Today we say goodbye to the nightingale of Strandja Yanka Rupkina. The service will take place at 11:00 a.m. at the Cathedral of "St. Cyril and Methodius" in Burgas, and at 1:00 p.m. a service and a hymn will be sung in her memory by the Metropolitan of Sliven Arseny. One of the most beloved Bulgarian folk singers passed away on April 7 at the age of 87, BNT recalls.
Born in 1938 in the Strandja village of Bogdanovo, Yanka Rupkina initially took the path of medicine, graduating from a nursing college in Burgas. However, her life changed when, at the age of 22, she won first prize at the singing competition in the village of Gramatikovo. Her talent was noticed by folklorists, who directed her to a competition in Sofia for the Folk Song Ensemble of the Bulgarian National Radio, where she became a soloist and remained part of the ensemble for three decades.
In the late 1970s, she created the vocal "Trio Bulgarka" together with Eva Georgieva and Stoyanka Boneva. With it, the singer gained worldwide popularity and represented Bulgarian folklore on the international stage, working with names such as Kate Bush, George Harrison and others.
During her long career, Yanka Rupkina left a significant legacy with dozens of recordings, released albums and appearances in films. Her performance of the song "Kalimanku, Denku" arranged by Krasimir Kyurkchiyski, which became part of the selection of the Swiss producer Marcel Celie in the series "The Mystery of the Bulgarian Voices", is particularly impressive.