site.bta4th Meeting of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles and Choirs from Abroad Held in Sofia

The 4th Meeting of Heads of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad was held in Sofia from October 7 to 9. Participating were representatives of 57 Bulgarian dance ensembles and choirs from 18 countries (Austria, England, Belgium, Germany, Greece, Denmark, Sweden, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, USA, Northern Ireland, Ukraine, Hungary, and France).

The meeting was organized for the fourth consecutive year by the Association of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad (ABFEA), a non-profit cultural organization set up in 2016. 

The three-day programme included a theoretical module for performers and a practical module for dancers, six lectures, screenings of three documentary films on folklore, and a presentation of the ABFEA's project to create a digital catalog of popular folk dances and songs to assist in teaching them to Bulgarian communities abroad.

Day 1

The opening was held at New Bulgarian University on October 7. Among the official guests were Vice President Iliana Iotova, Deputy Culture Minister Georgi Sultanov, Executive Agency for Bulgarians Abroad (EABA) Executive Director Raina Mandzhukova, ABFEA Chair Radoslava Nedyalkova, and New Bulgarian University Vice Rector Emilia Dimitrova.

Opening the meeting, Nedyalkova described it as a holiday of Bulgarian culture, spirit, and community - what connects Bulgarians around the globe through song, dance, and love for the homeland.

EABA Executive Director Mandzhukova expressed her gratitude to the leaders of Bulgarian folklore ensembles abroad, emphasizing that "Bulgaria appreciates what you are doing, and step by step we are moving towards ever closer cooperation." She added that institutional presence at the meetings is growing every year – from a lack of representatives in 2022 to the participation of deputy ministers in 2024, and this year – the Vice President.

Vice President Iotova shared her excitement at meeting so many familiar faces. "There is something that unites us – all Bulgarians, no matter where they are. These are our hearts beating with Bulgarian spirit. And you are the people who make them beat to the rhythm of music and dance," the Vice President noted.

Deputy Culture Minister Sultanov expressed his appreciation for the work of the leaders and performers in Bulgarian folklore ensembles abroad and assured that his Ministry would continue its cooperation with the EABA and other institutions to provide real support for their activities.

Association of Bulgarian Schools Abroad Zornitsa Gogan sent a congratulatory address to the ABFEA on the occasion of the opening of the 4th Meeting. "Your mission is noble and deeply meaningful to preserve, transmit, and inspire love for Bulgarian folklore, traditions, and spirituality among people who live far from their homeland," Gogan said. Addressing the heads of Bulgarian ensembles abroad, she called them "contemporary bearers of memory and living guardians of Bulgarian cultural identity around the world."

Day 2

The programme for October 8 included lectures by Madlen Bozhilova (on authentic methods for creating Bulgarian folk costumes) and Assoc. Prof. Georgi Garov (on the specifics of the Pirin folklore region), as well as practical modules for dancers and theoretical ones for choir performers, led by Assoc. Prof. Georgi Garov, Mariana Manoleva, and Kinche Valcheva.

Addressing the participants, ABFEA Chair Nedyalkova said that the Association brings together 60 ensembles from Europe and the United States, while upon its establisment it had just seven member groups. She added that each annual meeting has a unique focus, with this year’s dedicated to the Pirin folklore region. She highlighted a special feature of the fourth creative meeting: the launch of ABFEA’s project to create a digital catalogue of popular horo dances. The catalogue aims to support teaching within Bulgarian communities abroad. Turning to the ABFEA's organisational challenges, Nedyalkova said that coordinating members spread across different time zones can be difficult, especially between Europe and the US. “It’s tough to synchronize, but our team works well enough together to move forward and achieve our goals in the best possible way,” she said. Next year, ABFEA will mark its 10th anniversary, and Nedyalkova revealed that the Governing Board is already considering ambitious ideas for a memorable celebration.

Also on Saturday, the ABFEA awarded certificates and plaques to dance and singing groups celebrating 5, 10, or 15 years since their founding in 2025. At the official award ceremony, certificates were presented to folklore groups established in 2020: the Samodeitsi Folk Dance Group from Guildford, United Kingdom, the Nestinari Bulgarian Folk Dance Club from Berlin, Germany, the Nashenzi Folklore Group from San Bonifacio, Italy, and the Lev Ensemble from Rome and Colleferro, Italy.

Plaques for their contribution to the development of Bulgarian folklore around the world were awarded to the leaders of groups founded in 2015: the Sovatchii Folklore Ensemble from Limassol, Cyprus. the Rozhen Folklore Club from Philadelphia, US, the Nashenki Choir from Milan, Italy, and the Folklore Magic Ensemble from London, United Kingdom.

The Bulgarian Dance Group Dilmana from Copenhagen, and the Bulgarian Folklore Club Vereya from Chicago were honored with special golden plaques. Both ensembles celebrated their 15th anniversaries in 2025.

