Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

The Nusha Choir presents Kitka Velita, Chestita

A Blessed Posy of Wishes: Neli Andreeva revives Stefka Kushleva’s folk legacy

Photo: Facebook/Nusha Choir

For singer, conductor, and vocal coach Neli Andreeva, promoting and interpreting Bulgarian folk music has long been a personal mission. She is also renowned for her work with various ensembles, including Nusha, the choir that she founded. The choir's latest album, Kitka Velita, Chestita (“A Blessed Posy of Wishes”), will be performed live in Sofia on 13 November. It features the first choral recordings of folk arrangements by the late Bulgarian folk singer, composer, conductor, and vocal pedagogue Stefka Kushleva (1938–2019).


Neli Andreeva tells us more:

Нели Андреева
"The album is a compilation of songs performed in Kushleva's eponymous stage production.The title references a Rhodope tradition in which young women cast bouquets into the water on a specific day to love-binding intention themselves to their chosen suitor.


The Nusha Choir has existed since 2012. We’ve navigated many challenges, celebrated countless memorable moments, and performed extensively abroad. We have created remarkable projects that still fill us with pride. Yet our latest project feels the most important and significant — it is, in many ways, my personal mission. With 30 years of musical experience and over a decade of leading this choir, I believe that we perform at a near-professional level, despite not all of our singers having received formal training. It is with great pride that I present Kitka Velita, Chestita. It has been with me for years — a deeply rooted dream waiting for the right moment to take shape.


I studied at the music school in Shiroka Laka, where Stefka Kushleva was the school principal at the time. I was in her final graduating class before she retired. It was an extraordinary time: an education not just in music, but also in art, perspective, and values. It was a place where we grew as people. This project is therefore more than just an album; it is the music of an entire generation. For us, and for me personally, it will be a lifelong mission to share with the world what she wanted to express. We are about to hear some truly magnificent masterpieces."




Editor: Elena Karkalanova
Posted in English by E. Radkova
Photos: Facebook /Nusha Choir


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

Lubo Kirov closes national tour "25 Years on Stage" with two concerts in Sofia

Lubo Kirov will conclude his national tour "25 Years on Stage" with two concerts at Hall No 1 of the National Palace of Culture in Sofia — on October 16 and 17. During the concerts, the singer’s music hits will be performed with the accompaniment of..

published on 10/16/25 10:40 AM

BNR Folk Orchestra Opens 73rd Season with Georgi Dobrev’s “Plovdiv Melodies”

The Bulgarian National Radio Folk Orchestra is kicking off its 73rd season. On 16 October, 7pm sharp, Studio One will host the opening concert – a night of premieres written exclusively for this legendary ensemble. Under the baton of maestro..

published on 10/15/25 2:42 PM
Orenda trio in the studio of Radio Bulgaria, Sofia

Paris-based trio "Orenda" presents an entirely Bulgarian repertoire in Sofia for the first time

To make your dream come true in a Bulgarian rhythm and on French soil. Thus, metaphorically, we can begin the story of Bulgarian musician and pedagogue Stefka Miteva and the Bulgarian-French trio "Orenda" , in which she is complemented by..

published on 10/15/25 11:25 AM