Presentation of the book by Assoc. Prof. Yavor Genov, PhD

On 8 September 2026 (Tuesday) at 18:00 in the Music Studio, Yavor Genov’s book ‘KNOWLEDGE OF MUSIC according to “A Plain and Easy Introduction to Practical Music” by Thomas Morley (ca. 1557–1602). Between Musica Theoretica and Musica Practica’ will be presented.

The book is a theoretical and historical study of the first large-scale and complete treatise on music published in English during the Elizabethan Renaissance. The thematic organisation follows Thomas Morley’s structure, which progressively introduces the reader and/or student to the musical material. The three major sections of the treatise focus on the pitch and temporal properties of tones – the solmisation system and the principles of mensural notation; the knowledge and skills to invent new melodies on a given plainsong; and finally, reaching the ability to compose entirely new music. Yavor Genov’s book comparatively examines the treatise’s teachings, divided into numerous subtopics, drawing parallels to major musical authors before and around Morley’s time. In this way, it paints a broad, complex, and dynamic picture of musical thinking not only in England, but also in Europe in general, in the transitional period between the end of the Renaissance and the yet-to-arrive new.

The event is jointly organised by the Institute of Art Studies, BAS, and the Sofia Music Weeks Festival.