Assoc. prof. Rosen Balkanski, Ph.D.
Head of Department
When the Academy of Music was founded in 1921, the violin, viola, cello and double bass courses were taught in one department – String Instruments. During the interwar period, the main figure in the Department was Prof. Hans Koch from Prague – a student of Otakar Ševčík – who instructed some of the best Bulgarian violin teachers to be – professors Vladimir Avramov and Leon Souroujon. In the 1950s, the violin was assigned a separate department, and the two functioned alongside each other until 2020, when they were once again merged into one. In the early 1960s, the harp was introduced to the String Instruments Department, and in 1993 – the classical guitar. Since 2017, the folklore instruments gadulka and tambura are taught as well, as is the Celtic harp.
VIOLIN
In the first half of the 20th c., prominent instrumentalists who would later teach at the Academy studied with some of the most distinguished violinists of the time: Sasha Popov – with Ševčík and Prill in Vienna, Nikola Abadzhiev and Todor Vazharov – with Henri Marteau, Kamen Popdimitrov – with Lucien Capet, Hristo Obreshkov – with Georg Kulenkampff, Nedyalka Simeonova – with Leopold Auer, Petar Hristoskov – with Gustav Havemann, Leon Souroujon – with George Enesku and Yvonne Astruc. After WWII, Bulgarian violin art was seriously influenced by the Russian school. Boyan Lechev received instruction from David Oistrakh, Boyan Danailov – from Leonid Kogan, Mihail Chilikov – form Yuri Yankelevich, Georgi Bliznev – from Mikhail Vaiman, Dora Ivanova – from Igor Bezrodny, Emil Kamilarov (who played on Paganini’s violin) did a specialization in Leningrad, Stoyka Milanova studied with David Oistrakh, and Evgenia-Maria Popova – with Leonid Kogan. However, some violinists and pedagogues from the younger generation received their education in Western Europe – like Velika Tsonkova who specialized with Prof. Yfrah Neaman at the London Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
The instructors of the Violin Department are laureates of some of the most prestigious national and international competitions: Emil Kamilarov (Paganini – Genua), Georgi Badev (Queen Elizabeth – Brussels), Stoyka Milanova (Queen Elizabeth – Brussels, Carl Flesch – London), Ginka Gichkova (Montreal), Alexander Ilchev (Enescu – Bucharest), Elisaveta Kazakova (Tibor Varga – Switzerland), Yosif Radionov (Osaka), Velika Tsonkova (Kocian – Czech Republic), Galina Koycheva (Pancho Vladigerov – Shumen).
The professors at the Academy have had rich concert and recording careers – Nedyalka Simeonova, Vladimir Avramov (soloist and primarius of the famous Avramov Quartet), Leon Souroujon, Boyan Lechev (who played a series of significant Bulgarian violin pieces for the first time on stage), Petar Hristoskov, Emil Kamilarov, Georgi Badev, Stoyka Milanova (laureate of several international recording awards), Evgenia-Maria Popova, Yosif Radionov, Velika Tsonkova.
Members of the faculty often take part in jury panels and lead masterclasses in Bulgaria and abroad. Today, many Bulgarian violinists, alumni of the National Academy of Music, work as professors, concertmasters or soloists in prestigious music ensembles and educational institutions around the world.
LOWER STRINGS
The first viola class at the Academy was founded by Kosta Kirov in 1938. The first Head of the String Instruments Department was Prof. Stefan Sugarev (1907 – 1958) – a leading figure and proponent of the viola, who trained and shaped a great number of instrumentalists and teachers. Another important name for the department is that of Prof. Alexander Neinski, who was Director of the Bulgarian State Conservatory between 1968 and 1971, and again between 1985 and 1987.
The founder of the cello class at the Music academy and first instructor in the instrument was Prof. Iwan Cibulka, who also taught the double bass. In the 1970s and 1980s, the cello instructors were Prof. Zdravko Yordanov, Assoc. Prof. Svetoslav Manolov, Prof. Bogomil Karakonov, Anna Atanasova.
