In 1979, the children’s TV series ''Filyo and Makenzen'' premiered on Bulgarian screens, directed by Dimitar Petrov and Vladislav Ikonomov with a screenplay by Svoboda Bachvarova.

The adventures of two boys from a small provincial town during the summer vacation of 1944, and the portrayal of dramatic historical events with the authors’ inimitable sense of humor, were immediately well received. In the decades that followed, the series remained beloved by generations of Bulgarian children, while its music, composed by Alexander Brazitsov, became a genuine classic.

The composer was born about a year before the events depicted in the series— in the spring of 1943. He descended from a distinguished Bulgarian family from Macedonia, being the grandson of the publicist and translator Dimitar Brazitsov and the son of the famous journalist and writer Hristo Brazitsov. His musical talent came from his mother, Katya Spiridonova, one of Bulgaria’s brightest opera stars of the first half of the 20th century, a graduate of the Leipzig Conservatory and a leading soloist of the Sofia Opera and Ballet.

Her son Alexander began playing the piano at the age of five. As a student, he was part of amateur ensembles. Although deeply interested in classical music and jazz —and studying privately under the renowned conductor, composer and pianist Emil Georgiev— he graduated from the National Academy of Arts with a degree in applied graphics. However, before completing his studies, at the age of 20, he began composing music.

Alexander Brazitsov established himself as a film music composer, contributing to over 100 feature films, animated films and television productions. In the early 1970s, he also turned to instrumental and popular vocal genres. He collaborated with numerous music stars such as Lili Ivanova, Yordanka Hristova, Margarita Hranova, Katya Filipova, Orlin Goranov, Neli Rangelova, Kamelia Todorova and Vasil Petrov. He created more than 150 songs, orchestral pieces and music for theatrical performances, and was also recognized as one of the foremost arrangers in Bulgarian pop music during the 1970s and 1980s.

"Seemingly simple, yet extremely appealing and memorable, Alexander Brazitsov’s main theme in the series ''Filyo and Makenzen'' becomes a model of popular vocal miniature, thanks to the touching lyrics of the remarkable poet Bogomil Gudev (1935–1993), who certainly had childhood memories from 1944—the period in which the story takes place. 

The poet’s remarkable imagination transforms Brazitsov’s melody into a memory of a narrow little street where barefoot children run around, kicking rag balls and sometimes even hitting someone’s window… A childhood like that has probably not existed for more than half a century. At the end of the song, the grown-ups see ''the stars now shining from afar with a fire that has grown cold''. The unpretentious yet incredibly captivating melody and the unique lyrics, masterfully arranged by the renowned composer Stefan Dimitrov, become even more moving through the voice of singer Orlin Goranov.

The song ''Bosi vremena'' (Barefoot Times) is also popular in Bogdana Karadocheva’s rendition, but the male voice better suits the story of the original source—the film ''Filyo and Makenzen''.

Orlin Goranov’s magnificent, rich, velvety, tender and heartfelt timbre transforms this modest and simple song into something far more than a highlight of Bulgarian musical culture. ''Bosi Vremena''—a memory of childhood that is pure-hearted and knows no evil; a memory of our lost innocence.

Photos: BNT-archive; Zdravko Petrov-BNR