Vanya Vakari revives a Bulgarian folk song with an electronic sound

We know Vanya Vakari as a folk singer who preserves the spirit of tradition while placing it in a new, universal context accessible to an international audience. Her professional journey began with the choir “Bulgarian Voices – Angelite”, with which she participated in numerous international projects and collaborations with world-renowned artists such as Bobby McFerrin and Adriano Celentano.

Today, Vanya Vakari collaborates with established ensembles – Dragostin Folk National, the “Kaufman” Choir, Trio Vechernitsa, and Quartet Slavey. At the same time, she is developing her solo career through professional studio recordings and original projects.

One of them is a contemporary interpretation of the Bulgarian folk song “Mit, Mitelenke”, arranged by Fabrizio Parisi, who shares: “My aim was to build a cinematic world around Vanya’s voice — a world in which folklore does not sound like an archive, but like a living, breathing organism.”

Vanya Vakari has more:

“For me, ‘Mitelenke’ is a meeting between memory and the present. It is a song that carries roots, but also freedom — the possibility to be heard and felt in a new way.”

Translated by Kostadin Atanasov