The International Music Festival “Varna Summer” is the first music festival in Bulgaria, founded in Varna 100 years ago. Right after the opening of the Sea Baths in Varna in 1926, the city’s first spa center, iconic figures of the cultural elite of the time, including composers Pancho Vladigerov and Dobri Hristov, laid the foundations of the country’s first “Bulgarian Folk Music Celebrations.”
Over time, these musical celebrations evolved into Bulgaria’s largest international music festival, known as "Varna Summer". Today, the festival is a prestigious forum for Bulgarian and global musical heritage and performing arts.
From their very first edition in 1926, the folk music celebrations captured the interest of Varna’s residents, holidaymakers, and visitors. Inspired by the founders’ motto, “To unite the country’s finest musical forces,” the festival has consistently pursued its mission to promote Bulgarian musical culture. Many Bulgarian works had their world premieres here.
Today, “Varna Summer” is a multi-genre festival featuring symphonic and chamber music, a summer music academy, educational concert formats, and free open-air concerts in the Sea Garden and the St. St. Constantine and Helena resort.
Part of the programme is dedicated to folk songs and dances within the framework of the "Varna Summer" International Folklore Festival, established in 1992. The festival, held annually in the first week of August, is open to youth and adult ensembles from all around the world, as well as to groups for authentic folklore.
In 1987, Varna Summer joined the European Festivals Association. In June 2019, the festival received the European Quality Award among 715 festivals across Europe, and later won the Audience Award.
