Yassen Velchev

TE - "Kato Neia" This exceptionally gifted keyboard player and writer of most of TE’s compositions has been playing the piano since he was four. As a child, he had concerts in a number of Bulgarian and international music forums, among which were: the National Competition for Bulgarian Music Svetoslav Obretenov – 1982; the International Competition in Czechoslovakia Virtuosi Per Musica Di Pianoforte – 1984; the International Competition for Young Pianists in Marsala, Italy – 1986, etc. He graduated from the Lyubomir Pipkov School of Music, and later the Classic Faculty of the State Academy of Music in Sofia. At the same time, he studied hard jazz, composition and modern music. Between 1992 and 1999 he was among the founders and leaders of the emblematic Bulgarian funk-fusion band AKAGA. As a pianist, composer and arranger, with AKAGA, Yasen made his brilliant ideas come true in three consecutive albums. This development predetermined the band’s success at the Montreux jazz festivals in 1997 and 1998. Although Yassen’s style mostly escalates into emotion, dynamics and improvisation, each chord of his is impeccably precise and significant in the entirety of a composition. His crystal tones and harmonies are the driving force of ideas in TE’s music. His infinite imagination at the time of recording in the studio or during live concerts maximises he potential of the Yamaha Motif 8 and CS6x synthesizers.