Nikola Parov | ar

Producer, Instrumentalist, Arranger, Composer, Musicologist

"Budapest producer, Nikola Parov, not only constructs modern chamber-folk arrangements... but also plays a staggering array of instruments himself."

Geoffrey Himes The Washington Post

Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, Nikola Parov first played the mandolin at six. His grandfather, a professional musician, immersed him in the musical traditions of the Balkans at a very early age. Nikola began formal instruction in piano and cello at ten, shortly after he moved to Budapest where he lives with his family.

Nikola studied regional folklore and at twenty became a full time musician, forming the group Zsaratnok which gained wide recognition on the European scene. He collected instruments and performed the musical heritage of the Balkans, releasing several succesful albums including


The Balkan Legend.

Now a key figure in the folk music world, Nikola Parov"s commitment to culture and music studies was acknowledged by the George Soros Foundation and the Academmy of Science in Budapest. With their support he spent several years meticulously researching and documenting the history, culture and instruments of Balkan music.

In the early eighties Nikola discovered Celtic music through Irish musician and songwriter Andy Irvine. He collaborated with Irvine, Davy Spillane and Bill Whelan as a multi-instrumentalist presenting East European music on projekts such as the East Wind album and tour. In 1993 composer Whelan invited Nikola to be part of the original Riverdance production in Europe, The United States, Australia, and Canada. He appears in all three Riverdance videos and on the albums Riverdance and The Roots of Riverdance.

Nikola"s avid interest in state of the art technology often leads him to challenging endeavors like his work as producer, arranger and musician on Marta Sebestyen"s recent album Kismet, "a diverse array of ancient and modern acoustic instrumentation to percussion and subtle programmed rhythms." Wire

His latest album Kilim recently placed 6th on the World Music charts in Europe and received rave reiews. "A first-rate, innovative musician, Nikola Parov draws on his Balkan roots, weaves in Celtic influences and throws in elements of jazz on Kilim, to produce an impressively exciting multi-layared work." Alan Golden Surray Advertiser

Nikola Parov is a featured artist in the Riverdance Orchestra, playing a wide variety of instruments: kaval, gadulka, bouzuki and gaida. As well as recording with Bill Whelan, Andy Irvine, Zsaratnok, and Marta Sebestyen and composing dance music for the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble, Nikola"s talent is in demand in films: School of Senses, Some Mother"s Son, television ducumentaries: Before Your Eyes- CBS News, commercials and the awared winning animated project Tales of Vases. Nikola continues his search for excellence as he pursues his multi-faceted music career.

Taken from http://www.nikola.hu/en/biography.php .