Pure authentic folklore of Bulgaria

If you have admired the voices and dances, maybe you will want to give a try and get closer to Bulgarian traditions and folklore – not in a dance school in Sofia…But there, where traditions have been born, developed and kept alive until today – where their origins and roots are, where they are at their purest.

Your guides: people devoted to collecting, preserving and performing authentic folklore from west south Bulgaria. They call themselves “Leb I Vino” (bread and wine) they are passionate about Bulgarian traditions and will infect you easily with their love for authentic music, dances and colours. You can expect much more from them – they can show you how to play authentic folklore instruments, how to create traditional textile art and iconography, how to sing and dance, they can take you on a journey through the past times – you will travel though villages and meet the people (musicians and singers, handicraft masters) who have inspired Leb i Vino formation to collect, keep and preserve Bulgarian traditions in their authentic form as they were practiced centuries ago. Folklore preservation in its purest form and the advertizing of folklore in an original way is the main conception of “Leb i Vino”.

Day 1:

Arrival to Melnik about noon time, after a short break for lunch and refreshment in the hotel, you will start with the activities you have chosen to do with the artists from Leb i Vino.

Melnik is famous for its wine and the main street is full of mehani (pubs where local wine and cuisine are served) – you can choose one of them or ask us for recommendations – we will gladly book a dinner for you! You surely deserve it after the hard work you’ve done!

Day 2

After breakfast and hopefully without hangover you go on with the activities you’ve planned with Leb i Vino and once you‘ve finished, we hope that you will get back home more positive, inspired and full of colours and sounds.

Options for folklore activities- lectures and classes in Melnik:

• Pirin folklore dances - authentic steps and basic moves of different horo types (Maleshevsko, Lito, Tarchi-laji, Tup-tam, Elenino, Chetvorka- za poias, Chetvorno, Shirto, Djanguritsa, Kavrak, Kantelino, Rachenitsa and others) - with live music.
• Singing in two voices - typical of the Pirin region (learning about the principles of two-voice singing and the local songs - harvest-time, bee-time, comitski and horo )
• Playing traditional instruments and learning about their principle (tambura, tarambuka, Pirin gaida (bagpipe), dvoianka)
• Weaving - weaving on razboi (a horizontal loom), weaving and ornamenting techniques, dyeing with natural materials.
• Iconography
• For the children and their parents - hourly lectures and folklore classes (dances, songs, instruments, music).

…and around Melnik:

• Excursion with Leb i Vino: Visiting a village, experiencing its lifestyle and culture, looking for people singing the songs of their grandparents. A completely authentic experience.

Request detailed itinerary by e-mail

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