Vasil Zlatanov – Accordion
Vasil Zlatanov is born in 1996 in Peshtera, Bulgaria. He started playing the accordion at the age of 7 with his music teacher Vaska Simonova. Two years later, he began Bulgarian folk singing lessons with the vocal teacher Pavel Kutsev. In 2009 Vasil continued his development with the renowned musician and accordion teacher Chavdar Ralchev in Pazardzhik. Over the next few years he has participated in numerous concerts and competitions throughout the country. These include “Orpheus gift”, “Orpheus Spring”, musical competition “Milcho Petrov”, “Copper Bells”. As a solo performer, Vasil won several competitions and in 2011, in an accordion duet with Lachezar Urushev, he also won the special awards of two of the competitions and was granted with a scholarship from the Ministry of Culture for children with outstanding gifts. In 2013 Vasil started lessons with Assoc. Dr. Diana Stancheva, specializing in classical music and jazz. In 2016 he was accompanist of the “Gotse Delchev” ensemble of Sofia during a summer tour in Italy. A year later, he performed concerts with the newly formed band “Tango cats” as a guest musician. In 2018 Vasil participated in a concert of the accordion orchestra of the Telemann Conservatory in Magdeburg, Germany with the accordion player Gennadiy Vinogradski as a conductor. Since October 2019 he is part of the group „Trio Senso”.
Michael Antonov – Guitar
Michael Antonov is born on the 29th of November 1989 in Varna, Bulgaria. He completed his secondary education in 2008 in the National School of Arts “Dobri Hristov” with a specialty in classical guitar. He has participated in several editions of the “Marin Goleminov” international competition, where he received two first and two second prizes. In 2008 he was awarded the special prize of the Municipality of Varna for Guitar Art. In 2012 Michael graduated from the National Academy of Music “Pancho Vladigerov”, Sofia in the pop and jazz department, specializing in guitar and piano. He has had the opportunity to participate in jams with world-renowned musicians, such as Poogie Bell and Keith Anderson. He is a member of the band “Low step”, which creates its own music in the style of smooth jazz, soul and R&B. Michael has had also numerous performances in salon music. From 2017 up till now he works at the “Sinatra” piano bar chain as a pianist, guitarist and vocalist. Since October 2019 Michael is part of the group „Trio Senso”.
Viktor Berlioz – Bassoon
Viktor Petrov was born in 1989 in Varna, Bulgaria, where he started taking bassoon lessons at the age of 10 by Hristina Tuschieva at the National School of Arts “Dobri Hristov”. Over the course of the years he became a laureate of many national and international solo and chamber music competitions and had the chance to perform in Paris, Prague and Brussels. Viktor was honored with an award for successful achievements, several scholarships for highly gifted musicians from the Ministry of Culture and a medal for high national and international achievements in the area of the Arts. From 2008 he began his studies with Prof. Frank Forst, Principal Bassoon of Camerata Salzburg, at the “Franz Liszt” University in Weimar, Germany. After passing his intermediate diploma in 2011, Viktor continued his studies with David Petersen, Principal Bassoon of the Gewandhaus Orchestra, at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Frankfurt, where he graduated with distinction in 2015.
As a soloist, Viktor played several times with the Varna Philharmonic Orchestra and as an orchestral musician he gained valuable experience with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, Frankfurt Chamber Philharmonic, Folkwang Chamber Orchestra Essen, Sinfonietta Frankfurt, Ensemble “Kapella 19” (CD recording), Jena Philharmonic, Thüringen Philharmonic, Deutsche Philharmonie Merck, etc. Furthermore, he attended master classes with renowned bassoonists as Prof. Sergio Azzolini (Basel Music Academy), Lyndon Watts (Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Bern University of the Arts), as well as Prof. Jussi Särrkä (Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Sibelius Academy Helsinki), Prof. Jaako Luoma (Tapiola Sinfonietta and Sibelius Academy Helsinki), Eckehard Kupke (Gewandhaus Orchestra), Kim Laskowski (New York Philharmonic and The Juilliard School) and Tomasz Wesolowski (University of Music and Performing Arts Frankfurt). Significant influence on his artistic development had the conductors Nicolás Pasquet, Fabio Mechetti, Johannes Klumpp und Wojciech Rajski.
Viktor is the grand prize winner of the 2nd International Competition ENKOR and moreover, as a member of Trio “Bérmice”, he won a scholarship by Yehudi Menuhin Live Music Now and engagements throughout the next years. Currently he has concerts with his new classical еnsemble from Frankfurt – „Trio Alius“ as well as with his group „Trio Senso”, which are gaining popularity due to the uncommon interpretation of world-famous pieces. Besides his solo, chamber and orchestra performances, Viktor is also being employed as a bassoon and piano teacher in several schools in Frankfurt and in the Hessen province.