Martin Harris Centre Music Online: Mariya Dimitrova, Asya Pincheva, and Vanya Dimitrova

We are absolutely delighted to welcome Mariya Dimitrova, Asya Pincheva, and Vanya Dimitrova to our virtual concert series performing a series of Bulgarian vocal arrangements. The distinctive sounds of Bulgarian vocal music are the result of elaborate musical systems that have been developed over time and through an amalgam of cultural and political contexts. Some of the most striking characteristics of Bulgarian vocal music are its asymmetrical rhythms, distinct harmonies, and unique vocal performance strategies, which have paved the way for the genre to be characterised as a national treasure. Singers are known for their virtuosic displays in irregular meters such as 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, where meter is split in combinations of short (2 metric units) and long (3 metric units) beats, corresponding to the dancers’ short and long steps. One such example in the programme here is ’More Pile’ (2:42) which is in 7/8 (3 2 2). While these meters are commonly found in other musical traditions across