Prof. Tsvetan Nedyalkov, Ph.D.
Head of Department
In the 1960s, specialized schools for entertainment musicians were created within the Estrada Department and the Bulgarian National Radio, but in 1968, the question of formal education for singers and instrumentalists of popular music was finally resolved with the establishment of the Estrada Department of the Bulgarian State Conservatory (Head of Department was Emil Georgiev). Until 1986, this was a two-year degree course. In 1986, the Department was renamed Pop and Jazz Art. It was part of the Vocal Faculty, but students were instructed in two separate branches – vocal and instrumental, in a four-year graduate degree course.
Some of the most prominent musicians have been teaching at the Department, as well singers and instrumentalists with flourishing concert careers, composers and arrangers with significant contributions to Bulgarian music.
Among the alumni of the Department are some of the most distinguished and celebrated musicians in Bulgaria: the singers Vasil Naydenov, Georgi Hristov, Veselin Marinov, Vasil Petrov, Vladimir Ampov – Grafa, Desislava Dobreva, Esil Duran, Boris Soltariyski (Ku-Ku Band), Beloslava, Margarita Hranova, Petar Chernev, Maya Neshkova, Hristo Kidikov, Mihail Yonchev, Tsvetan Tsachev, Yordan Marchinkov, Diana Dafova, Neli Rangelova, Silvia Katsarova, Vanya Kostova, Snezhina Temelkova, the pop duo Riton, Mimi Ivanova, Petya Buyuklieva, Kichka Bodurova, Bogdan Tomov, Kamelia Voce, Panayot Panayotov, Veneta Rangelova, Rositsa Ganeva, Stanislav Slanev – Stanley, Petko Manchev; and the instrumentalists Zahari Georgiev (composer and bass player), Stoyan Yankulov – Stundzhi (percussions), Tsvetan Nedyalkov (guitar), Ivan Stoyanov (bass guitar), Kristiyan Ivanov (piano), Evgeni Yotov (saxophone), Mihail Yosifov (trumpet), Vladimir Karparov (saxophone), Veselin Veselinov – Eko (bass guitar, double bass), Vasil Parmakov (piano), Shibil Benev (guitar), Dimitar Kovachev – Funky (bass guitar), Ventsislav Blagoev (trumpet), Petar Slavov Jr (double bass), Dimitar Dimitrov (percussions), Todor Tsachev (saxophone) and many others.
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CURRENT ACADEMIC STAFF
Composition
Prof. Maria Ganeva, Sc.D.
Orchestrations
Assistant Vasil Deliev, part-time lecturer
Improvisations
Chief Assistant Mihail Yosifov,
History of Pop and Jazz Music
Assistant Zdravko Petrov, part-time lecturer
Pop and Jazz Piano
Prof. Maria Ganeva, Sc.D.
Assistant Atanas Miladinov, part-time lecturer
Pop and Jazz Guitar
Prof. Tsvetan Nedyalkov, Ph.D.
Assistant Ognyan Veskov, part-time lecturer
Pop and Jazz Bass Guitar
Prof. Ivan Stoyanov, Ph.D.
Pop and Jazz Double Bass
Assistant Svoboda Bozduganova, Ph.D., part-time lecturer
Pop and Jazz Percussions
Prof. Hristo Yotsov
Assistant Venko Poromanski, Ph.D., part-time lecturer
Assistant Atanas Popov, part-time lecturer
Pop and Jazz Saxophone
Assistant Apostol Apostolov, part-time lecturer
Pop and Jazz Trumpet
Chief Assistant Mihail Yosifov,
Pop and Jazz Trombone
Assistant Velislav Stoyanov, part-time lecturer
Big Band
Chief Assistant Mihail Yosifov, part-time lecturer
Pop and Jazz Singing
Prof. Stefka Onikyan, Ph.D.
Assoc. Prof. Alice Bovarian
Chief Assistant Vladimir Dimov, Ph.D.
Assistant Iliyan Paraskov, Ph.D., part-time lecturer
Assistant Adriana Benova, part-time lecturer
Assistant Petya Stancheva, part-time lecturer
Assistant Rozmari Dragneva, part-time lecturer
Vocal Ensembles
Assistant Tamara Mavrova, part-time lecturer
Acting and Stage Speech
Prof. Veselina Raeva, Ph.D.
Accompanists
Alexander Bozhikov
Ivan Kantardzhev
Kristian Iliev
Kalin Zhechev
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FORMER ACADEMIC STAFF
Composition
Prof. Yulia Tsenova (1948 – 2010)
Theoretical Courses
Emil Georgiev (1925 – 1992) – Acoustics
Yordan Kolev (1936 – 2017) – Music Theory and Solfeggio
Lilia Nenkova (1938 – 2019) – Music Theory and Solfeggio
Vladimir Hristozov (1953 – 2017) – Music Theory
Orchestrations
Assoc. Prof. Tomi Dimchev
Assoc. Prof. Yasen Obretenov (1948 – 2018)
Improvisations
Prof. Simeon Shterev (1943 – 2020)
History of Pop and Jazz Music
Yordan Rupchev (1951 – 2000)
Prof. Vladimir Radulov
Sound Equipment
Hristofor Stoyanov
Pop and Jazz Piano
Prof. Yulia Tsenova (1948 – 2010)
Antoni Donchev
Dimitar Buynozov
Gergana Vladova
Mladen Taskov
Venilina Malinova
Accordion
Prof. Dobromir Mitev, Ph.D.
Georgi Galabov
Pop and Jazz Guitar
Assoc. Prof. Alexander Pumpalov
Lyuben Panayotov
Pop and Jazz Bass Guitar
Prof. Simeon Venkov
Pop and Jazz Double Bass
Prof. Teodosi Stoykov (1939 – 2011)
Prof. Simeon Venkov
Dimitar Karamfilov, part-time lecturer
Pop and Jazz Percussions
Petar Tsankov
Boris Dinev
Pop and Jazz Flute
Prof. Simeon Shterev (1943 – 2020)
Pop and Jazz Saxophone
Assoc. Prof. Vlayu Vlaev
Svetozar Rusinov
Dimitar Simeonov
Pop and Jazz Trumpet
Krasimir Petev
Alexander Gatev
Stoycho Radnev
Georgi Stefanov
Pop and Jazz Trombone
Iliya Nenov – Foro
Vladimir Slavchev
Big Band
Assoc. Prof. Krasimira Magneva
Assoc. Prof. Tomi Dimchev
Assoc. Prof. Yasen Obretenov (1948 – 2018)
Yonko Tatarov
Pop and Jazz Singing
Irina Chmihova (1930 – 2020)
Assoc. Prof. Georgi Kordov (1934 – 2006)
Assoc. Prof. Angel Zaberski
Petar Dimitrov
Stefan Atanasov
Boris Stamenov
Vasil Markov
Angelina Kaneva
Valentin Asenov
Vocal Ensembles
Assoc. Prof. Rumyana Marton
Chavdar Mazhdrakov (1942 – 2007)
Acting and Stage Speech
Prof. Andrey Avramov
Assoc. Prof. Dinko Chomakov
Kristina Belcheva
Accompanists
Tsvetana Vazvazova
Maria Mihailova
Martin Markov
Rosen Parpalanov
Teodor Petkov
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HEADS OF THE DEPARTMENT
Emil Georgiev (1925 – 1992)
Assoc. Prof. Georgi Kordov (1934 – 2006)
Assoc. Prof. Tomi Dimchev
Prof. Yulia Tsenova (1948 – 2010)
Prof. Maria Ganeva, Sc.D.
Prof. Tsvetan Nedyalkov, Ph.D.