An extraordinary journey between musical genres and geographical locations awaits us on November 14 in Sofia. The soft sound of Bulgarian folk instrument kaval will meet the classical sound of the Sofia Soloists Chamber Orchestra with conductor Konstantin Dobroikov. This concert will take us through different places. Actually, "Places" is the name of the debut solo album of kaval player and composer Zhivko Vasilev. Each of the 11 pieces describes a feeling in a particular place related to his growth as a musician and a person.

• Going “Places” to the sound of the kaval – as seen by Zhivko Vasilev

We know Zhivko from the trio Outhentic, in which together with the singer Raina Vassileva and the guitarist Viktor Djorgov they presented their interpretation of Bulgarian folklore in two albums. He continued to develop his talent and his creative explorations took him to Rotterdam, the Netherlands, where he studied jazz. This is how he formed his unique style, combining traditional sounds and motifs from the Balkans with the rich achievements of the Western school of music. This was followed by Zhivko Vassilev's performances on prestigious world stages and forums with a number of famous musicians followed.

• The more audacious we are, the bigger the chances someone will sit up and take notice: Zhivko Vasilev about Outhentic’s debut album

The beginning of the cooperation with the Sofia Soloists Chamber Orchestra was set in 2021, when conductor was Plamen Dzhurov. Zhivko Vasilev felt that there are more things to be said and in addition to the initially included works from "Places", on November 14 we will also hear completely new compositions in arrangements that he wrote especially for this orchestra. He defines them as experimental:

"I've been active in creating game music for a few years now and it has influenced the direction of my work a lot. I think there's this influence that comes from being transported into a different state, in which you get out of the present and fly somewhere else. At the same time folklore and jazz are also present and there are elements of each of these styles, especially in the music that I have written recently. I think it will be very interesting."

In this concert, which takes place with the financial support of the Ministry of Culture, in addition to the Sofia Soloists Chamber Ensemble, special guests also contribute to the rich sound: Ana Rodriguez - cello, Borislav Petrov - drums, Mihail Ivanov - double bass and Teodor Petkov - piano. All of them will be together with Zhivko Vasilev, who says that the idea of music is to convey a message:

"Since our strongest language is music I believe we should use it. Rather, my message is to keep searching. Even if we find something, it doesn't mean it's the final destination - the way I see things is that we have to search, and find, and improve, and always be better than the day before."

We also hear this message in "Leprechaun's Dream" from a recording of his concert with the Sofia Soloists Chamber Orchestra with conductor Plamen Dzhurov from 2021.

Photos:  outhentic.eu, Facebook / Zhivko Vasilev