Sound composition inspired by Bulgaria’s ancient Surva festival. The work explores the theme of intangible heritage through a sonic dialogue between tradition and modernity. Field recordings and reconstructed sounds of the Survakari—masked performers whose bells and rhythms drive away evil spirits—are blended with the noise of city traffic and everyday urban life. As these contrasting worlds collide, their boundaries begin to blur: ritual bells echo car horns, footsteps mirror dance rhythms, and chaos turns into a strange harmony. The piece reflects on how unique sounds that on-ce connected communities are being drowned by the pace of modern existence—inviting listeners to consi-der what we preserve and what we lose as we rush through life, and whether forgotten sounds hold pieces of who we are.
This composition uses the following sounds:
- https://freesound.org/s/324210/
- https://freesound.org/s/235506/
- https://freesound.org/s/543980/
- https://freesound.org/s/350674/
- https://freesound.org/s/259283/
- https://freesound.org/s/177745/
- https://freesound.org/s/451485/
- https://freesound.org/s/637598/
- https://freesound.org/s/692524/
- https://freesound.org/s/415836/
- https://freesound.org/s/347335/
- https://freesound.org/s/669296/
- https://freesound.org/s/155317/
- https://freesound.org/s/790958/
- https://freesound.org/s/237375/
- https://freesound.org/s/221872/
- https://freesound.org/s/435695/
- https://freesound.org/s/808404/
- https://freesound.org/s/808402/
- https://freesound.org/s/808401/
- https://freesound.org/s/808399/
- https://freesound.org/s/808396/
- https://freesound.org/s/808394/
- https://freesound.org/s/808392/
- https://freesound.org/s/808390/
- https://freesound.org/s/808389/
- https://freesound.org/s/460290/
Artist bio
Sound engineer and data science course author from Varna, Bulgaria. His sound work spans field recording, sound design, and music composition for short films, TV productions, and stage performances. Alongside his audio work, Ivan creates online courses in data science and AI, covering topics like speech recognition, machine learning, statistics, and AI ethics. He enjoys blending creative and technical approa-ches, exploring how sound and technology can meet in unexpected ways. Outside of work, he loves playing tennis and football, swimming, making music, and hiking.