A nice experience is in store for classical music lovers in Sofia tonight, at Hall 6 of the National Palace of Culture: a sonata concert with works of Romantic composers Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms and Cesar Franck and the debut of a new chamber duo lined up with Prof. Stoyka Milanova (violin) and Prof. Ludmil Angelov (piano). The concert is part of the program of the 47th edition of the Sofia Music Weeks festival.

A successor of the celebrated David Oistrakh and graduate of the Moscow State Conservatory, Stoyka Milanova is professor at the Pancho Vladigerov National Academy of Music in Sofia at its Violin Chair. She has teamed up with another famous name - brilliant Bulgarian pianist Ludmil Angelov known internationally as one of the best interpreters of Chopin and Vladigerov. He is professor emeritus of New Bulgarian University. Prof. Angelov's career is split between Toledo in Spain and Sofia, and in the recent years he has been artistic director of Piano Extravaganza festival hosted by the Bulgarian capital every autumn.

Prof. Stoyka Milanova says more about the challenge of the brand new duo:

„I am looking forward with impatience and joy to our first encounter with the audience. We have only played Mozart together at the Apollonia Festival of the Arts. It was a great experience. We now decided to team up and I more or less chose this program that I think is pretty tough for me and for the pianist. However Ludmil agreed without objections. It seems our thoughts are synchronized, and we both enjoy the great music we perform together. It's blissful to work with such a pianist!”

More about the spirit of the duo and the program, from Prof. Ludmil Angelov:

„For me it is a great honor that we play together a wonderful program. As a pupil in the Music School I went to listen to her concerts and admired her perfection and her great job in promoting Bulgaria's music culture at home and abroad. I didn't even imagine that a moment would come when we would perform together. It is fascinating how time fits together the jigsaw puzzle pieces of two souls that are alike. Now everything takes place in an easy and simple way. When we think in a similar way, everything is clear. Now the hard part is ahead - to present the concert accordingly and engage in dialogue with the audience. I hope that we will enjoy together the great music written by composers of genius.”

English Daniela Konstantinova

1. Sonata for Violin and Piano in A Major by Cesar Franck, Third Movement performed by Stoyka Milanova and Rostislav Yovchev

2. Trio for Piano, Violin and Horn by Brahms, opus 40, Finale, in the rendition of Stoyka Milanova, Dora Milanova and Vladislav Grigorov

3. A fragment from First Movement of Piano Quintet in F Minor by Cesar Franck performed by Ludmil Angelov, Mario Hossen, Kristina Hinova, Gérard Causse and Dominique de Williencourt, a live recording

4. Second Movement from Sonata №3 for Violin and Piano, opus 108, in D Minor by Johannes Brahms performed by Ludmil Angelov and Vesko Panteleev - Eshkenazi

5. Mazurka in A Minor by Chopin, another great composer of Romanticism in the rendition of acknowledged Chopin player Ludmil Angelov