site.btaMusical Treasures from Bulgaria Cycle Celebrates 30 Years by Piano Recital at Carnegie Hall

The Musical Treasures from Bulgaria concert series marked its 30th anniversary at the packed Weill Recital Hall of Carnegie Hall on Wednesday evening, Bulgaria’s Consulate General in New York City said on Facebook.

The jubilee event - a unique experience for the expat community in the Big Apple, was a solo recital by Bulgarian pianist Emanuil Ivanov, who played Ludwig van Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata", a Symphony for solo piano, a Theme and Variations composed by Ivanov himself, and Franz Liszt's Reminiscences de Norma.

The audience included Princess Maria Luisa and members of the staff of the Bulgarian Consulate General and Bulgaria's Permanent Mission to the UN.

The guests were greeted by Prof. Pavlina Dokovska, who teaches at the Mannes School of Music in New York City and who founded the Musical Treasures of Bulgaria in 1994 jointly with the St. Cyril and St. Methodius International Foundation.

At the end of the concert, Emanuil was joined on the stage by a dozen or so performers who have been among the Musical Treasures of Bulgaria over the years, including Anna Stoytcheva, Lora Tchekoratova, Lora Al-Ahmad, Alexandrina Boyanova, Stani Dimitrova and Georgi Lekov. They were accompanied by world-famous Bulgarian opera singer Stefka Evstatieva.