site.btaMaestro Mario Hossen: Confidence in Varna Summer International Music Fest Draws Stars

Great events, interesting accents in the program, as well as the atmosphere and the cultural environment are the things that make a festival throb with energy and give it the power to change, and the Varna Summer International Music Festival has it all, the Artistic Director of the forum, violinist Mario Hossen, told BTA. The atmosphere in the seaside city is unique and makes both guests and artists feel at home, he thinks. "The big names come because they trust the Varna Summer brand, and the fans who specifically travel to listen to the concerts already know some of the great beauties of our Black Sea coast, combining their cultural interests with the opportunity to spend time amidst beautiful nature and sights, as there are in the region. These things are the future of a united European cultural public system," said Hossen. 

Asked if it is easy to invite great musicians to the festival, he says that both personal contacts and the festival programme are important.  "It is important for the festival programme to be on a high aesthetic artistic level, and when the guests see the sea, the hospitality, the food, the atmosphere, which is unique in Varna, it already makes them feel at home in cultural Europe."

No wonder that people come from all over the world go to see the Old World and Bulgaria, which is a veritable treasure, should try to follow suite, Hossen says. "In a small territory we have history, landmarks, proven cultural layers of over 6 thousand years, which Europeans and people around the world are unfamiliar with. In the narrow circles where I promote the cause of the festival, I have already informed some great musicians, they have heard the name, but do not associate it with anything specific in the last 40-50 years. Then they see that it is a great tradition, culture and hospitality. They see the atmosphere and the rhythm of the city, the local people living in harmony despite their difficult daily lives. As much as there is talk of pessimism, there is something very strong, very real in the Bulgarian genome and it shows in the friendly atmosphere and family environment. Here you see some radiant, smiling people, very young, who believe in the future. If the media can also propagate what we bring to it, it would be great and we would live in a creative environment. We can't listen to black chronicles all the time, it depresses everyday life, but nevertheless it can't depress the spirit and it is alive. This is evident in the audience who have a knowledge of what they are listening to and a need for spiritual nourishment."

Although the cultural communities to the north and south have different energies, it appears that guests find an oasis here and see that they are surrounded by culture and vibrant people who enjoy meeting each other, says Hossen. "Bulgarians are extremely hospitable. What culture does is ignore politics. We create bridges through the language of harmony, we create an environment that makes people feel happy with each other."

The festival is organized on a modular principle with certain themes, and this year one of them is the richness of Spanish culture, combined with the Spanish European Council Presidency, which starts in July. The entire programme features 26 Spanish composers from Baroque to contemporary music. The symposium will bring together scholars from Spain, Austria, Germany, Bulgaria, and specialists from the Balkan countries are also expected. "In a scholarly and creative environment, we will get to know this rich culture that we do not really know, we will experience this diversity of the European cultural treasury. The festival will feature Portuguese Renaissance music, which it turns out even the Spanish don't know, with music by composers who are not performed. We will offer Polish Baroque, which is also not well known, although there was a period when Polish music was one of the leading in Europe, before the cultural and political layers shifted to other nations, Hossen said. 

Hossen says Bulgaria also has endless sources and the festival has a lot to show from Bulgarian classical music. "Pancho Vladigerov is one of the greatest composers of the early 20th century, one performed almost all over the world, but little known nowadays except in some circles. In Bulgaria he is known for a few works, but in the world only as a name. They have heard him but do not associate him with music, they do not know in what style he wrote. That is why it is good that, as we are now presenting Spanish culture, European festivals should also perform Bulgarian music. Art and culture is the best ambassador of a nation. When the cultural circles become familiar with the intonation of the successors of Orpheus in the face of Pancho Vladigerov, Krassimir Kurkchiisky, Marin Goleminov, Dimitar Hristov of the new generation, Ivan Spassov, dozens of big names in different periods of our history, when Europe understands that Bulgaria is part of this ancient but also modern musical tradition, then they will perceive us in a completely different way on the other levels where we see that things are not so easy for us."