Международният фестивал за съвременна музика Musica Nova - Sofia и неговото послание
The International Festival of Contemporary Music Musica Nova - Sofia and Its Message

Summary/Abstract: The question of the contemporary context of Bulgarian musical culture and what is understood as “modern” is one of the most problematic and polemical areas of Bulgarian musicology. “Modern” is interpreted in terms of content and aesthetics as synchronicity in time. The historical development of Bulgarian music throughout the past century, as well as in the present, has been interpreted in various academic works and critical reflections as lagging behind in comparison to international tendencies and their continual striving to discover expressions of modernity, understood above alias “actuality.” In this study, the International Festival of Contemporary Music Musica Nova - Sofia (1993-2002) and its message are examined in a historical-analytical context. This work traces all ten of the festival’s annual stagings, as well as their connection with the concrete activity of the Society for Contemporary Music in Bulgaria, which is a member of the International Society for Contemporary Music. Musica Nova - Sofia stands out among musical festivals existing in Bulgaria at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s with its overall appearance as a European festival for contemporary music. The festival’s message must be understood in the historical context of the 1990s, which were a crucial period for Bulgaria socially, economically and culturally Musica Nova - Sofia introduced to the Bulgarian public for the first time a series of works foundational to 20th century music, including international debuts by Bulgarian and foreign composers. They are united by a shared stylistic platform; the category “modern” is interpreted as a stylistic-aesthetic category connected with specific tendencies in 20th century music, which have characterized contemporary music as “New Music.” For this reason, Musica Nova-Sofia in the beginning of the 1990s was seen as an event that situated contemporary Bulgarian works within the context of international musical achievements. The forum has created its own community, which includes not only performers with an interest in New Music, but also an audience of intellectuals with similar interests from all spheres of the arts and humanities. The role of festival and its nature are widely debated and commented on in the critical reflections that accompany the festival. The forum‘s ideas can be found in the program of the annual International Festival of Contemporary Piano Music pp!ANISSIMO, which has existed in parallel with Musica Nova-Sofia since 1998 and which continues to the present time. These ideas can also be found in separate performance projects, in their conceptualization as well as their creative realization, and in their modern message.

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