News

We've been working steadily on the podcasts for Dragi's CDs, incorporating musical and text information not found in the accompanying book. It's been very interesting for me as the interviewer; Dragi knows a tremendous amount and has met many of the luminaries of Macedonian folk song. Other people are tuning in to the shows, as we've gotten feedback from Toronto, St. Louis, Denver, Boston, Montréal and other cities. The podcast pages on this web site also include musical material not found in their entirety on the shows. You can download from this site, or subscribe. We've a long way to go, but the ride so far has been terriific!

Izvor Music has published Mastering Thracian Kaval Ornamentation: A Handbook, by kaval master Lyuben Dossev. This 193-page book unveils the mysteries of ornamentation of the Bulgarian wooden end-blown shepherd’s flute, the kaval. It contains over 200 diagrams of musical examples played by Professor Dossev found on an accompanying CD. There is also a collection of songs with notated kaval accompaniment. More details and ordering information can be found on its book page.

Izvor Music has published Macedonian Folk Songs from the Repertoire of Dragi Spasovski Volume 1, by David Bilides, Dragi Spasovski, and Rachel MacFarlane. This 168-page book, a complement to Dragi's three new CDs, contains complete lyrics and translations to all 54 Macedonian folk songs found on the CDs. It also includes transcribed notations of all the vocals (with ornaments), plus all of the tambura and accordion interludes (with ornaments), notes on the songs, a map, a glossary, tablature, a pronunciation guide, and a special guest review of this project by Goran Alački. We've already received many glowing comments. More information is available on its book page.

After an energetic party with the Greenlake folk dancers, Goran Alački and Adrijana Alačka joined Dragi Spasovski for two sold out nights at Seattle's Café Paloma to celebrate the release of his 3 CDs. The intimate atmosphere created a very different ambience from the dance party, and people who attended both were able to enjoy the wide range of moods and songs Macedonian folk music can provide. We had attendees from Victoria and Vancouver, Canada, as well as more local fans. This was the first time these three Radio Skopje artists had performed together, and they had a marvelous time. Adrijana walked off the stage among the diners and serenaded them one minute, while getting them out of their seats and dancing the next. Goran played some of his own compositions to an attentive audience. Dragi was very moved by both the lyrics of the songs he chose, the occasion itself, and honored guests such as Atanas Kolarovski. There were also exhilarating times with Adrijana and Dragi harmonizing over Goran's sensitive accompaniments. Some pictures from the Café evenings are up on this site.

Izvor Music is proud to announce the release of 3 CDs by Radio Skopje singer Dragi Spasovski. Each CD is beautifully packaged and features 70 minutes of traditional Macedonian folksongs. Dragi is accompanied by the Goran Alački Orchestra, the Stefče Stojkovski Ensemble, and David Bilides. Listeners have written us with wonderful comments. More details and ordering information can be found on the CD page.

This 150-page book comes with 2 CDs of the original music of the 35 transcribed songs. All songs are notated with complete lyrics in two languages and transliterated. The Volume 2 page gives all the details, including a link to many of the many positive comments we’ve received about this and the first volume.