By: Azad Karimi
Music changes like everything else and it will keep changing. Forgotten things will be rediscovered, some well known modern principles will be fused with some newly invented ones.
Interview
Bulgarian Musician Hristo Ovcharov
By Azad Karimi
These days, everyone is getting ready for Christmas and New Year, but the situation is complicated because of the Corona.
The strangest year that humanity has ever seen. War is a normal phenomenon, so although it is devastating, however, humanity knows it and knows how to deal with it or the natural disasters with which man is familiar...Or terrible pandemics and even terrorist attacks and chemical and atomic bombs, but the Corona is a strange phenomenon because humanity did not know anything about it.
But last week, a few major countries announced that they had developed vaccines to fight the deadly disease. The United Kingdom is the first country to use the vaccine, starting on December 7...Next week...
Fortunately, in Norway, the rules and protocols were well implemented and a pandemic was managed from the beginning.
I will finish the introduction and please watch our interview as well as Christo's clips. I'm sure you will enjoy it.
I wish happiness and health to my dear friend Dr. Hristo, an artist and musician from Bulgaria.
God bless Hristo and his country.
Thank you!
Vestland-Norway
1- Please present yourself: (Name, education, Civil status, and…)
. Hristo Ovcharov, Ph.D. in Musicology and Musical Arts I am a musician and a teacher, I also have a deep interest in the history of string instruments.
2-What is your artistic specialization?
.I perform recitals and chamber music, and almost never refuse charity performances, always avoiding the cliché about how a classical double bassist is expected to appear. I choose my own repertoire and follow my internal feeling as opposed to doing anything just because “It is considered right”. In addition to my love for Baroque and Romanticism, lately, I have been looking for modern pieces, influenced by folklore.
3- When and how did you become interested in this field of art?
.I was six years old when my mom took me to sing in a choir in my home town and ever since, I have been connected to music in one way or another.
4- Who was your motivator?
. From the beginning my teachers would always find a way to take me forward, I owe all of my double bass, piano, and singing teachers a great deal for having the love, patience, and skill to show me the world from another perspective. Later, when you start being attentive enough everyone becomes your teacher and a motivator.
5- What was your parent’s reaction?
.My mom loved it. My dad still doesn’t know why I never became an engineer but he supports me nevertheless.
6- When did you become a professional artist/ musician?
.I have been studying singing, piano, and theory since I was 6. My formal education in the field began when I was 13 years old in the State School of Music, Sofia, Bulgaria and it was followed by almost 20 years of non-stop further education, as I defended my dissertation earlier this year. That being said, I never liked the word “professional” when talking about music. I work with my heart, therefore I avoid that word.
7- Are you thankful and happy because of your activities as a musician?
. Music makes my mind feel clearer and my blood goes faster. I express my emotions, laugh, and cry through it.
8- What is music culture? What is the music logic?
.Oh… These are questions worthy of writing a separate book for answering each one. Musical culture and logic can be very specific to geographical terms, social status, level of education, type of character, personal preferences. I can see that these days it has become something of a trend, however, for the general population to blatantly show ignorance instead of intelligence and culture. Moral values are getting pushed back and much of music has become more about simple “catchy” consonance and rhythm and also simple, oftentimes vulgar ideas promoted by it. Life is a circle. I am looking forward to the following wave which will bring back the deeper ideas, the greater meaning, true feelings, and the freedom of the human spirit.
9- Why do some songs become immortal?
.Some works of art do last thousands of years, while others are forgotten in a day. Only time tells which one is deserving of what. In the context of our current time, I suppose the truly lasting music is the one which contains ideas, which changed the world or expresses emotions in a way that no one did before it. In addition to that, the performer should have a platform, allowing for them to be heard, getting there is a struggle in itself and this has probably always been so.
10- How you see the Music, Performing, art, and culture from your perspective?
. I mean your prediction for the future of music! Music changes like everything else and it will keep changing. Forgotten things will be rediscovered, some well known modern principles will be fused with some newly invented ones.
11- Can you become a part of the cultural movement for motivation in youth or new generation in your country and so than how?
.At this point I think, that we are focusing way too much on the youth and not enough on the current and older generations. We need to try and make everybody think and educate themselves, never stop learning, maybe find new kinds of music, books, ideas that they like and set them free. This focus towards young people is all around and I find that it is not useful at all. Young people are important but we should not forget that they also learn from those that came before them.
12- How can you help our world become a better place to live?
.I speak my truth with my head high. I am always nice and at the same time, I follow my duty towards society and tradition.
13- Have you more words to say or suggest for our readers?
.If you hear a name you don’t know - look it up, if you hear a word you don’t know - learn its meaning, if you hear a statement you do not like – analyze and see why you did not like it, if you see a book you haven’t read… well you get the idea. Ignorance is a choice, do not make it. In addition to that, I personally try to also find and listen to a new piece of music every day.
https://www.facebook.com/HristoOvcharov/posts/10220598647624167
