Samuil Stoyanov winner Baza award

The Institute for Contemporary Art in Sofia awarded this year's BAZA award to Samuil Stoyanov.

Viennese Actionism in Sofia

What was not possible 10 years ago because Bulgarian society was not ready for it, has finally happened; Sofia City Gallery opened a show of Viennese Actionism.

Apollo descends in Sozopol for arts celebration in September

The old church building is crammed. The authoritative figure of the poet is towering above the audience on a stage placed just in front of the altar as he reads aloud his latest literary works. Silence and worshipful admiration fill the air. "All of a sudden, a clear resonant child's voice shouts out loud, "Mommy, is this God?", and everybody bursts into laughter and vigorous applause," Margarita Dimitrova, artistic director of Apollonia Arts Foundation, remembers famous Bulgarian poet Valeri Petrov's poetry reading.

Still in the lead, 83 years later

Former museum exhibit and oldest automobile ever imported to Bulgaria, a 1925 Jowett, won the first prize at a retroparade for classic cars in Bourgas on July 12. The owner of the vintage car is a member of the Bourgas Retro auto-moto club, who bought it in an online auction. In addition to being 83 years old, the unique vehicle has the distinction to have been among the exhibits in the British museum for retro automobiles.

From Brazil to Bulgaria, with dancing and love

Passionate samba, exotic spicy dishes and friendly smiles inviting you to join the dynamic feast - these are the ideas that immediately spring to mind when one mentions the words "Brazil" and "festival" in one sentence. For the delight of Bulgarian citizens longing to get a glimpse of Brazilian culture, the peak of the summer season will be even more colourful thanks to two initiatives in July and August, a week of samba dancing, and a Brazilian festival.

Guaranteed admission to Bulgarian universities - for a price

An online advert offers prospective students an alternative way to enrol in a university, Monitor daily reported on July 10. ET Lina, a firm from Sofia, offers applicants to any Bulgarian university guaranteed admission, major notwithstanding and without an entrance examination, the daily said. The prices of the service vary from 5000 to 15 000 leva, depending on the reputation of desired university, the major and the qualifications of the department faculty, as well as on the popularity of the major and the estimated number of regular applicants.

Green film festival in Sofia

Rarely does one have a chance to experience a cinema festival without a strictly fixed programme, but cinema lovers in Bulgaria have such an opportunity now. An interesting selection of films on thought-provoking themes, an unusual choice of location and an opportunity of absolute freedom of the audience to become directors and decide on their desired programme is what distinguishes the environmental cinema festival "Enter the Green Film" from other cultural events. The eco-film festival is pencilled in for July 11-13 at Bratya Miladinovi community centre in the Sofia neighbourhood of Knyazhevo. It is a continuation of previous film festivals in Sofia, Blagoevgrad, Veliko Turnovo, and Stara Zagora, which were orginsed by Za Zemyata (For the Earth) environmental association.

Ethno-jazz in Smolyan

The city of Smolyan may not be a crossing point of roads leading to the most exciting happeinings in the cultural world. But this charming place, tucked between the smooth hills of the Rhodope mountains, is having its two-week peak of fame for a fourth year. From July 7 to 20, Smolyan is hosting an international ethno-jazz festival.

Piano feast in the heart of Sofia

The twenty-year-old Bulgaria-born pianist Desislava Bobrina is giving a piano concert at 7pm on July 8 in Bulgaria Chamber Hall, located on 1 Aksakov Str., after three successful solo concerts on Bulgarian stage in 2006 and 2007. The repertoire of the concert includes pieces by composers Beethoven, Clementi, Scarlatti, Chopin, and Debussy. The audience can enjoy a performance of Sonata Fantasia in F minor, Op. 29 by Chopin, the work for piano Island of Joy by Debussy, and Sonata №11 in G bemol major, Op. 22 by Beethoven.

Manowar goes for Guinness record with five-hour concert

The concert of the legendary kings of metal, Manowar, on the opening night of Kaliakra Rock Festival 2008 in the Bulgarian "rock capital" of Kavarna on July 5 lasted for five hours and one minute. The performance was the metal band's attempt to break the world record for the longest heavy metal concert, which they themselves set in 2007 at last year's edition of the festival. Joey DeMaio, Eric Adams, Karl Logan and Scott Columbus pleased a crowd of 20 000 people with a playlist of more than 40 songs, a selection reflecting the band's history and all its studio albums.