The first professionally trained double bass teacher was Todor Georgiev. He studied with Kurt Moechel in Frankfurt, and after he returned to Bulgaria, he was the principal bass player at the orchestra of the State Opera and State Philharmonic – a precursor of the Academic Symphony Orchestra. Between 1921 and 1926, he taught the double bass class at the State Academy of Music. Between 1944 and 1952, the bass instructors at the Academy were Tsanko Trifonov (principal bass at the orchestra of the Sofia Opera) and Asen Vapordzhiev.
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CURRENT ACADEMIC STAFF
Violin
Prof. Stoyka Milanova
Prof. Ginka Gichkova
Prof. Angel Stankov
Prof. Yosif Radionov
Prof. Alexander Ilchev
Prof. Velika Tsonkova, Ph.D.
Assoc.prof. Galina Koycheva, Ph.D.
Gergana Ilcheva, part-time lecturer
Viola
Prof. Stefan Zhilkov
Assoc. Prof. Vladislav Andonov, Ph.D.
Cello
Prof. Anatoli Krastev
Assoc. Prof. Atanas Krastev, Ph.D.
Assistant Hristo Tanev
Double Bass
Prof. Petya Bagovska, Ph.D.
Prof. Tsvetomir Lazarov, Ph.D.
Deyan Velikov, part-time lecturer
Harp and Celtic Harp
Vesela Zheleva, part-time lecturer
Classical Guitar
Assoc. Prof. Rosen Balkanski
Ekaterina Vaseva-Ikonomova
Tambura
Dimitar Hristov, Ph.D., part-time lecturer
Gadulka
Hristina Beleva, part-time lecturer
Accompanists
Maria-Elena Sredeva
Zornitsa Radionova
Rumen Tsanov
Bogdan Stanev
Malina Taskova
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FORMER ACADEMIC STAFF
Violin
Petko Naumov (1879 – 1933)
Prof. Nikola Abadzhiev (1883 – 1941)
Prof. Todor Torchanov (1884 – 1944)
Hans Koch (1891 – 1951)
Prof. Todor Vazharov (1893 – ?)
Assoc. Prof. Hristo Petkov (1893 – 1982)
Olga Chavova (1893 – ?)
Prof. Sasha Popov (1899 – 1976)
Elena Dobrinovska (1900 – 1991)
Prof. Nedyalka Simeonova (1901 – 1959)
Prof. Kamen Popdimitrov (1904 – 1992)
Prof. Hristo Obreshkov, Ph.D. (1907 – 1944)
Hristina Stoyanova (1907 – 1967)
Prof. Vladimir Avramov (1909 – 2007)
Prof. Mihail Balkanski (1909 – 1985)
Stoyan Stoyanov (1912 – ?)
Prof. Leon Souroujon (1913 – 2007)
Assoc. Prof. Vasil Stefanov (1913 – 1991)
Prof. Petar Hristoskov (1917 – 2006)
Prof. Elena Geneva (1919 – 2002)
Prof. Anton Hadzhiatanasov (1924 – 2016)
Prof. Boyan Lechev (1926 – 2004)
Prof. Emil Kamilarov (1928 – 2007)
Radka Daneva (1920 – ?)
Rayna Manolova (1926 – ?), part-time lecturer
Valentin Choparinov (1930 – 1993), part-time lecturer
Stoyan Kalchev (1933 – 2009)
Mihail Boyadzhiev (1934 – 2016)
Prof. Georgi Badev (1939 – 2015)
Assoc. Prof. Boyan Danailov (1939 – 2014)
Prof. Dora Ivanova (1940 – 2013)
Georgi Stratev, part-time lecturer
Mihail Chilikov
Assistant Hristo Donkin
Prof. Verka Stefanova
Assoc. Prof. Alexander Pumpalov
Prof. Georgi Bliznev
Prof. Evgenia-Maria Popova
Viola
Kosta Kirov (1894 – 1948)
Prof. Stefan Magnev (1906 – 1988)
Prof. Stefan Sugarev (1907 – 1958)
Prof. Alexander Neinski (1920 – 2003)
Prof. Stefan Magnev (1906 – 1988)
Assoc. Prof. Emil Abadzhiev (1923 – 1991)
Prof. Dimitar Chilikov (1937 – 1994)
Zahari Chavdarov (1930 – ?)
