Ethnically and Culturally Inspired Music
About "PRESENTATION OF THE ALBUM "AWAKENING" - Vladimir Velichkov - kaval"
Dear EthnoCloud Friends,
I hope this finds you in good health and high spirits. I am a Bulgarian musician, composer, kaval
performer and professor at the Bulgarian Music Academy in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. I also lead a
master class at the “Preparing Talents for Success” International Folklore Academy.
I am happy to let you know that EthnoCloud proposed my new album “Awakening” for a 2024
GRAMMY ballot consideration, in the Contemporary Instrumental Album (C) category
(instrumental music, world music). I produced and released this original album as an Indie
musician and in May 2023 the album was made available for sale on Apple Music, Amazon
Music, Spotify, iTunes Store, Deezer and other platforms.
The kaval is a musical instrument from the group of the woodwind instruments, characteristic of
Bulgarian folklore music. Extracting sound and tone from the kaval is extremely difficult. The
technique of blowing into the instrument requires creating an air vortex in the pipe at an angle of
about 30 degrees to the mouth. Although the kaval is considered a monophonic instrument, I
manage to achieve a very varied sound by using new, and difficult to learn and play techniques
of extracting tones, such as:
playing two or three notes simultaneously without singing into the instrument, a
technique that refracts the angle of the air stream from the embouchure to the mouthpiece
of the kaval (e.g., in the “Awakening” composition)
using the “voiced air column” effect where the whistling of air supplied by the musician
passes through the instrument at a certain pitch and a melody is played - the so-called
“whistling wind” effect (e.g., in the “Nostalgia for the Future” composition)
overflow of several registers in one or two octaves combined with dynamic nuances and
various touches
use of polyphonic techniques
playing percussion effects with the sound of an Indian tabla, rattle, wooden percussions,
elements of DJ techniques, various rhythms and pulsations played through the instrument
(e.g., in the “Flirt” composition).
I will be very happy if you have the time to listen to the album and send me your opinion via my
EthnoCloud profile. Any suggestions for collaboration will be welcome too.
For those of you who are GRAMMY Academy Voting Members, please be so kind to take it into
consideration. Thank you.
The album can be listened to here:
https://lnk.to/AwakeningVelichkov?fbclid=IwAR1OUcQdqq2ketyeTDZdhqmfl1yzIwaatKwHvK
Oiu7x6FMzJPs_jb0iK2Dw
Vladimir Velichkov
I hope this finds you in good health and high spirits. I am a Bulgarian musician, composer, kaval
performer and professor at the Bulgarian Music Academy in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. I also lead a
master class at the “Preparing Talents for Success” International Folklore Academy.
I am happy to let you know that EthnoCloud proposed my new album “Awakening” for a 2024
GRAMMY ballot consideration, in the Contemporary Instrumental Album (C) category
(instrumental music, world music). I produced and released this original album as an Indie
musician and in May 2023 the album was made available for sale on Apple Music, Amazon
Music, Spotify, iTunes Store, Deezer and other platforms.
The kaval is a musical instrument from the group of the woodwind instruments, characteristic of
Bulgarian folklore music. Extracting sound and tone from the kaval is extremely difficult. The
technique of blowing into the instrument requires creating an air vortex in the pipe at an angle of
about 30 degrees to the mouth. Although the kaval is considered a monophonic instrument, I
manage to achieve a very varied sound by using new, and difficult to learn and play techniques
of extracting tones, such as:
playing two or three notes simultaneously without singing into the instrument, a
technique that refracts the angle of the air stream from the embouchure to the mouthpiece
of the kaval (e.g., in the “Awakening” composition)
using the “voiced air column” effect where the whistling of air supplied by the musician
passes through the instrument at a certain pitch and a melody is played - the so-called
“whistling wind” effect (e.g., in the “Nostalgia for the Future” composition)
overflow of several registers in one or two octaves combined with dynamic nuances and
various touches
use of polyphonic techniques
playing percussion effects with the sound of an Indian tabla, rattle, wooden percussions,
elements of DJ techniques, various rhythms and pulsations played through the instrument
(e.g., in the “Flirt” composition).
I will be very happy if you have the time to listen to the album and send me your opinion via my
EthnoCloud profile. Any suggestions for collaboration will be welcome too.
For those of you who are GRAMMY Academy Voting Members, please be so kind to take it into
consideration. Thank you.
The album can be listened to here:
https://lnk.to/AwakeningVelichkov?fbclid=IwAR1OUcQdqq2ketyeTDZdhqmfl1yzIwaatKwHvK
Oiu7x6FMzJPs_jb0iK2Dw
Vladimir Velichkov
