Hristo Dimitrov
Ian Charles Anderson
Elena Anderson
About BULGARE,
In times of hardships, changes and ordeals there is no stronger building power for a nation than turning back towards its roots, towards the great moments of its history, towards its authentic traditions, ethnography and folklore. This was the truth Hristo Dimitrov perceived when in October 2002 he decided to create the first private professional ensemble for folk dances "BULGARE".
It all began with an idea.
The idea to create a grand folklore performance, displaying in seven music and dance acts the typical music, songs, dances and mentality of the Bulgarians from the seven ethnographic regions: the Rhodopi Mountain, Macedonia, Shopluka, North Bulgaria, Dobrudzha, Strandzha and Thracia.
Later, Hristo Dimitrov realizes that in order to create such a show, he would need to create an elite professional ensemble consisting of folklore dancers who need special training in order to carry out this impressive task. The idea met with the approval of Hristo's sister, Elena, but the most powerful boost came from the British citizen Ian Charles Anderson (consequently Elena's spouse) who funded the establishment of the project. In spite of the fact that the planned budget was exceeded nine times, Ian Anderson did not give it up and the project was completed. This created the first private folklore ensemble in Bulgaria: Bulgare.
On October 1, 2002 Hristo and Elena Dimitrov, together with about twenty dancers, established the Bulgare Ensemble. Now there are 25 men and 25 women, all of them professional dancers, and soloist is Albena Veskova - who was at that time soloist of the Mystery of the Bulgarian Voices. This is the largest private folk ensemble in Europe. In 2003 was created Bulgaria's first grand folklore project - the dance spectacle "THIS IS BULGARIA". In 7 musical and dancing scenes the narrator-foreigner reveals the richness and beauty of the music, songs and dances of Bulgaria's 7 ethnographic areas: The Rodophi Mountains, Macedonia, Shopluka, Northern Bulgaria, Dobrudzha, Strandzha and the Thrace. In 2006 the Bulgare Ensemble presented the premiere of its second spectacle "BULGARIA TROUGH THE CENTURIES". This is a historical dance spectacle. In it sound church chants, film music, mysterious ancient rhythms with horns and kettle drums. On the eve of the Bulgaria's actual accession to the European Union, the Bulgare Ensemble presented the spectacle "Bulgaria in Europe", which is an incredible combination of the spectacles "This is Bulgaria" and " Bulgaria through the centuries". Particularly impressive is the superb performance of the new Bulgarian folklore star - the singer Albena Veskova. On May 15, 2007 we produced the third show of ensemble "Bulgare" - "ALBENA". It is music - dance show. The Bulgare Ensemble has an extraordinary success in the country and aboard - Japan, Israel, Luxemburg, Austria, Hungary, Belgium, Greece, Romania, Macedonia, France etc. Today, 6 years later, the Bulgare Ensemble's concerts exceed 100 per annum and eve one of them turns into an unforgettable folk experience for everyone who attends them.