The Association of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad also presented two special awards to organizers of notable folklore events held in 2025. The first went to Anita Ekenova from Lyon, France, initiator and organizer of both the first and tenth editions of the travelling folklore festival Expats Join Hands in Worldwide Dance. The second was awarded to Nikolay Stoyanov from Copenhagen, director of the First Festival of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad, which took place in July in Veliko Tarnovo.

Saturday's programme was closed with a premiere for Bulgaria of Milena Milotinova's documentary The Magic of the Bulgarian Horo. Among the official guests at the screening were Milotinova, EABA Executive Director Mandzhukova, representatives of the EABA, folk singer Guna Ivanova, and eight-year-old Alexandra Bedola, who is one of the participants in the documentary film.

The documentary was filmed at the Festival of Letters in Milan on May 24, 2025, and during the 10th edition of the travelling festival Expats Join Hands in Worldwide Dance in Lyon in June 2025. Addressing the audience ahead of the screening, Milotinova said that the film is a meeting with Bulgaria's spirit as it exists around the world. She shared that during the filming process, she was most impressed by the stories about the horo [folk chain dance] - when and how people started dancing, how they teach their children Bulgarian rhythms, what motivates them to create dance groups abroad, and how they connect with each other, no matter where in the world they are. "In the film, you will see familiar faces, but you will also see foreigners – people who dance with such passion and love that sometimes you forget they were not born in Bulgaria," Milotinova said.

After the premiere, Milotinova told BTA that the emotions were intense and energizing. She admitted she never expected to make a film that would impact her so deeply, adding that each presentation feels like experiencing it for the first time. Milotinova emphasized how important it was for her to see the reaction of Bulgarians preserving folklore abroad. She said she was glad the audience in the hall experienced the film along with her, through applause, comments, smiles, tears, and strong emotions. What moved her most, Milotinova added, was that the guests stood up to applaud at the end, which she described as a great reward for her team’s hard work. “Maybe we really did capture the essence of what they do, and the magic they create through their dances,” she said. Bulgarian folk dance is a magical force that unites people around the world, she noted. She also said she would like to make a sequel to the film, and there are already more materials and ideas, as well as “many more stories that deserve to be told.” Asked whether today’s journalism in Bulgaria helps preserve cultural memory, Milotinova remarked: “Journalists are those who work with information and can contribute greatly to safeguarding cultural memory.” 

Day 3

The programme for October 9 included a talk by Aida Markovska on "Ancestral Rituals," a lecture on "Veiling in the Pirin Region - On Stage and in Everyday Life," presented by Antoaneta Asenova, a presentation with a lecture part, in which Sava Dragunchev discussed the topic "Preparing Projects for Funding – National Culture Fund and EU Programmes, and a presentation of the ABFEA's project to create a digital catalog of popular folk dances, designed to support their teaching among Bulgarian communities abroad. There was also be a lecture on "Music and Dance Folklore from Southwestern Bulgaria: Traditions and Interpretations," followed by a panel discussion for the exchange of experience among the ABFEA members.

On the sidelines of Sunday's events, Anita Ekenova, who lives in Lyon, France, and heads the Ot Izvora folklore ensemble there, told BTA that the other Bulgaria is where hearts beat to the same rhythm – that of the horo [traditional chain dance]. She noted that such meetings of Bulgarian folklore ensembles abroad are a necessity: "This is a place where we get to know each other and become closer. Many ideas and projects are born here; it is a very creative moment," she noted. Ekenova organized the latest Expats Join Hands in Worldwide Dance festival. In October, she won the Bulgarian Woman of the Year - St Zlata of Meglen 2024 Award. 

On Sunday evening, BTA Director General Kiril Valchev presented BTA's work. He spoke of BG World’s rapid expansion (from 9 news items in 2021 to 774 in 2025 to date), a six-member team linked with around 370 diaspora ensembles, and pro bono concerts in Ukraine and Moldova. He outlined a LIK magazine special and expanded coverage of the next Expats Join Hands in Worldwide Dance travelling festival (in 2026 in Munich), framing BG World as a global bridge grounded in human intelligence and community.

“In a world where the most modern term is artificial intelligence, the work being done by the BTA team sets an example that some things cannot exist without human intelligence,” Valchev said. He added: “Journalism is a lot like the traditional circle dance horo: beyond reason and physical presence, it requires soul. And above all: there can be no horo without people.”

The 4th Meeting of Heads of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad concluded with a screening of the documentary The Other Bulgaria about the 10th Expats Join Hands in Worldwide Dance festival in Lyon in June 2025. 

"The filming of The Other Bulgaria was both a process of discovery and an inspiration for me, because prior to this project I had no real contact whatsoever with the people who keep Bulgarian folklore alive abroad," the film director Kristiyan Georgiev told BTA on Sunday.