US TV news report on Bulgarian music featuring Kate Bush

On February 20, 1990, one of the three major US TV networks had a report on the growing popularity of "world music" in the US, and specifically Bulgarian choral music. The report features a short interview of British singer Kate Bush and a bit from the program "Rhythms of the World" about the Trio Bulgarka.

As usual, please do not mention the name of the program, the host or the network. That's how cool clips get found and deleted and how accounts get banned.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Bulgarian
• Choral
• Singing
• Trio
• Bulgarka
• female
• singers
• traditional
• folk
• Kate
• Bush

[ketmaniac]

Yeah, the commentary is a bit rough and ready. The reference to "British rocker Kate Bush", as if she was more or less interchangeable with Toyah Wilcox - that's worth a smile.

[k8fan]

Seriously though, what genre of music does Kate make? "Kate Bush music" isn't really a genre. Technically, she is in "rock", in the same way that Peter Gabriel and Pink Floyd are rock. But yeah, apart from "Violin", it's hard to think of her as a "rocker".

[k8fan]

Remember, this report is just something to fill 3 minutes on a news program, not scholarly research. For instance, the report claims "...the music was little know outside of Bulgaria's mountains until now". Untrue. It was popular among the musicians of Laural Canyon in LA, and Bulgarian harmonies were a major influence on the newly formed Crosby, Stills and Nash.

[k8fan]

If the comments take a turn towards ethnic rivalries, I'll start posting these videos without commenting enabled. I don't give a damn who did what when, I just love the music.

[k8fan]

Glad to dig obscure stuff up!

[k8fan]

Please do not mention the name of the program, the host or the network. That's how cool clips get found and deleted and how accounts get banned

[Probuem]

"You can hear the influence of a five centuries Turkish domination in Bulgaria" - This is the most ignorant comment I've heard !

[jpxpert]

Yeah, it's rather stupid to make a comment that "You can hear the influence of five centuries of Turkish domination in Bulgaria." The closer two countries are to one another, the more their music sounds the same. Chinese music is closer to Indian music than Celtic is, for example.

Bulgarian music was a way of preserving the Bulgarian culture from Turkish culture; not a way of becoming assimilated into it.

[flauntit666]

@k8fan I don't think you understand how much the Bulgarian cultural and national identity has in common with its music - they're one and the same. When you see that most comments from Bulgarians talk about the clip's reference to our ethnic influences, don't be surprised we're zealous to clear up the mistake. We were under repressive Ottoman yoke for 5 centuries. There's nothing more offensive you can say to a Bulgarian than "You have been influenced by the Turks."

[OrhanCorporation]

@kosbos1985 what are you talking about?????

Bulgarian music is very heavily influenced by Turkish.

Just like the bulgarian language has so many Turkish words in it.

[kosbos1985]

"Turkish influence" ?!? There's nothing turkish in the traditional bulgarian music ! Yeah, we have the so called "Chalga" which is influenced by the turkish music, but that doesn't have anything to do with the sound of bulgarian folk music. So, Please !

[8BlueSkies]

I heard that Kate got interested in Bulgarian music just around the time she was finishing HOL. When it shows the singers at 1:34, one of then does a strange swoopy shriek thing, and Kate does something like this near the end of Watching You Without Me! I wonder if it's a direct influence? :)

[veso5554]

I know. "Domination"? Straight out slavery's more like it. Besides, Turkish music has a different rhythmical structure.

[veso5554]

Indeed. I think this was around the time The Bulgarian folk singer Valia Balkanska's record was sent off into space. If that isn't tribute to the music, then I don't know what is.

[ketmaniac]

She invents a new genre every time she writes a new song.