The tiny Rhodope village of Trigrad was caught unawares by the first SlunceLune (SunMoon) festival last weekend.

Locals looked on in surprise as hitch-hikers, cyclists, bikers, cars, vans and minibuses filled up the village square. Shops and bars had sold out of bread and vegetables by the festival's second day leaving only beer and fish on most menus. Many of the new arrivals had made the complicated journey from Sofia to see the first Bulgarian festival to mix traditional folklore with electronic music. "It took us 20 hours to drive here from Sofia," said Balyana Markova. "We got lost somewhere in the mountains but it was worth it. The atmosphere here, the people, the music - it's perfect."

The festival took place in a car park between the narrow faces of the spectacular Trigrad gorge, high in the Rhodope Mountains. Trigrad was the logical choice of location as the mountain people are famous for their ancient folklore traditions and the organizers wanted to combine art forms with the landscape's natural beauty. They intend to use Trigrad as the starting point for an annual travelling folklore festival.

Popular Bulgarian singer Valya Balkanska opened the event last Friday with a performance of traditional Bulgarian songs accompanied by Petre Yanev on gaida (bagpipes). During the day there was more folklore music, which represented the sun element of the festival.

It culminated at dusk with a performance by Scottish bagpiper, James Macdonald Reid. By this time the area had filled with more than 1,500 people eager to hear the Scotsman and there was silence as he played the pipes whilst walking through the crowd.

The organizers coaxed him onto the stage to amplify the sound and he agreed reluctantly. "I don't need any electronic help," he said afterwards. "This is a traditional instrument - they didn't have amplifiers in the highlands." The audience loved it nonetheless, applauding and demanding an encore. Part of the crowd linked arms and folk-danced to the music. Several fans queued for his autograph.

According to Reid there is little to connect the Bulgarian and Scottish bagpipes directly. "People say that the Scots stopped in Bulgaria before migrating towards Scotland and that's why the gaida's here, but bagpipes were common in other parts of Europe during medieval times."

The festival was organized by Moving Sound and Picture, a group of artists who work with visual arts, electronic music and experimental dance. Prohilvetia Art Foundation provided most support for the free event. Other sponsors including Devin mineral water and Rock radio contributed resources but very little cash was offered. "In the end it was only our enthusiasm that brought it together," said gaida player Stoni Kokudev.

As day moved into night the change from sun to moon was represented by Bulgarian ethno band Isihia. The eight members of the band mixed experimental electronic guitar with traditional gaidas, tambura (an eastern version of the mandolin), kaval (traditional flute), tapan (a large drum) and haunting choral vocals modeled on medieval Bulgarian church singing.

The Bulgarian gaida has a deeper, richer tone than Scottish bagpipes making it the perfect accompaniment for the mournful tones of the three vocalists. Their powerful sound echoed through the gorge and entranced the crowd. "I didn't realize they would be so good," said Stefan Vilyev, a student from Sofia.

A light show was projected onto the rock face above the event and the almost full moon illuminated the performance. Isihia's music has been compared to that of British-based band, Dead Can Dance and the Macedonian ethno group Anastasia. French guest singer Sophie Thimbaud also performed with members of the band.

For most who attended the festival Isihia's performance was the highlight. It was followed by the moon part of the festival - pure electronic techno. By this time people were quite merry and enjoyed the music but for some it was a disappointment. "Techno shouldn't be at this festival, it's a bad surprise for me," said Tishumir Russinov.

The party dispersed as temperatures dropped and people wandered through the dark gorge searching for places to camp. The next morning tents could be seen for miles around and sleepy people began to gather in the village square for coffee and cigarettes. Saturday's program was listed as improvisation. Reid sang and performed highland dances in the afternoon and much later in the day various musicians gathered in a local pub to jam under a flashing bicycle light.

A singer arrived from the next village and was delighted to perform with the others. "It's the first time I've sung to such a large audience," he said. Sun and Moon elements continued into the night at two locations with DJs playing electronic music outside a hotel on the opposite side of the gorge. They projected visuals onto walls whilst Reid taught and performed a Scottish dance.

There are very few experimental folklore festivals in Bulgaria. The last folklore festival was in July at Veliko Turnovo. "There was no experimentation at this festival, it was more about traditional costume and dance," said Isihia's gaida player Vlado Chiflidjanov. The next festival will be the Balkan Music Festival in Ohrid, Macedonia on August 18-19. Anastasia, Isihia, and Emir Kusturica's Yugoslavian band will be among the performers.