Irfan is an ethereal world music band from

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

formed in 2001. Their sound is an original electro-acoustic world fusion influenced by the

sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

and

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

traditions of Bulgaria, the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

, the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, as well as by the musical and spiritual heritage of

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion ( grc, Βυζάντιον) was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' cont ...

and

Medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

. Irfan extensively uses ethereal and mystic female vocals in addition to strong male vocals and choirs in combination with an assortment of traditional Bulgarian, Balkan, Oriental, Persian and Indian string, wind, key and percussive instruments woven into a delicate ambient electronic sound. The band’s name is borrowed from the Sufi’s terminology and means “gnosis”, “secret knowledge” or “revelation”. Since 2003 Irfan has been on the French label

Prikosnovénie Prikosnovénie (russian: Прикоснове́ние) is a French independent record label founded in Nantes in 1990 in music, 1990 by Frédéric Chaplain and Sabine Adélaïde who moved to its current home in the medieval city of Clisson in 200 ...

with three released albums and several movie and theatrical soundtracks. Over the last decade Irfan toured with great success across Europe (Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, France, Denmark, Switzerland, Austria, The Czech Republic, Poland, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, etc.) and performed live at some of the main European Gothic, neo folk, medieval and world music festivals and events.

Discography

Full-length albums and EPs: * ''Irfan'' (2003) -

/Noir Records * ''Seraphim'' (2007) -

* ''The Eternal Return'' (2015) -

* ''Roots'' (2018) - self-released Compilation appearances: *'Otkrovenie' on ''Fairy World No. 1''

(2003) *'Otkrovenie' on '' Dancing in the Dark: 10 Years of Dancing Ferret''

Dancing Ferret Discs The Dancing Ferret entertainment group is an unofficial collective name for Dancing Ferret Discs and Dancing Ferret Concerts. It was started by Patrick Rodgers (a.k.a. DJ Ferret) in 1995 with the formation of Dancing Ferret Concerts. The company ...

(2005) *'Stella Splendens' on ''Fairy World II'' Prikosnovénie (2005) *'Otkrovenie' on ''Asleep By Dawn Magazine DCD 2005 Tour CD'' Asleep By Dawn (2005) *'Peregrinatio' on ''Asleep By Dawn Magazine DCD 2005 Tour CD'' Asleep By Dawn (2005) *'Star of the Winds' on ''Dancing in the Dark 2006: A Dancing Ferret Compilation'' Dancing Ferret Discs (2006) *'Fei' on ''Effleurment: A Prikosnovénie Compilation'' Prikosnovénie (2006) *''Simurgh'' on ''Fairy World III'' Prikosnovénie (2007)

Band members

*Ivailo Petrov—oud, baglama saz, tambura, santour, setar, programming *Kalin Yordanov—vocals, daf, bodhran *Peter Todorov—darbouka, tombak, riq, electronic percussion pad *Yasen Lazarov—kaval, nay, duduk, harmonium *Darina Zlatkova—vocals

References

External links

Facebook page of the band
*
Discogs Irfan discography

{{Authority control Bulgarian musical groups Prikosnovénie artists World music groups