Dina Trageser

Bulgarian Choral Singing

Dina Trageser attended her first EEFC camp at Mendocino in 1997, and has been avidly learning, performing, and eventually teaching Balkan singing ever since. In 2005 she founded the women’s choir Dunava in Seattle, which she continues to direct. The group performs widely around the Pacific Northwest, has recorded 3 CDs to date, and traveled to Bulgaria (under the auspices of Tzvetanka Varimezova) in 2014 for a study- and performance tour.

Dina grew up in a musical family—her mother was a professional viola player and teacher, and her father an aspiring double-bass player with an extensive record collection. After some half-hearted lessons on piano and violin, she eventually excelled at flute performance in her teens before rediscovering her original musical passion—singing. As an adult she has sung with amateur and semi-professional classical choirs, most notably Seattle Pro Musica, which frequently features music from non-Western cultures and composers. But only after hearing choral performances of Bulgarian choirs and Kitka did her musical calling become clear.

In addition to directing and singing in Dunava, Dina performs as a vocalist with the Balkan dance band Osem i Devet (comprised of Michael Lawson, accordion, and David Bilides, percussion). She has also sung and played tambura with Orkestar RTW of Seattle, and with Dragi Spasovski and his Macedonian All-Stars. She has coached other choirs who want to sing Balkan repertoire, such as the Seattle Women’s Chorus, Cantabile Chamber Choir, and Kulshan Chorus. Dina is on the board of Balkanalia!, a Balkan music and dance camp that takes place annually on Labor Day weekend near Portland, Oregon.

Dina lives in Everett, Washington. This is her first year on staff at Mendocino.