The Sofia Orchestra marked its jubilee on April 16, the date on which it was founded fifty years ago. The idea for this belongs to Stefan Kolev and Ilyan Sabadoshev.

“It is important to know the history of Bulgarian music, but also to present to the public the archive recordings we have,” the two organizers of the event say. At their invitation a dozen performers who have played with the renowned combo band through the years came together to play unique gramophone records, to revisit the past, the concerts, the happy and the sad times they have had together. Rossen Elezov’s film the Orchestra of Sofia, dedicated to the ensemble’s anniversary was also shown. Saxophone player Dimitar Simeonov, founder of the orchestra and later – its conductor was among the guests to the jubilee event:

“Before Sofia Orchestra was founded, there were two Sofia Municipality formations already in existence – the Sofia Soloists chamber ensemble with conductor Vassil Kazandjiev and Sasho Mihailov’s Sofia Brass Band. But a combo formation was needed for the major programmes the municipality wanted to take part in an international project with. At the time, Sofia had 28 sister capital cities and they exchanged visits by artistes from different spheres. Every year we gave hundreds of concerts across the country, we traveled to Europe as well. Perhaps this is something that is not known to the broad public, but the orchestra has changed seven times, with myself as its backbone. In December 1971 we lost some wonderful musicians in an airplane crash; there were only four of us left and they elected me bandleader. There were other changes too. For example – in the summer we would be playing somewhere by the sea every night. One morning we woke up to discover that half of the orchestra’s musicians had left for Sweden without even telling us. Singer Lea Ivanova had persuaded them to do so… The following year the same thing happened all over again, though with a different singer. We have had many ups and downs. A total of 43 musicians have been members of Sofia Orchestra through the years, with more than 50 singers… We have had some wonderful times, and we have exhibited a high professional standard and a swift reaction.”

In 1973 the Sofia Orchestra participated in the Golden Orpheus festival, accompanying the foreign guests taking part in this prestigious international pop song festival, among them Ricchi e Poveri from Italy. The musicians arrived early one morning, worn out by their trip. That same night was their concert and a recording for Balkanton record company, but the original score had been lost. Dimitar Simeonov asked Ricchi e Poveri to sing their songs and recorded them on his tape-recorder. The first rehearsal was around midday, the dress rehearsal – at 6 PM, and that same night they gave a concert to be remembered.

In 1980, when Dynamite Brass Band was founded, seven of the orchestra’s musicians left to join it. At that same time Simeonov was invited to work with Lilly Ivanova. This breathed new life to the Sofia Orchestra and for quite a few years, the musicians accompanied the renowned singer around the world. Now, at age 82, Dimitar Simeonov is still playing. “Thank God, I am able to”, he says.

Here is what percussionist Kroum Kaluchev, a musician who began his career with the Sofia Orchestra says:

“There were many famous names in the orchestra back then – Hristyan Platov, Ivan Danov, Kossyo Dragnev, Lyudmil Georgiev – all of them household names. I was the youngest. We toured the country, sometimes with performers from abroad. We took part in a combined programme with singers from the operetta, actors from the National Theatre and the Theatre of Satire. And we were a great success.”

The fiftieth jubilee of the Sofia Orchestra will be marked throughout the year with different events, among them a concert by former members of the orchestra at the International Jazz Festival in Bansko.

The audio features the following pieces:

-  Rain, music and arrangement Angel Zaberski, performed by the Sofia Orchestra, soloist Dimitar Simeonov, saxophone,  a recording from 1965;

-  Signor Blues, soloists Dimitar Simeonov, saxophone, Konstantin Nossov, trumpet and Georgi Borissov, trombone.

English Milena Daynova