Chiff and Fipple Forums

Hi all, if anyone is interested in the Bulgarian kaval, feel free to check this group I have made :

https://www.facebook.com/groups/BulgarianKaval/

I post both in Bulgarian and English and try to translate as much as I can, so other people can get more information about this instrument.

We have most of the best Bulgarian kaval players and makers as members which is helpful.

If you have any questions about the Bulgarian kaval feel free to message me, I will probably have the answer or point you in the right direction.

Greetings to all from Australia.

Ivo

Hi Ivo,

I tried to PM you but I don't think it went through.

Who do you recommend as a good maker? I live in California.

Thanks,

Patrick

Hi Patrick,

I can't message you so here it goes

There are a couple of Bulgarian kaval makers that I know of who live in the US. The first one is Aleksandr Eppler - http://www.bulgariankaval.com, it is worth reading through his website.
The second one is Radoslav Paskalev - http://www.rpkavalsandbagpipes.com. I have a kaval in D made by him from African Blackwood, very happy with it, took it to Bulgaria and everyone liked it.
The most popular makers in Bulgaria at the moment as far as I know are:
Krastio Dimov - http://professionalkavalbg.com/en/, I own a D kaval with extra piece in B (in reality 2 kavals when you exchange the middle piece), made of Brazilian Santos Palesander wood, very happy with it.
Krastio is one of the 3 kaval soloists in the Folk Music Orchestra at the Bulgarian National Radio, his father and brother have been making kavals for year as well. Highly recommended by all people that I know who play the kaval.

Stoyan Ivanov from the village of Kameno, 4th generation kaval maker, very good reputation as well, no web presence as far as I know, can give you maybe some phone numbers is interested.
https://scontent.fper2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/ ... 1331_o.jpg

Zhechko Marinov from Straldzha, if you are lucky, he pretty much have stopped making kavals anymore, due to some health issues.

Veselin Hasabaliev - http://www.kavalibg.com/en_index.html, very popular maker as well, lives in the city of Haskovo.

Yordan Vasilev from the village of Dalboki - https://scontent.fper2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/ ... e=5865DC12, looks like a good maker based on the info and photos.

Todor Dimitrov from the town of Karnobat, I've met him, very good maker - https://scontent.fper2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/ ... e=589EFC1E.

There are some more makers that I am missing for sure, but this should give you enough info to do some more research.

Best case scenario will be to meet the maker so you can choose better but obviously this will be quite hard.

Be aware of some web sites selling good looking Bulgarian kavals, which are nothing more then souveniers.

Prices vary according to the type of wood and how old it is. Typically it will be from say $350 to more then a thousand for some unique instruments.

Anything cheaper and you are risking buying an expansive toy Not to say that expensive ones are all excellent but if they are from one of those makers, you should be safe.

If you order from the US makers, at least you are in the same country as them, in case something needs fixing

If I were you I would do that, but ultimately it is your decision.

If you have Facebook, I recommend searching there since for these makers, this is the only way for you to see photos, etc.

Feel free to visit my group for any extra info, notations etc. - https://www.facebook.com/groups/BulgarianKaval/

I hope the info was some help, good luck with choosing and please ask any questions if needed.

Ivo

Nollaig shona mhath!

Patrick I have a decent Bulgarian-made one I can loan you if you just want to give it a go. When good Bulgarian player tried it he said it was a decent-quality instrument. He got a great sound out of it, far better than I ever could!

I never got very good at Kaval. I played gaida and kaval with a dance band for a few years, mostly gaida, only a couple tunes on kaval. I got a decent sound in the normal register but never mastered the kaba.