New Jersey Folk Festival Welcomes an International Visitor

Amid the twirls of colorful Bulgarian costumes and the whirling of artisans’ spinning wheels, Rutgers University welcomed Elena Poptodorova, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria to the U.S., to its celebration of Bulgarian music and culture on Saturday at the 38th annual New Jersey Folk Festival.

Poptodorova, the first Ambassador to accept the NJ Folk Festival’s invitation to attend, praised event organizers and Rutgers for their effort to celebrate New Jersey’s Bulgarian population, as well as to familiarize others with Bulgaria’s vast culture.

“I believe that the effort of Americans to disseminate, to make more popular, my country’s signature art is most important – not more – most important,” Poptodorova said.

Held on the Woodlawn Mansion Lawn on Rutgers’ Douglass campus as a part of Rutgers Day celebrations, the festival saw between 10,000 and 15,000 attendees, a projected audience which primarily drew Poptodorova to New Jersey.

“I am very happy that my country’s traditional folk culture will be presented today to such a big audience,” she said. “I just learned that thousands of people will be attending the special festival today, and that’s probably the best audience, which has come out of their own interests and their own desires to learn about other cultures.”

As an ambassador in her second tour in the U.S., Poptodorova said her goal is often to reach out to larger audiences.

Joking that while this may seem “mercenary,” she hoped her presence would attract more attendees to the Folk Festival to experience her country’s extensive culture and history.

Referencing the selection of the Bulgarian song Izlel je Delyo Hajdutin (Излел е Дельо хайдутин) for The Voyager Golden Record, a diverse compilation of music launched into Space in 1977, the Ambassador highlighted Bulgarian music as one of the many important take-aways from the festival.

“There is something specific about the Bulgarian folk music,” Poptodorova said. “This is an irregular beat which other countries don’t have, and probably that’s a bit of a challenge, and people who want to be challenged would opt for dancing and singing Bulgarian folk music.”

Poptodorova also emphasized modern Bulgaria as being a member of the European Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and a staunch ally of the U.S. She said the republic is particularly focused on promoting innovation, technology, and especially education. Due to its small population of less than 7.5 million, she said Bulgaria aims to train its capable young people.

“Here in America, given the large population, you have a selection for more,” she said. “That’s why in Rutgers you can have so many excellent students — in Bulgaria it’s a smaller pool, so we have to make sure that its students are the best.”

Bianca Spivak, the Folk Festival’s media coordinator, said, with the help of Poptodorova’s attendance, the festival successfully reached its goal this year.

“We hoped to promote the legitimacy of the festival and also let people of that country know that we are trying to bring about a more harmonious understanding of their culture and that we’re celebrating their people,” she said.