The Representative ensemble for national songs and dances “Kitna Trakia” was founded in 1960 as part of the Thracian Organization in Haskovo, with conductor Zdravko Ivanov and choreographer Todor Stoyanov. The ensemble has three formations: dance team, musical choir and orchestra. All the musicians in the orchestra are virtuoso performers, who graduated musical academies. In the ensemble worked significant conductors like prof. Stefan Chapkanov, Hristo Urumov, Boris Mladenov, Krum Georgiev and others. Through the years, the ensemble has kept mainly Thracian repertoire, the basic part of which are the lively and temperamental songs and dances from the Thracian region: “Nestinarka”, “Oblog”, “Svatbarski igri from Haskovsko”, “Haskovska syuita”, “Thracian svatba”, etc. Songs and dances from other ethnographic regions are also performed. Ensemble Trakia has realized mutual visits with Greek artistic formations from the region Rodopi. The ensemble has participated as partnering organization with artistic performances in many initiatives of Greek partners and also in the realization of various projects: Dadia – 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001. Furthermore, the ensemble has presented its own concert programmes in different cities in Greece – Messini, Megalopolis, Karystos and Agios Georgios Island. The ensemble is also the winner of Zlatna Bradva /Golden Axe/ from the international folklore festival in Zakopane, Poland, Awards from the International folklore festival in the city of Bursa – 1978, Antalya /Turkey/, Ohrid /Macedonia/ Belgium, Aterana – Italy, Moldova, the USA, Algeria – participation in 3 festivals, France, Germany and Hungary. The ensemble is a laureate is competitions both in the country and abroad; the ensemble has also been distinguished as “Representative” since 1979 and also a holder of the order “St. St. Cyril and Methodius” – First class. Founded as professional ensemble, today “Kitna Trakia” is a completely amateur team and with its three structures – orchestra, choir and dance team, it is of the few ones of in Bulgaria that is really unique and special. Since 1990, the ensemble has been completely under the support of the Thracian organization “G.Sapunarov” and since 2008, it has been part of the structure of the cultural community centre “Trakia 2008” – Haskovo.
