Yuri Yunakov is a Bulgarian Romani musician, who is known for participating in the development of Bulgarian wedding music, and introducing it to the United States.[1] He grew up in a Muslim family[2] in Thrace, and started playing music as a boy, sitting in with his father's band. He eventually took up the clarinet, the same instrument as his father. After serving in the army he was a professional boxer, but music turned out to be more lucrative. He was invited to participate with the band of accordionist Ivan Milev, on the condition that he took up the saxophone instead of the clarinet. He trained intensively on the saxophone for a month before his first appearance with Milev's band. Milev's band played Slavic music and Yunakov eventually wished to return to his roots and did so in 1983 when he started to play with the wedding band of Bulgarian clarinetist Ivo Papazov. In socialist Bulgaria, Romani music was considered anti-Bulgarian and consequently stigmatized, and musicians playing it were a target of government repression. Jazz music was also prohibited and Yunakov started experimenting with both.[1]
Yunakov is a recipient of a 2011 National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts, which is the United States government's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.[3]
^ ab"Roma Sax Man of Bulgaria: Yuri Yunakov talks with Christina Roden about wedding music and life in America" www.rootsworld.com
^Silverman, Carole. "Yuri Yunakov – Bulgarian Saxophonist". RomArchive. RomArchive. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
^"NEA National Heritage Fellowships 2011". www.arts.gov. National Endowment for the Arts. Archived from the original on May 21, 2020. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
YuriYunakov is a Bulgarian Romani musician, who is known for participating in the development of Bulgarian wedding music, and introducing it to the United...
music in Bulgaria, along with the violinist Georgi Yanev, saxophonist YuriYunakov, clarinetist Neshko Neshev and accordionists Ivan Milev and Peter Ralchev...
of synthpop, chalga and gypsy music with Bulgarian wedding motives. YuriYunakov, a Bulgarian Romani saxophonist, is one of its creators with clarinetist...
"Filip Kutev" Ciguli (1957–2014), Turkish-romani singer and musician YuriYunakov (b. 1958), Roma musician, known for participating in the development...
as well as being her tour manager. He has also managed Ivo Papasov, YuriYunakov, and Kal. He appeared on the History Channels programme Curse on the...
Paul Motian, Dave Douglas, Matt Darriau, Charlie Haden, Carla Bley, and YuriYunakov. "Brad Shepik". The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. 2nd edition, ed. Barry...
Romani music (Gipsy music). YuriYunakov also of Turkish Roma (Gipsy) origin was a member of Ivo Papazov's ensemble. Yunakov has popularized Bulgarian wedding...
performed in a number of ensembles with prominent Balkan artists such as YuriYunakov, and performed with Fazil's Night Club orchestra which also included...
Old Regular Baptist singer Warner Williams, Piedmont blues songster YuriYunakov, Bulgarian saxophonist Mike Auldridge, dobro player Paul & Darlene Bergren...
Name Role Date Event Yevgeny Yunakov (†) Pro-Russian head of the village of Velykyi Burluk 10 July 2022 Died as a result of a car explosion near the administration...
Global Information