Address: 5300 Gabrovo, Timok str. 2
e-mail: gabrovche@yahoo.com
Gabrovche CFE was established in 1975 at the initiative of the municipality of Gabrovo with the purpose of searching, studying and preserving the musical and dancing folklore of Bulgaria and promoting it among the rising generations. The concert band consists of an orchestra of folklore instruments, folk choir, children’s and youth dance groups. Both the ensemble and its preparatory groups number more than 200 children and young people. The ensemble has visited a number of countries- Belarus, Czech Republic, Hungary, Ukraine, Serbia, Germany, France, Greece, Switzerland, Spain, The Netherlands and Croatia. In 2000, in relation to its 25th anniversary, the ensemble was awarded Silver Lyre by the Union of Bulgarian Musician and Dancers, as well as the Honorary Sign of Gabrovo. In 2002 it won its first prize at the International Music Festival in Cantonigros, Spain. In 2004 it was awarded the title ‘Representative of CIOFF’, an international organization of folklore festivals. The senior art director of Gabrovche CFE is Lachezar Zahariev. Since 2008 the ensemble has been the chief organizer of ‘Golden Nightingale’ Regional Musical and Folklore Contest for Children.