Dimitar Bozduganov (1931 – 2016)
Petar Stefanov (1933 – ?)
Prof. Ognyan Stanchev
Assoc. Prof. Georgi Stoyanov
Dragomir Zahariev
Cello
Prof. Iwan Cibulka (1880 – 1943)
Konstantin Yankov (1893 – 1934)
Prof. Konstantin Popov (1904 – 1991)
Prof. Konstantin Kugiyski (1905 – 1975)
Prof. Velko Karastoyanov (1906 – 1982)
Kiril Vapordzhiev (1906 – 1986)
Nikola Dimchev (1914 – 2006), part-time lecturer
Nikola Chakalov (1915 – 2008), part-time lecturer
Prof. Zdravko Yordanov (1931 – 2004)
Assoc. Prof. Svetoslav Manolov (1937 – 1995)
Prof. Bogomil Karakonov (1940 – 2011)
Anna Atanasova (1954 – 2010)
Double Bass
Prof. Iwan Cibulka (1880 – 1943)
Todor Georgiev (1893 – 1952)
Asen Vapordzhiev (1901 – 1987)
Tsanko Trifonov (1903 – ?), part-time lecturer
Prof. Todor Toshev (1919 – 1993)
Prof. Bogomil Karakonov (1940 – 2011)
Luka Tsvetanov (1930 – ?), part-time lecturer
Prof. Nikolay Nikolov (1934 – 2015)
Zhelyazko Zhelyazkov, part-time lecturer
Marcho Markov, part-time lecturer
Prof. Georgi Velkov
Harp
Anton Krautmann (?)
Asen Arnaudov (1910 – 1980), part-time lecturer
Prof. Malina Hristova
Classical Guitar
Emil Saev
Assoc. Prof. Alexander Pumpalov
Accompanists
Elena Vezneva
Faustina Ivanova
Lala Abadzhieva
Katya Kazandzhieva
Parashkev Hadzhiev
Ilina Baycheva
Lili Popova
Zlatka Arnaudova-Hristoskova
Savka Shopova-Markova
Nora Duneva
Ivan Zhekov
Violeta Popova
Marina Kapitanova
Daniela Dikova
Daniela Gancheva
Nadezhda Yotova
Violina Stoyanova
Anna Toshkova
Krastyo Kavlakov
Ivan Bogdanov
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HEADS OF THE VIOLIN DEPARTMENT
Prof. Vladimir Avramov (1909 – 2007)
Prof. Petar Hristoskov (1917 – 2006)
Prof. Boyan Lechev (1926 – 2004)
Prof. Dora Ivanova (1940 – 2013)
Prof. Alexander Ilchev
Prof. Yosif Radionov
Prof. Evgenia-Maria Popova
Assoc. Prof. Rosen Balkanski, Ph.D.
HEADS OF THE STRING INSTRUMENTS DEPARTMENT
Prof. Stefan Sugarev (1907 – 1958)
Prof. Vladimir Avramov (1909 – 2007)
Prof. Alexander Neinski (1920 – 2003)
Prof. Konstantin Popov (1904 – 1991)
Prof. Todor Toshev (1919 – 1993)
Prof. Nikolay Nikolov (1934 – 2015)
Prof. Malina Hristova
Prof. Bogomil Karakonov (1940 – 2011)
Prof. Stefan Zhilkov
Prof. Tsvetomir Lazarov, Ph.D.