"The human soul is sculpted by music" Kichka Hristova loves to say. The Bulgarian folk song has been part of her live for 40 years. She was born in Varna and her creative activity is entirely linked to the seaside city. Having mastered the traditional style of northeastern Bulgaria, she also has author songs in her repertoire. Songs from her native region are the focus of her work in the studio, where she has recorded with the Folk Orchestra of the Bulgarian National Radio and arrangements were made by Kosta Kolev, Kostadin Genchev, Angel Dobrev and others. She was a conductor of folklore groups: "Neranza", "Galatea", "Martenitsa", "Bukavitsa" and others. Over the years, Kichka Hristova has been able to release albums with songs by her students, as well as to present them at festival stages in Bulgaria and around the world. Many of her students are professionally focused on music. Kichka Hristova's dedication and professionalism are highly appreciated by experts and the public. “Golden Lyra" and "Crystal Necklace" are awards that stand out among the big number of prizes she has won. Kichka Hristova received the two awards this year on the occasion of her birth anniversary.

“Family is the beginning of every creative inspiration,” Kichka Hristova says. “It is the best place to get acquainted with various arts, cultures, folklore, and philosophy. In my family, folklore meant a lot. My parents were constantly listening to folk music on the radio or the record player. That is how I got to know the great voices of Bulgaria. My first favorite song was Sonia Kancheva's ‘Lyube, Lyube’. It opened me a path to the folk choir in the Ivan Rilski School with conductor Yanka Miteva, the ensemble of teachers with conductor Radoslav Danov and the ensemble with conductor Nayden Naydenov. I currently sing for pleasure in the Tsvetnitsa choir – Varna with conductor Atanas Iliev. Thanks to my teachers, I have developed my own views on music. The singer must choose whether to focus on old hits or on new, unheard songs, in order to leave something original. Over the years I have searched for songs mainly from northeastern Bulgaria. I learned them from Ivanka Dyuzova, Mariyka Radulova, Ivanka from Dalgopol, who gladly shared this wealth with me. I have a rich library of songs that have not yet been recorded. I also have recorded two albums together with musicians from Varna with author music. But for my 40 years of creative work the most important thing remains my family, who has always supported me and continue to do so to this day. I soon completed an interesting project financed by the Culture Fund of the Varna Municipality, entitled ‘Folklore Rainbow over the Seaside’. Together with the Elin Pelin Community Center – Varna and the Vasil Levski Community Center in the Galata quarter of the city, we held a series of concerts. The final one took place in the big hall of the Congress Center in Varna. I want my songs to reach every heart beating with the rhythm of Bulgarian folklore. I want the future to be more peaceful and beautiful, so that we can continue on this path and leave our mark…”

English: Alexander Markov