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Brief Story |

| To the south of the Balkan, in the heart of Thrace, the largest and the richest ethnographic region of Bulgaria, is situated the town of Yambol. |
| In 1954 a group of folk singers and musicians leading by the violinist Atanas Palenkov founded the Thracian Ensemble for folk songs and dances. Since then it has been functioning as a natural source of searching, preservation and storage of the local folklore. |
| During the years, thanks to the hard and long work of its members, the ensemble has developed considerably the quality and content of its production. The ensemble consists of three structural parts: a choir, an orchestra and a group of dancers. Maestro Stoyan Gagov had the greatest influence on the development of the ensemble and its image. New and modern forms and means of representing the folklore were found. Famous composers and choreographers took place in renewing and keeping up the repertoire. Maestro Gagov changed the repertoire selecting policy including songs and dances from other ethnographic regions. |
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Ensemble Today |

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In 1993 the Thracian ensemble was called Folk Ensemble Tundja, municipality Tundja-
Yambol.The ensemble was named after the river that goes through the center of the town of
Yambol, then through Turkey.
Today the repertoire of the ensemble is based mainly on music,songs and dances from
Shopluka, Dobrudja, Noth Bulgaria, Pirin mountain and the Rhodopes.
The musical instruments used in the orchestra are authentic-"kaval"(à pipe), "gadulka" (a string
instrument), a bagpipe, "tambura" (a string instrument). You can enjoy the soft rhythms of the
Thracian folklore and the strong rhythms of Shopluka too.
The tender sounds of the pipe merges into free tunes from the Rhodopes and the strength and
beauty of the Pirin folk dances. The incredible music and dances combined with the authentic
folk costumes with unque embroidery,shoing the picturesqueness of the ensemble
unforgettable.
The ensemble has had thounsands of performances in many countries all over the world -
Russia, Belarus , Ukraine, Fance, Germany, Poland, Hungary, Mongolia, Syria, Israel,
Turkey, Greece, Jordan, Romania and others.
The skillfully selected repertoire and proficiency of the performers creates the specific image
of the ensemble - its trade mark.
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Direction |

| Here is short list of the people, who dedicate their lives to spread the bulgrarian culture all over the world, to keep alive the internal flame of this unique folklore and pass it on to the future generations. |
Ensemble directors:
| 1. Petar Dimitrov - art director and choreographer |
| 2. Plamen Dukov - concert master |
| 3. Krasimira Bosheva - tutor |
| 4. Atanas Rekalov - tutor |
Head art directors through the years:
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