Boris Tonkov – between America and Europe, between classics and jazz, with Bulgaria in his heart

One of the most prominent musicians in the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra is the Bulgarian violist Boris Tonkov. A proven talent, he graduated from the National Music Academy "Lyubomir Pipkov" in Sofia as a student of the legendary Prof. Ognyan Stanchev and continued his studies in the USA – first as a student of the famous pedagogue and violinist Kevork Mardirossian, then with Jerzy Kosmala at Louisiana State University and with Jesse Levine at the prestigious Yale University, where he was awarded an assistant teaching scholarship.

Boris Tonkov participates in many international competitions, he teaches, but the most impressive is his vast experience in symphony orchestras in the USA, Brazil, England, Spain and France. He was a soloist-leader in several prestigious symphony ensembles, including the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra and the London Philharmonic. In 2000 he became a member of the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, and later he was selected as a member of the new Opera Symphony Orchestra in Valencia. He has played under the baton of many of the most prominent contemporary conductors: Claudio Abbado, Lorin Maazel, Kurt Masur, Valery Gergiev, Zubin Mehta, Michael Stern.

Since 2011 to the present Boris Tonkov has been a member of the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg).

In practice, this is the first symphony orchestra in France.

"They have a very long history, as does the city, so it's a joy for me to be part of this team for nearly 15 years now," says Tonkov.

The Bulgarians in the orchestra, besides Boris, are two more violinists and one cellist – the renowned Alexander Somov. Today Tonkov participates in various chamber ensembles in projects offered to the Philharmonic every spring. Boris has had three such projects over the years – “personally mine,” he says, in which he has presented music by Bulgarian composers such as Petar Hristoskov and Tsenko Minkin. According to him, the French audience is very receptive to Bulgarian music, even the newest.

Our distinguished violist has played in many renowned ensembles. He started with the Mahler Youth Orchestra under the direction of the great Claudio Abbado. Many talented Bulgarians have started their path in the world's most prestigious orchestras from this youth ensemble. Then in Boris Tonkov's career came the London Philharmonic, several orchestras in the USA and the orchestra in Valencia, for which he was chosen by Lorin Maazel himself - the creator of the ensemble.

One of Boris' unforgettable encounters occurred while he was a member of the London Philharmonic Orchestra: "I had the opportunity to play with Kurt Masur at four concerts in Germany - one of his last tours. He was already quite old. Before that, I had also worked with him in São Paulo, maybe in 2001. We played Shostakovich - Fifteenth Symphony! Only one symphony in four concerts in the largest German halls...".

Boris Tonkov has lived in many different places - in the USA, in Europe. When asked which is the best of them, he says without hesitation: "Spain! My heart stayed there!". I ask about the difficulties on the way, because he left Bulgaria very young, graduated from school and immediately left:

"I did not study at the National Academy of Music in Bulgaria. But during the last two years at the National Music School I had the opportunity to study with Prof. Ognyan Stanchev, who was the head professor at the Academy at the time. So I had a lot of access – not only to Ognyan Stanchev, but also to other teachers at the Academy".

The most important person at the beginning of his path in the USA is eminent Bulgarian violinist and pedagogue Kevork Mardirossian:

"He was 43 years old at the time and had got his first job as a violin teacher in Arkansas. Mainly out of interest in Mardirossian as a teacher, Boris Tonkov decided to apply to the university overseas. The beginning was difficult with the transition from musical to academic education. "I was not particularly strong academically then and because of that, it was not easy for me at the university. Later I learned to be much more responsible and successful in academic circles. But the first few years were difficult for the simple reason that I had to study subjects that were not musical. Plus, I spent a lot of time during the week working – again as a musician. This gave me the opportunity to support myself – to play at rehearsals and concerts for pay, but it also took away from my free time, in which I could have played for myself or studied."

After more than ten years spent in the USA, the Bulgarian musician felt a great desire to return to Europe, and the best job offer at that time was in Spain. In the first three years, every summer he had engagements overseas: "Literally from 2006 to 2009. I didn't have summer vacations, I would go back to the States to play chamber music concerts, various other summer festival engagements with orchestras."

Today he also works as a teacher for a festival in Arcidosso, in the Italian province of Tuscany. Its name is Clazz International Music Festival - classical and jazz in one.

"This is a summer festival where students receive private lessons, chamber music lessons and the chance to be on stage and play a concert program in an orchestra."

We met in Sofia, where Boris Tonkov had a master class at the Pancho Vladigerov House Museum. This is not his first such experience, but it is the first master class on his personal initiative. In this regard, I admit that I have always felt an extraordinary reverence for people who extract a beautiful sound from a stringed instrument with a bow and I ask what is the secret of the beautiful sound extracted from the viola.

"First, I also believe that the sound that comes out of a metal string scraping against horsehair smeared with resin is a very capricious thing. It is very difficult to get this vocal, singing sound with these instruments. It takes a long time for a person to develop and gain this affinity for sound, and here I will start with my first real viola teacher – Prof. Ognyan Stanchev, he was very committed to this! For him, the main, beautiful, deep viola sound was a motto. He did not like whistling, hissing, he even always told me: "you should not play like a violinist". Sound extraction in string instruments is a very capricious thing, very important. Each has their own characteristic sound."

When asked where the interest in the so-called. "crossover" stems from, Boris says that it is not only from the last seven years at Clazz – the festival in which he participates every summer and where he had the opportunity to develop these interests:

"I have to admit that even in high school I was very fond of rock and roll. I played bass guitar in a rock band. From there I have a tendency to make these crossovers in other styles, but I had not developed them for a long time. A few years later, while I was living in Louisiana, I would go out in the evenings – in the bars they played a lot of blues and sometimes crossovers with jazz. I had not studied any jazz theory at that time and it was difficult for me to understand it. But every Sunday I played at the service in the Catholic church on the campus of Louisiana State University. The entire repertoire there was related to the blues: gospel works, songs based on the blues. There I felt that I was starting to improvise. And although I did not really study jazz, I think that this is something that a person brings in himself, when he has the desire to develop it".

In the end, after so much time in the world, I ask him what Bulgaria is for him?

"Home! This is my home, yes. It always has been and always will be".

And what should we do to make Bulgaria a good home for Bulgarians? - "I would say - to make it so that we ourselves feel better at home", Boris Tonkov is categorical.

Photos: Facebook/ Boris Tonkov, philharmonique.strasbourg.eu

English publication: Rositsa Petkova