The Representative Brass Band of the National Guards Unit of Bulgaria ( bg, Гвардейски представителен духов оркестър към Националната гвардейска част на България) is the official representative brass band of the National Guards Unit of the

Bulgarian Armed Forces The Bulgarian Army ( bg, Българска армия, Bŭlgarska armiya) is the military of Bulgaria. The commander-in-chief is the president of Bulgaria. The Ministry of Defense is responsible for political leadership, while overall military ...

. Stationed in the capital of Sofia, the band works together with the National Guards Unit during events where the President of Bulgaria receives heads of state and

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

at the Largo in

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...

History

It was commissioned by the Bulgarian Government in 1878, with originally 20 Czech musicians led by Josef Chochola in the band. In 1892 this orchestra was transferred to Sofia from

Veliko Tarnovo Veliko Tarnovo ( bg, Велико Търново, Veliko Tărnovo, ; "Great Tarnovo") is a town in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred as the "''City of the Tsars''", Veliko Tarnovo ...

and was enlisted as part of the Bulgarian Life Guards Squadron. The first ethnic Bulgarian to be appointed as the chief conductor of the band was Maestro Georgi Atanasov. In 1944, after the communist coup, the band was dissolved and the remaining musicians were sent to the town of

Breznik Breznik ( bg, Брезник ) is a town in western Bulgaria, 50 km away from Sofia. It is located in Pernik Province and is close to the towns of Bankya and Pernik. Villages in the municipality include Begunovtsi, Dushintsi, and Velkovtsi ...

. In 1951, the band was restored as the Central Brass Band of the Bulgarian People's Army. Since its restoration, the band's musicians wore regular infantry uniforms instead of the uniform of the guards unit. The guards band was reestablished in 2001, with its former status and original name.

Music

Most of the pieces of music are performed by the band at the Bulgarian Armed Forces Day parade in

or during official protocol ceremonies. * Botev's March * Great are our Soldiers (The official anthem and hymn of the Bulgarian Armed Forces) * Son’s Duty * One Legacy * Near the Bosphorous * Dobrudzha region * We are to be victorious * Festive Sofia

List of conductors

* Josef Chochola (1878–1895) * Emanuil Manolov (1895–1914) * Georgi Atanasov (1914–1920; 1923–1926) * Nikola Tsonev (?)

References

External links

National Guards Unit official page
{{in lang, bg
Official site
of National Guards Unit.
A 1988 concert of the band
in the Sofia Central Music Hall.
БНТ Н3Dеля х3 6 mai 2012 Велик е нашият войник

Концерт на Гвардейски Оркестър
Military bands National symbols of Bulgaria Military units and formations of Bulgaria Musical groups established in 1878

History

Music

List of conductors

See also

References

External links