Classical soloists, police road safety talks and a dance festival

Philharmonia Shumen will present Side by Side on 14 May at 19:05, a concert pairing young laureates from international competitions with the Philharmonia's orchestra. Under conductor Svetlin Hristov, the programme includes arias by Mozart, Verdi, Puccini, Wagner, Massenet and Bulgarian composer Parashkev Hadziev. Soloists include Adriana Kancheva and An Dao (piano), Nikolay Velkov (baritone), Gabriela Yordanova, Simona Radoslavova and Yan Yan Den (soprano). Tickets are available at the Philharmonia box office or online.

Ethnojazz duo Hristina Beleva (gadulka) and Petar Milanov (guitar) are in Shumen today as part of a national tour marking their 20th anniversary. The pair will hold a creative workshop at Sava Dobroplodni secondary school exploring how to create original music based on Bulgarian folklore, then perform at the Pancho Vladigerov Museum Complex at 19:00 alongside the school's chamber folk group. As a special gesture, they will premiere variations on Vladigerov's 'Vardar' rhapsody, composed for the occasion. The event is hosted by Svetoslav Nikolov.

Officers from the Road Police sector visited Sluntse kindergarten to teach children about traffic safety. Inspector Yoana Yordanova, Nikolay Nikolov and Yordan Zhekov led a session where children reviewed road safety rules, learned new ones, and examined police equipment including patrol cars and motorcycles. 'The children are well-prepared and have good knowledge,' the officers commented. The kindergarten thanked the police for the educational session.

The 20th edition of the Magia na Tantsa (Magic of Dance) national dance festival will take place on 13 and 14 June at Arena Shumen. The festival, organised by the Municipal Youth Centre with support from Shumen municipality, accepts entries until 2 June at magnatanca@abv.bg. Categories include contemporary dance, character dance and street dance, with competitors divided into five age groups. The entry fee is €10 per dancer. All groups receive a certificate; statues and diplomas are awarded for first, second and third place, plus special prizes for best choreography, most original costumes and other distinctions. Contact: 089 751 5059 or 0898 420 788.

Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev has appointed Iliya Ivanov as director of Gabrovo regional police, replacing Georgi Georgiev, who moves to Shumen. Ivanov had been Gabrovo's police chief from 2023 until March 2026, when the then-caretaker interior minister sent him temporarily to Shumen. The reshuffle follows protests in Gabrovo over a Roma-related incident on 6 May. Ivanov, 54, was born in Tryavna, holds degrees from TU Gabrovo and D.A. Tsenov Academy in Svishtov, and joined the Interior Ministry in 2000. He has held various posts including head of DANS's fight-against-organised-crime sector and regional director in Gabrovo and Shumen.