Balkana: a report of a live concert featuring Yanka Rupkina

[IED0DXM%OAC.UCLA.EDU@mitvma.mit.edu]

 To: Love-Hounds
 From: Andrew Marvick (IED)
 Subject: Balkana: a report of a live concert featuring Yanka Rupkina

     Last night the Bulgarian musical ensemble called Group Balkana
performed in Santa Monica, California, and IED was there to experience.
Balkana is a small group of musicians from Bulgaria, featuring
five male instrumentalists and (ordinarily) three female vocalists.
The three women also perform and record under the group name
Trio Bulgarka. As Balkana these musicians recorded an album (which
featured a few additional musicians who were not part of the group
proper) co-produced by Joe Boyd, and it was through Boyd, L-Hs may
recall, that Kate Bush was able to make personal contact with Trio B.
     On this occasion unfortunately Eva Georgieva, the eldest of the
three members of Trio B., was not present, for what reason IED could
not discover--no-one in the Balkana outfit apparently speaks a word
of English, and no interpreter was present! Anyway, the Trio B. became
the Duo B. last night, but the effect was still magical at times.
Balkana's instrumentalists alternated with the women for about half
the numbers, and worked together for the other half. And twice Yanka
Rupkina, the soprano (and looker) of the group came out to sing solo
and a cappella. In that conformation she sang _Kalemankou_Denkou_,
and with Stoyanka Boneeva (the other half of Duo B.) she sang a
stunning two-part a cappella version of _Strati_na_Angelaki_. Yanka
made at least three costume changes throughout the evening, each
traditional outfit more spectacular than the last. The fixed but
apparently genuine smiles on both women's faces never faltered
throughout the 90-minute show.
     Yanka's voice is still in perfect condition, and she was in
top technical form--as flawless as on the albums, but with several
moments of unexpected free-floating improvised melismatics that
must have been developed since the date of the songs' original
recording. Stoyanka's voice is a bit weaker, and much lower, of
course, but she has rock-solid pitch and sang with tremendous
feeling. The instrumentalists were obviously masters at their
peculiar Bulgarian instruments, and the drum-player, who performed
a few comic dance antics and generally provided light relief (albeit
without language), looked a bit like Curly of the Three Stooges.
A very light-hearted group, though their inability to communicate
verbally in such a small and informal setting (McCabe's Guitar Shop)
necessarily constrained the gemutlichkeit a bit. Still, a richly
satisfying concert.
     IED had planned to speak with Yanka and Stoyanka after the
concert, and actually was allowed upstairs to do so, but it became
clear from another visitor who preceded him that anything like normal
conversation was simply not going to be possible. IED was somewhat in
awe of Ms. Rupkina anyway. Though grey-haired and a bit "long in
the tooth", she remains an extremely attractive woman; and that
voice...!
     Anyway, IED has no doubt any longer about roughly what the
collaborative effort between Trio B. and Kate must have consisted
of. Kate said she "wrote choir parts" for the women to sing, and
Trio B. said they "added harmonies" to them. It became apparent to IED,
after having heard them, that Trio B. simply took the parts which Kate
had composed in "choir" harmonies for them on the Fairlight
in advance, and in the course of singing the parts, they added the
elaborate filigree of enharmonically-based vocal melismas to them.
The style of Trio B. (as of all the Balkana musicians) is quite
marvellous, but also quite static and consistent. They do one and
only one thing, though they do it consummately. There can be little
doubt, therefore, that Kate knew _exactly_ what she wanted and what
she would be able to get from the Trio B. All of the "harmonies"--
as we Westerners know the term--were created by Kate. But all the
_enharmonics_--which the Trio B. might well consider "harmonies"--
were then added by the Bulgarians, as a matter of course, and
according to Kate's plans. None of this enlightens IED as to the
possible meaning/origin of any Bulgarian-language lyrics on KBVI, should
there be any, but for now at least his curiosity is satisfied
as regards the KT/Trio B. musical meld itself.
     If Balkana is visiting your area any time soon, don't miss them.

-- Andrew Marvick