Bulgarian wedding music

[1] Ivo Papazov, a musician of Turkish and Romani origin, is the leading proponent of ensembled wedding music.

Yuri Yunakov also of Turkish Roma (Gipsy) origin was a member of Ivo Papazov's ensemble.

[9] In Bulgaria, wedding music has a pivotal role in the rituals known as daruvane (meaning: reciprocal exchange of gifts), in the banquets, and the dancing that follows and is performed for several hours.

"[10] The music, considered "heartfelt", is akin to the Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, and East European forms.

[5] However, wedding musicians encounter several issues within their industry, such as auditions, registration, ethnicity, freedom, money, and nationalism.

American rock guitarist Steve Vai has professed a love of Bulgarian wedding music, describing its time signatures as "completely alien".

Bulgarian wedding music was a source of inspiration for the song "Freak Show Excess" from Vai's 2005 album Real Illusions: Reflections.