Her warm and beautiful voice always reminds us of magnificent performances of famous Bulgarian folk songs. Hundreds of recordings keep attracting fans and new listeners, despite the fact renowned singer Verka Siderova stepped off the stage long time ago. On April 26, the singer celebrates her 93rd birthday. Her memory is clear and her great sense of humor intact, while folk songs are still part of her life.
“Every day something changes and you know where it's all going," the singer says. “But I try to preserve the power of spirit and keep my good mood. If I feel depressed, I start singing some funny song or even some of the more ’salty’ ones that people call ‘Monday songs’. There are people saying that as you get old, you become tired of life, but it is not true. Life has given me much and I am grateful to God and to my parents for this. But it seems as if there is a point in life when you start returning everything you have taken until nothing remains of you. I am reading a lot and books are my friends. I also like crossword puzzles as they are like gymnastics for the brain. I'm alone, but I do not feel lonely. I'm happy to have left something to the people. Philip Kutev, the creator of the National Folklore Ensemble, was very fond of my songs because I learned them at a time, when Dobrudzha was part of Romania. At that time we Bulgarians were a group protecting strongly our beloved our songs and traditions. Later I learned that we had preserved customs that have been lost in other areas. Apart from the songs, I received very good education. I graduated from the classical class of the high school in Dobrich and I learned several languages. I am extremely grateful to one of my teachers – Mr. Kuzmanov (I hope his heirs would read this). I am grateful for the attitude to language and books he taught me. Philip Kutev was the one who helped me develop as a singer. He taught us to select only valuable songs, to get into the meaning of the lyrics; to experience the songs. We have travelled a lot with the ensemble and had many concerts in Bulgaria, but I have never refused assistance to young singers or parents who wanted their children to sing. I could not manage to record all the songs I know or perform them all on stage, but I remember them because my memory is good. I gave some songs to Dobrin Dobrev (Koev) – a talented singer, whom I taught to perform the songs in my way, as they say. The Lord has given him good voice, but I helped him polish it and taught him he could not do without the song. I taught him what I have learned from older singers, like Valkana Stoyanova, whom I place on top among singers. Galya Durmushliyska also came to me and I gave some songs to her. One life is not enough to do your job. Many songs remain unsung but the young singers continue our work. I am happy that I was part of the golden generation of singers who lived in the golden period of the Bulgarian folk song, made it famous and loved in Bulgaria and around the world.”
Verka Siderova remembers with gratitude her work at the Bulgarian National Radio, too where she felt at home, working on the recordings of her solo songs. She says that parents often bring their children to her, in order to hear her opinion about their singing talent. She is always honest in her assessment. Her admirers have not forgotten her. A few days ago a television crew visited her home and shot a short film starring Dobrin Dobrev and Galina Durmushliyska – an occasion to recall the great number of awards Verka Siderova has received during her career and the precious moments on stage.
English: Alexander Markov
Photos: Albena Bezovska and archive
