(singer) grew up in a family of singers in Thrace, Bulgaria. She is a graduate of the Plovdiv Academy for Music and Dance, Department of Folk Music. Mrs. Koutcheva has toured Eastern Europe, Western Europe, Asia and America, sharing her vocal talent generously throughout the world. In her time in the USA, she has toured and performed extensively, including concert appearances at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall and the United Nations, as well as television and radio shows. She is also the founder and director of the singing group "Pesnopojka" in New York.

Mrs. Koutcheva teaches Bulgarian and other regional Balkan music at the Balkan Music and Dance workshops on both coasts and throughout the U.S. She has four recordings to her name. Selections from her most recent CD, "My Tradition," can be heard at our music section.

Petrana Koutcheva has won many honors in her native Bulgaria for her performances and her activities in teaching traditional music. In 1999, the Slavic Heritage Council of America awarded her a special Certificate of Recognition in gratitude for her outstanding contributions to the Slavic community of Greater New York.

"I first had the opportunity to work with Petrana Koutcheva ("Pepa") while attending the Balkan Music and Dance Camp. The camp is over a week of intensive learning put on twice yearly by the East European Folklife Center - a national organization dedicated to promoting educational activities regarding the culture of Eastern Europe. Until meeting Mrs. Koutcheva most of my knowledge had been gained second-hand from non-Bulgarian teachers or from listening to recordings. I was delighted to finally be able to learn "first-hand." Mrs. Koutcheva's teaching opened up a whole world of musical and cultural knowledge that had not been available before. With her professional training in performing and teaching she is both a stellar performer and a remarkably effective teacher. Bulgarian singing is very complex, and Mrs. Koutcheva was able to clarify so many questions on technique, style, and context. Many of us involved in this music are not of Bulgarian descent, and Mrs. Koutcheva was able to place the music in its full cultural context for us." (Sandra Cherin, Director of women Balkan Chorus "Sladki Dumi," Rochester, New York)

"Pepa is everyone's dream teacher. It is really a great pleasure for me to work with her." (Larry Gordon, Director of the international choir "Village Harmony," Vermont)

"Pepa is a delight to work with as well as to listen to." (Michael Ginsburg, director of Balkan Dance Clubs in New York and New Jersey)