Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Carmina Burana brings together orchestras from Bulgaria, Greece and North Macedonia in Sofia

Conductor Nayden Todorov: We should not break the ties with each other, because the wheel keeps turning

Photo: BTA

A concert performance of the stage cantata Carmina Burana by Carl Orff in Sofia has turned into a celebration for music lovers and a testament to the power of music to melt ice in diplomacy.

For the first time, three orchestras from three neighboring Balkan countries took to the same stage. The Sofia Philharmonic, the Philharmonic of North Macedonia and the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra were joined by the Bulgarian National Philharmonic Choir "Svetoslav Obretenov" and three soloists - one from each of the three countries under the baton of the conductor of the Sofia Philharmonic Nayden Todorov.

Conductor Nayden Todorov
"Because Bulgaria and North Macedonia, North Macedonia and Greece, Bulgaria and Greece have always had special relations, we, the leaders of the three orchestras, decided to show that we can actually work great together. We need to show that something is coming from the Balkans that can be an example for the whole of Europe, that we can work together, that we can rebuild the bridges that seem to be gone and we can reverse a process that is very frightening - the process of division," conductor Nayden Todorov said in an interview with BNT. 


The magnetic sound created by 240 musicians on stage did not leave indifferent any spectator in the audience on February 17 in Hall 1 of the National Palace of Culture in Sofia. Each of the performances by soprano Ana Durlovski (Republic of Macedonia), tenor Nikolas Spanos (Greece) and baritone Ivo Yordanov (Bulgaria) was wildly applauded by the audience, BTA reports. 

And conductor Nayden Todorov promised: "With our colleagues from Greece and North Macedonia, we are embarking on something new." 


The choice of a a musical composition for this first joint performance is not at all accidental: 

"Carmina Burana" carries an idea that is very important to us, namely the wheel of fate. What goes down today goes up tomorrow, what is up today can be down tomorrow. And this is our message. We should not sever the links with each other, because the wheel continues to turn," Nayden Todorov adds in his television interview.


Photos: BTA


Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Sofia Opera to open new season with world-class conductor, prominent soloists in Puccini's Tosca

The Bulgarian National Opera will open its new season with Giacomo Puccini's beloved Tosca . The production by theatre director Plamen Kartaloff has been running for 14 years and has toured Japan and Turkey.  The two performances on..

published on 9/25/25 10:05 AM

ALMA releases her first single in Bulgarian - ''Tell Me It’s a Dream''

The young but already established singer ALMA welcomes the autumn with her first single in Bulgarian – ''Kazhi mi, che e san'' (Tell Me It’s a Dream).  The music was composed by Alma herself in collaboration with Vasil Ivanov – Dexter. Dara..

published on 9/25/25 7:00 AM
Photo: Facebook/ Maria Mutafchieva - Mary

Mary Boys Band with a series of autumn concerts and a new song

Mary Boys Band have been preparing a series of concerts and presented a new song, called “Moeto momche” (My Boy). On Thursday, September 25, at the concert studio of Radio Varna at 7 p.m. Maria Mutafchieva and "her boy"..

published on 9/24/25 8:45 AM