More than 20 years of making music together. Two distinct musical worlds. And one stage where original jazz, fusion and improvisation intertwine to create a distinctive musical voice.
On 17 September, Plovdiv-based musicians Alexander Lekov – bass guitar, and Nikolay Karageorgiev – guitar, take the stage at In The Mood with an entirely original programme featuring compositions by both musicians.
Alexander Lekov and Nikolay Karageorgiev have been playing together for more than two decades across various projects and collaborations. In 2020, they released their album “Motion In Space” – music born from an exploration of emotional states, atmosphere and space for free melodic expression. The musicians themselves describe their collaboration as a special kind of musical connection, in which two performers begin to sound as one.
Their creative partnership, however, goes back much further – Nikolay Karageorgiev also appears on “Unity”, an album by the Alexander Lekov Quartet.
Alexander Lekov graduated from the National Academy of Music in Sofia with a degree in bass guitar. He has worked with Milcho Leviev, Theodosii Spassov, Hristo Yotsov, Antoni Donchev and many other acclaimed musicians. He is the author and co-author of 11 studio albums and, as a member of Theodosii Spassov’s ensembles, has performed at music forums and festivals across Europe, Canada, Qatar and beyond.
Nikolay Karageorgiev is a graduate of the Swiss Jazz School in Bern – the oldest institution of higher education dedicated to jazz in Europe – where he studied jazz guitar. He has taken part in projects alongside musicians such as Billy Cobham and trumpeter-composer Markus Stockhausen. He has performed with the Swiss Jazz Orchestra, Lukas Thoeni’s Amygdala, Siphon, New Generation Orchestra and Funky Brotherhood, as well as with prominent Bulgarian musicians including Vassil Parmakov, Hristo Yotsov and Angel Zaberski Jr.
Joining them for this concert is Scottish pianist Steve Hamilton, an established name on the contemporary European jazz scene. Born in Aberdeen, Hamilton received a full scholarship to attend Berklee College of Music in Boston, graduating with honours. After moving to London, he became a member of the legendary Bill Bruford’s Earthworksand over the years has worked and performed with artists including Freddie Hubbard, Gary Burton, Martin Taylor, Pee Wee Ellis and Tommy Smith.
Behind the drums is Emil Tasev – a versatile musician whose work spans a wide range of styles and includes collaborations with Poduene Blues Band, Akaga, Slang and numerous Bulgarian artists. In 2025, he made his debut as a bandleader and composer with his original project “Tesseract”, bringing together two of his greatest inspirations: music and science. There is another connection within the quartet – Steve Hamilton is also part of the line-up on “Tesseract”.
Four musicians, four distinctive musical voices and one shared territory – original jazz fusion as a space for improvisation, interaction and freedom.