Jazz at the weekend in Sofia

A premiere of HIB Project jazz band will be held at 6pm on July 5 at Boris Hristov musical centre in Sofia with the guest participation of foreign musicians. The organiser of the project, saxophone player Dimitur Lyolev, has invited friends, fellow graduates and students from Groningen Conservatory to participate together in the fourth July Jazz Smolyan 2008 international ethno-jazz festival. Before appearing on the festival, the musicians will be performing for the first time on the stage of Boris Hristov musical centre.

Press review: Headlines in Bulgarian papers on July 4 2008

These are some of the top headlines of Bulgarian newspapers on July 4 2008. The Sofia Echo has not verified these stories and cannot vouch for their accuracy.

Reborn and purified on a July morning

The warmth of a burning fire stroking the feet and shoulders, the refreshing night breeze tussling hair, the fragrance of sea water and the roar of waves crushing into the shore to the sound of acoustic guitars - the atmosphere of the evening preceding July 1 is romantic and relaxed, but not for long. Hundreds of people of all ages have gathered together to enjoy the unforgettable view of the sun kissing the sea over the horizon. Ever since the crowded beaches of Varna, Bulgaria's "sea capital", were deserted by the conventional tourists around 7pm, a flood of people carrying rucksacks or hauling guitars in large black cases poured on the vast fields of sand to prepare for the forthcoming all-night wait for the July sun to rise.

Pernik hosts festival for people with disabilities

For a second consecutive year, the Bulgarian town of Pernik will play host to the national festival for people with disabilities, scheduled for June 28-29. The common cause of the event is to help with the integration of people with disabilities, and to become an opportunity for them to establish closer ties with others sharing their plight. The idea of the festival "came spontaneously", as organisers Anita Taralanska, head of the Strong Spirit union of disabled people in Pernik, and Georgi Georgiev, head of the Union for Disabled People in Western Region - Pernik, told The Sofia Echo.

Living like a refugee

The question whether is easy to live in Bulgaria would most likely evoke answers that border on the extreme. Coming from Bulgarians, that is. Those who bear a different nationality may offer different shades of the black or white that natives are refusing to acknowledge. The Red House Centre for Culture and Debate is trying to reflect on how women-immigrants go about their daily lives, what they miss from their countries and what they have found to enjoy in their new home. To give some insights on those questions, the centre is organising a festival titled To be a Woman Foreigner in Bulgaria. The event is also probing into the question whether there is such thing as Bulgarian hospitality or it is more of a myth.

SeeMe with a trance-dancing state of mind

For a third year in a row, Sofia is bound to become an experimental arena for dancers and fans of electronic music alike. The South-East European Music Event (SeeMe), which attracts an international mix of DJs, club promoters, label managers and producers, is scheduled to take place on June 5-7 2008. The event features artists with creative impulse in the sphere of hip-hop, house, drum & bass and techno music. An interrupted round-the-clock party is what the organisers from United Partners are promising, with the event being "bigger and better" this year.

Sofia's mayor with a racquet in hand

Sofia mayor Boiko Borissov became champion of the annual autumn tennis tournament for diplomats, members of Parliament and journalists, organsed by the company Overgas. The two-day competition was held at the tennis grounds of Gloria Palace in Gorna Banya. The most active players to use the first-ever made-in-Bulgaria tennis rackets were the representatives from the Spanish embassy.

Bulgaria's Ataka campaigns against mosque loudspeakers

Ataka counters mosque call with Bulgarian anthem

When Cardinal Angelo Sodano, secretary of state of the Vatican, visited Sofia in May for the consecration of the capital city's new Roman Catholic Church, he said that the city was turning into a "little Jerusalem" because of the close proximity of Christian, Muslim and Jewish places of worship. This optimistic view has faded in recent days after ultra-nationalist group Ataka began a campaign against the use of

Business briefs

Artist exchange program yields results

New environment stimulates new artistic creativity

Have you ever wanted to change places with another person? This is what a group of female artists did as part of the Changing Places project. As a result of the experiment, the artists created a variety of artistic works which were arranged at the ATA Centre for Contemporary Art last Friday.

Artist exchange program yields results

New environment stimulates new artistic creativity

Have you ever wanted to change places with another person? This is what a group of female artists did as part of the Changing Places project. As a result of the experiment, the artists created a variety of artistic works which were arranged at the ATA Centre for Contemporary Art last Friday.

Shop Art sells new thoughts

The three-year-old group known as March 8 will attempt to attract women into thinking about their values for two successive days in the Sheraton Hotel's underpass on June 22 and 23 (5pm to 7pm).

Centenary outing for retro tram

THE oldest and the newest city trams were running along Sofia's first-laid lines on Sunday - to mark a century of tram transport.