Bulgaria's unique folk music has inspired many composers, especially since it was preserved in its original form during 500 years of Ottoman rule. Marin Goleminov and Pancho Vladigerov grew up with this music. For them, it is not only an inspiration but also a source of strength, an unbridled joie de vivre that, in Vladigerov's quartet, allows an entire orchestra to resonate.
Bulgarian composers also strove to realize a national style in chamber music. The two composers on this CD combined irregular time signatures, typical of Balkan music, with late-Romantic compositional techniques, which they perfected during their studies in Paris (Goleminov) and Berlin (Vladigerov). The Herder Prize in 1976 for Goleminov and the Mendelssohn Prizes in 1918 and 1920 for Vladigerov testify to the recognition of their compositional talent even outside their homeland.
With this CD, cellist Elena Natschkova Iskraut fulfilled her dream of bringing the magic of Bulgarian music to a wider audience. She was encouraged by the immediate enthusiasm of her three colleagues, Agnieszka P?pkowska, Almut Seidel, and Matthias Schella. With great enthusiasm and drive, they were able to realize their dream together.
All four musicians have been long-time members of the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Cottbus State Theater, which can look back on over a century of history and was honored in 2012 for Germany's best concert program. The AMEA Quartet was founded in preparation for the chamber concert "Musical Impressions from Bulgaria" in the 2011/12 season at the Cottbus State Theater and has since developed other programs, focusing on Eastern European music. The Cottbus State Theater provided its rehearsal space for the recording of this CD. AMEA expresses its sincere thanks for this and all other support.
01 Molto sostenuto - Allegro moderato
02 Scherzando
03 Andante sostenuto
04 Allegro comodo
05 Grave - Allegro con brio
06 Andante doloroso
07 Scherzo. Vivace molto ritmico
08 Grave - Allegro con fuoco - Allegro vivace
