Kanela, the scent of childhood and the beauty of poetry

published on 11/15/24 12:30 PM

Photo: YouTube / Kanela

The band Kanela (Cinnamon) has been known for years, but in 2022 they started recording new songs with a new line-up. First came "Fairy", followed by "Always", "Flowers" and "A Ring", the latter staying in the BNR TOP 20 charts for more than a month. The current line-up of the band is: Tsvetan Angelov - vocals and guitars, Niki Daradidov (pronounced DaradIDov) - bass and vocals and 19 year old Svetoslav Petrov on drums.

Tsvetan Angelov has this to say about the band's spicy name:

"The name Kanela reminds us of grandma's cinnamon rice pudding - it's the taste of childhood, when we dreamed of conquering the world. Much later, we have the same energy again - in fact, it is the scent of cinnamon from our childhood that we have taken with us to carry us forward".

It can also be read as a return to eternal values in music, as Kanela's songs are very melodic. Tsvetan admits that they grew up with "good old" hard rock, classical music and jazz. But they don't limit themselves stylistically, because the world is moving on, so they also listen to contemporary bands and artists who are shaping today's musical landscape, which in his opinion is "wonderful".

"I often hear my peers say: 'They don't make songs like they used to! No, they do, but it's us who have locked ourselves away, we've closed ourselves off and we don't listen to the new songs. We don't give them a chance to reach us because we live in this cinnamon-scented time capsule of the past. But I want us to break through and, fuelled by our memories, find our new, relevant sound.

That's exactly what they've done with their latest song 'Beauty'. This is their second song after 'Ring', which is based on verses by the 20th century poet Veselin Hanchev (1919-1966). Tsvetan Angelov admits that at first he approached the works of the famous poet with trepidation, because for him they are iconic. But through the songs of Kanela, the poems have a modern beat to reach even those who are unfamiliar with or uninspired by Hanchev's poetry.

"That is one of our goals - we would be extremely happy if we could give these wonderful poems a new interpretation, a renaissance if you like, so that they can be heard by more people. I know these verses are quite popular. They are really beautiful, sentimental love poems. But still, a fresh reading would allow more freedom to understand them. That's important to me and of course to the band. So that's another goal."

Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!

Share

Kanela, the scent of childhood and the beauty of poetry

More from category

“The Rhythm of the Balkans” – a project by the BNR’s Folk Music Orchestra offering a unique blend of traditions

Young European conductor Boian Videnoff considers the Sofia Opera his family

Remembering Stefka Sabotinova 95 years after her birth