The second edition of the Summer Academy for Brass Ensembles and Percussion Instruments was held between 18th and 23st of August 2021 in the beautiful historical town of Koprivshtitsa. This year the event was very different from the 2020’s one both in duration and as a master classes programme, repertoire and participants. The main organizer for the first time officially was Brass Perspectives Association BG in a partnership with Bulgarian Music Association - communications and logistics.

The second edition of the Academy included young colleagues from three music schools: NMU "Lyubomir Pipkov" in Sofia, NUMTI "Dobrin Petkov" in Plovdiv and NUMSI "Prof. Pancho Vladigerov" in Burgas. That is an important step forward  for the organizer’s team in the participation of young musicians from around the country in the Summer Academy.  Once again the teachers welcomed the students from the National Academy of Music "Prof. Pancho Vladigerov" in Sofia and the brass orchestra of local school "Lyuben Karavelov" - our symbolic and charming host. Nothing can be better than the easiness of communication between the children from Koprivshtitsa and the participants in the Summer Academy from other cities, to see how easily they become an inspired and enthusiastic ensemble of over 35 people, in which the youngest participant this year was 9 years old and the eldest was 22 years old student at the National Academy of Music "Prof. Pancho Vladigerov". 

The curriculum was extremely busy. In short, with the exception of the first day, August 18, 2021, when classes were only in the afternoon, on other days the program covered no more - no less than 12 hours - from 9 am to 9 pm with short breaks for lunch and dinner. And in every other free minute what was happening was that various tiny ensembles of 3 to 5 people kept playing! There were also two concerts - at the master classes in percussion and trombone on 21.08.2021 and at all participants in the Academy together with the brass orchestra of school "Lyuben Karavelov" in Koprivshtitsa on 22.08.2021.

The organizer’s team gratitude is to the inspiring teachers in 2021 Prof. Dr. Atanas Karafezliev (trombone, brass ensembles, orchestral difficulties for brass instruments) and Radosvet Kukudov (percussion instruments), assistant teachers Emil-George Atanasov (brass ensembles) and Snezhina Bogdanova (percussion instruments). Special thanks to our wonderful tireless accompanist Mrs. Snezhana Abrasheva and to our enthusiastic colleague, with whom we worked again in the preliminary preparation of the Academy, the trumpet player Valentin Petkov - student at the National Academy of Music and inspiring conductor of the brass orchestra of the local school “Liuben Karavelov”.

We thank Prof. Hristo Yotsov for the magnificent arrangement of the song "Hubava si, moya goro" - the official anthem of Koprivshtitsa. This was an extremely valuable gift from the remarkable composer, arranger, percussionist and chairman of the Board of the Bulgarian Music Association especially for the Summer Academy 2021! We believe that from now on this arrangement performed by the town brass orchestra will be heard at all official events and at all solemn moments in Koprivshtitsa.  

We thank all the participants in the second edition of the Summer Academy for Brass Ensembles and Percussion Instruments for the joy they played with from start to finish and for the perseverance they showed in their studies in pursuit of the ambitious tasks set by their teachers!

We will see you again at the end of August 2022 at the third edition of the Summer Academy for Brass Ensembles and Percussion Instruments in Koprivshtitsa!