
Robin de Raaff
Contradictie for
flute BP 2002
Shalumit Ran
Private Game for clarinet and cello BP 2001
Steve Reich
Electric Counterpoint for guitars BP 2000
Pendulum
music for microphone and speakers BP 2002
Terry Riley
Keyboard Study
No. 1 BP 2002
Scott Robbins
Monody in Memory of Aaron Copland for piano BP 2000
Paul
Schoenfield
Boogie for piano four-hands BP 2000
Joseph
Schwantner
Velocities for marimba BP 2000
Kile
Smith
The Voice of One who Spoke for orchestra BP 2003
Bozhidar
Spassov
Refrain on Machaut for two cellos BP 2002
John Speight
The Lady in White (Dickinson
song cycle) for voice and piano BP 2001
Greg
Steinke
Music for Chief Joseph, oboe and trombone quartet BP 2003
Alexander
Tcherepnin Shadow Play for piano BP 1999
Virgil Thomson
Three Portraits for violin and piano BP 1999
Perry Townsend
The Jester Sings for flute BP 2001
Mark Winges
A Voice of Change (homage
to Cage) for violin, cello,
and harp BP 1999
Donald York
Variations on Big Bertha for clarinet and piano BP 2000
Alexander
Zemlinsky
Afrikanischer
Tanz (text: L. Hughes) for voice and piano BP 2002
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Performed
Georgi
Arnaudov
Jubilation for two cellos 2002
Samuel
Barber
Excursions for piano 2000
Bela
Bartok
Six Dances in Bulgarian Rhythm for piano 1999
Contrasts
for violin, clarinet, and piano 2001
Dimiter
Christoff
Songs (text. P. Slaveykov) 2000
Jolting
Further for harp and cello 2001
Victor
Chuchkov
Etude for piano 2000
Aaron
Copland
Hoedown from Rodeo for string orchestra 1998
Four
Blues for piano 2000
from
Twelve Dickinson Songs 2001
Richard
Cornell
Two Pieces for piano 2000
Yavor
Dimitrov
Sonata for violin and piano 2000
Antonin
Dvorak
String Quartet in F Major, Op. 96 “American” 2003
Lyubomir
Georgiev
Dialogues for clarinet and cello 2001
George
Gershwin
Lullaby for string
orchestra 1998
Frederick
Hand
Suite for guitar 1998
Parashkev
Hadzhiev
Songs 2002
Konstantin
Iliev
Reflections (songs on Langston Hughes) 2002
Scott
Joplin
Pineapple Rag for piano 1998
Milko
Kolarov
Sonata for clarinet 2003
Jonathan
Kramer
Whirled Piece for piano 2000
Dorothy
Rudd Moore
The Weary Blues for voice, cello, and piano 2002
Vincent
Persichetti
Serenade No. 10 for flute and harp 1999
Peter
Petrov
Dialogues with Silence for clarinet and cello 2003
Simeon
Pironkoff
Two Dickinson Songs for voice, piano, and harp 2001
George
Rochberg
Ricordanza for cello and piano 1998
Dimiter
Sagaev
Two Nocturnes for harp 1999
Ivan
Spassov
Sonata quasi variazioni for cello and piano 1999
Augusta
Read Thomas
Two Etudes for piano 2000
Pancho
Vladigerov
Bagatelles for piano 1999
Marin
Vulchanov
Song-Game for horn and piano 2002
Dragomir
Yossifov
WazareLigeti for clarinet, cello, and piano 2001
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Past Guest
Artists at AMW in BG
Philip Blackburn (USA,
composer/lecturer, 2001)
Sebastian Berweck (Germany, pianist,
2002)
Lisa Bielawa (USA, composer/vocalist/lecturer,
2000)
Helen Bledsoe (USA/Germany, flutist/masterclass,
2000)
Rosalind Erwin (USA,
conductor, 2003)
Andrew Glendening (USA, trombonist/masterclass,
2002)
Ching-chu Hu (USA, composer/lecturer,
2002)
Amy Jarman (USA,
soprano, 2003)
Mark Jarman (USA,
poet/reader, 2003)
Peter Kairoff (USA,
pianist, 2003)
Joseph Klein (USA,
composer/conductor/lecturer, 2001)
Tatiana Koleva (Bulgaria/Holland,
percussionist, 2000)
Jean Kopperud (USA,
clarinetist, 2000)
Penka Kouneva (Bulgaria/USA,
composer/lecturer, 1999)
Jonathan Kramer (USA, composer, 2000)
Kevin Lawrence (USA,
violinist/masterclass, 2003)
John Anthony Lennon (USA, composer,
2002)
Gijs Levelt, (Holland, trumpeter,
2002)
Stan Link (USA,
composer/lecturer, 2003)
Martha Mavroidi (Greece, composer/vocalist,
2002)
Ned McGowan (USA/Holland, composer/flutist/lecturer,
2002)
Frederick L. McKay (USA, lecturer, 1999)
Moebius Ensemble (USA, 2000)
Petros Ovsepyan (USA/Germany,
composer/lecturer, 1999)
Kile Smith (USA,
composer, 2003)
Greg Steinke (USA, composer/oboist,
2003)
Patricia Stowell (USA, pianist/masterclass,
1998)
Alan Thomas (USA/UK, guitarist/masterclass,
2000)
Further Information
For further
information about American Music Week in Bulgaria,
contact:
Geoffrey Dean,
Fine Arts Program Coordinator, American University in Bulgaria,
1 G. Izmirliev Place, Blagoevgrad 2700, Bulgaria
Tel.: +359 2 958
3375 Fax: +359 73 80828
E-mail: dean@aubg.bg
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