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New 4-CD Bulgarian re-release, "Outsinging the Nightingale"

“Outsinging the Nightingale”
Lost Treasures of Bulgarian Music 1905-1950

4-CD Compilation on JSP Records on sale September 14, 2010 features 100 Selections, 97 Never Before Reissued; 8-page Illustrated Annotated Booklets

The only-known recordings of the legendary folk quartet Bishtrishka Chetvorka, the pioneer turn-of-the-century acoustic efforts of the Gramophone Company, the earliest recordings of the icons of Bulgarian folk song Vulkana Stoyanova, Mita Stoicheva and Boris Mashalov, heretofore unavailable sounds of clarinet masters Ramadan and Gosho Lolov, Demir Cholakov and Ahmed Babakov, and the stunning artistry of accordion master Boris Karlov are some of the highlights of “Outsinging the Nightingale—Lost Treasures of Bulgarian Music 1905-1950”, a 4-CD collection on JSP Records on sale September 14.

The compilation is the culmination of 30 years of in-depth research into the Bulgarian commercial recording industry by American researcher Lauren Brody, and is the continuation of her seminal 1998 reissue “Song of the Crooked Dance” on Yazoo Records. None of the selections contained in these two collections have been available anywhere. Through the untiring efforts of Ms. Brody, these unique and important recordings, critically important in the documentation of Bulgaria’s cultural history, will finally reclaim their rightful place in the musical soundscape of Bulgaria.

The set, which costs $29 and is available online, at songofthecrookeddance.com, and in retail stores, is being issued by JSP records in the new “The Sound of the Balkans” series.

"This amazing compilation expands our appreciation for the diversity and richness of Bulgarian music… For those familiar only with Bulgarian music recorded after WWII, this is an enlightening and exciting historical perspective." Mark Levy, Ph.D. University of Oregon School of Music and Dance.

The goal of the collection is to make available, for the first time, both to Bulgarians and to the music-loving public at large, a rich, multi-faceted musical heritage that lay buried for so long, the innocent victim of war and politics in 20th century Bulgaria.

For more information on the collection, visit www.songofthecrookeddance.com.