Three soloists from Japan will play at the State Opera in Burgas on Friday, 16 October, at 7pm. They are taking part in the symphony concert "Musical Ikebana".

Guest conductor Nikola Petrov will lead the Burgas opera orchestra for the first time.

The soloists are professors at the Musashino Academy of Music in Tokyo. Kiyoko Sakai and Etsuko Okazaki will play piano, and Koji Okazaki will play bassoon.

The programme includes Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 11, by C. M. von Weber, and Suite-Concertino for bassoon and orchestra in F major, Op. 16, by Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari. The last piece is Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor, Op. 21.

The guests are "impressive names with impressive biographies!", Petrov told Bulgarian National Radio. He said years on stage have given them thousands of performances. They have played with some of the best conductors in the world and perform often in Japan and Europe.

Petrov said the opera is lucky to get this cultural exchange thanks to Prof. Ganev. Ganev has toured Japan many times and built links with the musicians.

Petrov himself has been the permanent conductor of Sinfonietta Vratsa since 2019. He works with the classical opera and symphonic repertoire and has recorded applied and film music.

The three soloists have already played for Burgas audiences, in October 2024. The conductor then was Deyan Pavlov.