Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2026 All Rights Reserved

Lea Ivanova’s 100th birth anniversary

Photo: Youtube / PICTOMASTER music box

On August 13, music fans in Bulgaria mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Lea Ivanova - one of the first female jazz performers in Bulgaria. She was born in 1923 in Dupnitsa but grew up in Tsarigrad (Istanbul), where her singing talent manifested itself in the children's choir of the Bulgarian Exarchate. She arrived in Sofia in the 1940s, when she joined various jazz and swing formations. 

Repressed by the communist regime because of the so called "decadent Western music" she performed, the singer was more appreciated abroad, where she managed to perform actively in the 1960s - in Romania, Hungary, then Yugoslavia and East Germany, and later - in the USA, Canada, South America, etc. 

With her charismatic personality and captivating stage presence, Lea Ivanova remains one of the biggest legends of Bulgarian music.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Tonika SV celebrates 45 years on stage

One of the most popular vocal groups of the 1980s, Tonika SV, is celebrating its 45th anniversary on stage with a grand concert in Sofia. The group is to perform its greatest hits on November 8, in Hall No 1 of the National Palace of Culture. Their..

published on 11/6/25 12:30 PM
Photo: Bulgarian Classical Concerts – Los Angeles

“Bulgarian Classical Concerts – Los Angeles” officially starts on November 6

The new nonprofit foundation Bulgarian Classical Concerts – Los Angeles , founded by two exceptionally successful and talented Bulgarian women – violinist Blagomira Lipari and composer Penka Kouneva – with the mission of promoting Bulgarian classical..

published on 11/6/25 11:50 AM

JazzBoree release original version of Bulgarian folk song "Rosni mi, rosni, Rositse"

The JazzBoree group continues the line of mixing Bulgarian folklore with expressive means characteristic of jazz. The musicians of the formation find the intersection between folklore and jazz precisely in the freedom of interpretation - this is exactly..

published on 11/5/25 3:30 PM