site.btaChildren from Bulgarian Roma Neighbourhood to Perform with Paris Philharmonic

Four young musicians from a Roma neighbourhood in Sliven, Central Bulgaria, will perform in the Pierre Boulez Hall of the Paris Philharmonic on February 26, said the Bulgarian Cultural Institute in Paris and Moments Foundation, partners in the project.

The talented children are invited to take part in a classical concert of 120 young people from 27 countries, as part of the DEMOS project of one of the world's largest philharmonics, which provides a stage for children from social groups with difficult access to culture and education.

The concert is organized under the auspices of French President Emmanuel Macron, within the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union, and brings together young musicians from European organizations that carry out such an activity. 

Parts of works by Grieg, Ravel, Mussorgsky, and Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" will be performed, which the Bulgarian musicians have been performing since the beginning of the year. The joint rehearsals of all participants from different countries with the teams of the Paris Philharmonic will begin a week earlier when the children will arrive in Paris. 

The concert will be conducted by Rebecca Tong, first prize winner at the La Maestra competition in 2020, and Corina Neumeier, creative and music director of the Luxembourg Philharmonic since September 2020.

Music Instead of the Street Initiative

The four Bulgarian participants - Sasho Georgiev, Tsonyo Cholakov, Nikolina Nikolaeva, and Veli Dormushev - are part of violinist Georgi Kalaydzhiev's philanthropic project entitled "Music Instead of the Street". Within the framework of the project children from Sliven's Roma neighborhood of Nadezhda have been studying various instruments and playing classical music for 12 years now. Initiative founder Kalaydzhiev, born in Nadezhda, studied violin at the National School of Music and Performing Arts in Burgas and at the National Academy of Music in Sofia, and had a 20-year career at the Sofia Soloists Chamber Orchestra before ultimately settling in Germany.

Kalaydzhiev and his wife Maria Hauschild live in Germany, where he runs a small chamber orchestra when he is not devoting time to the Music Instead of the Street project. Radka Kusseva has been working with Kalaydzhiev since the beginning of the project and is also a teacher as part of the initiative.

The Talented Musicians

Sasho, Tsonyo, and Veli are violinists, and Nikolina plays the piano. All four of them live in Nadezhda, and for years the project has been a choice and an opportunity for them to have a personal and professional development different from that of other children growing up in the Roma neighbourhood.

Sasho Georgiev, 14, studies at the Musical School in Stara Zagora. He sings, plays the violin, and is interested in Turkish folklore. Sasho's family is of Turkish origin, they live a modest life, his father is unemployed, and his mother is a hairdresser.

Tsonyo Cholakov, 16, was born in Spain, where his parents were working,  and migrated back to Bulgaria at a very young age. He has been part of Kusseva's group for five years now. Both of his parents are unemployed. Tsonyo's dream is to be accepted into a music school in 2023.

Nikolina Nikolaeva, 16, is one of the first children to attend the project's classes. She started playing the piano at the age of six, and the contrabass in 2016. Nikolina is of Roma origin and lives with her grandmother, while her parents work in the United Kingdom. In 2020, she was accepted in the Musical School in Burgas to study the contrabass, but she decided to continue her education at the language school in Sliven, where she is among the best students.

Veli Dormushev, 17, discovered the violin thanks to the project when he was just 5 years old. He also plays the guitar, the piano, he is a talented singer and dancer. Veli has been admitted in the Musical School in Burgas and his dream is to study at the National Academy of Music in Sofia. He is of Turkish origin and lives in Nadezhda with his parents and older brother Durmus, who also studies music in Burgas - percussion instruments. Veli is also a mentor for the younger students in the initiative.  

DEMOS

Dispositif d`education musicale et orchestrale a vocation sociale (DEMOS) is a social project launched by the Paris Philharmonic in 2010. It aims to enrich children's education and to ensure the transmission of classical heritage. It provides a physical and vocal introduction to music, presenting orchestral instruments and offering an experience of orchestral music practice. The project's goal is to broaden access to classical music to a large and diverse audience.