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Lazarki (Bulgaria)

from Kolo by Kitka Women's Vocal Ensemble

about

Šop region, Bulgaria, arrangement by Tzvetanka Varimezova

St. Lazarus, a celebration of fields, pastures, forests, and the transition from girlhood to maidenhood. On this holiday, girls aged from ten to sixteen dress up in new finery bedecked with greenery and head wreaths. They dance and sing from house to house, with the hostess of each residence challenging them to jump high to summon tall crops and livestock fertility. For their songs, dances, and leaps, the girls are awarded with eggs to fill their baskets.

lyrics

“Hey, I drove my horse to water, and he drank his fill. / The sun shimmered as it set. / Dona picked herbs. / Hey, a young couple, Mitro and Tiza, stood by the wall. Mitro said to Tiza, ‘Come to me,’ and they agreed to run away together. / Stana ran away through nine green forests, and she found cold water. / Little doll-like girls dance along silver streets. One wasn’t there, because her mother was braiding her hair in fine rows. / Hey, a falcon drank water from the Vardar River.”

credits

from Kolo, released March 20, 2026
Featured Vocalists: Shira Cion, Katya Schoenberg, Janet Kutulas, Maclovia Quintana, Kelly Atkins, Erin Lashnits Herman, Charlotte Finegold, Talia Young Skeen

Percussion: Kelly Atkins, Janet Kutulas

Music Directors / Producers: Kelly Atkins and Janet Kutulas
Executive Director & Annotator: Shira Cion
Recording & Editing Engineer: David Luke at Opus Studios in Berkeley, California, and BZ Lewis at Studio 132 in Oakland, California
Stereo & Dolby Atmos Mixing & Mastering Engineer: BZ Lewis
Album Art & Design: Kristine Barrett

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Kitka Women's Vocal Ensemble Oakland, California

Kitka is an American vocal arts ensemble inspired by the stunning dissonances, asymmetric rhythms, intricate ornamentation, and resonant strength of traditional Eastern European women’s vocal music. Kitka has earned international recognition for its distinctive sound as well as for its innovative explorations in new music for women’s voices. ... more

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