If you are after the archaic sound of the diaphony from Bulgaria's Central Western Shoppe region you can discover it in the unique songs of brothers Vladimir and Mitko Mitev from the village of Vladaya near Sofia. Their stylish singing has prompted the admiration of audiences at home and abroad. It is the subject of research as the brothers' repertoire represents a music encyclopedia of a kind of the traditional folklore calendar of their home village.

At the turn of the century the two take part in a film tackling the incredible abilities of the human voice. The film is the work of director Petko Radilov. He wanted an inscription to be made while their performance was on, saying “Mitev Brothers – the Unique ones”. And Unique is the name of their second album. In the last two years the singers have reduced their performances on stage . However their songs continue attracting the interest of young singers as well as that of music and folklore scholars.

The two brothers represent Graovo - part of the Shoppe region that shows some specifics in the performance of two-part songs, instrumental melodies and dances. Loyal to the ancient local folklore, the Mitev brothers are also dancers, keepers of local customs and rituals. They are active members of the Svetlina Community Center in Vladaya and hosts of the festival “Family continuity in folklore”. They are often invited to join “The bridge of generations” festival in Targovishte, Northeastern Bulgaria, where they teach Graovo singing to pupils and students from music schools and universities.

Vlado Mitev says more about the secrets of Graovo two-part singing:

“At home we have sung more than we have talked with each other. Music traditions in the family run as a matter of daily practice - not unlike walking and speaking. To us singing is a way of communication; it is about the essence of living. When we start singing no one gives a pitch, and we even do not agree which song to sing: we have such a deep bond. For 45 years now we have never been influenced by contemporary trends in music - our mission has been to keep the purity of tradition. Our job is to preserve this unique singingin the most perfect way. And we do that with great love and responsibility. In the first place, we are keen to participate in the national folklore festivals in Koprivshtitsa. To us this is the place of the Bulgarian spirit per se. We are holders of gold medals from all editions of the festival. We also received the Bagpipe of Petre Atanasovski, a national folklore prize in the Republic of Macedonia. We are winners of a folklore prize from the festival of Danube countries' folk songs in Giurgiu. In Belgrade a few specialists held an experiment - they asked us to sing a song from our local calendar of traditional rituals and festivities. They were surprised to find out that there is hardly a moment that we did not have a folk song for. This took place at a forum dedicated to diaphony in Balkan countries with participants from across the region and we presented Bulgaria in a worthy way.”

“Our voices are familiar to audiences in London”, Vlado Mitev goes on to say. “We have worked with a foremost impresario Joe Boyd and have taken part in concerts in Britain jointly with Kate Bush, Bulgarka Trio and the Balkana group. We have often made demonstrations what the Bulgarian voice can do. Foreign specialists have been amazed and unable to explain this incredible judder singing style. They have also wondered how we do not breathe for so long while singing. The leading international experts in singing have been amazed with the harmony that emerges by "beating" of the tones between the two voices during singing. And once a Turkish folklorist exclaimed, 'These two men are so very synchronized: the one is a gorgeous singer while the other makes the music. It's just unheard of, unbelievable.”

English Daniela Konstantinova

The audio features the following performances of Mitev Brothers:

1. A shepherd stood on the shore

2. All girls gathered

3. My aunt's dark eyes

4. The sun is high, my sweetheart is far away