Milcho Leviev

Milcho Leviev (1937–2019) was a Bulgarian composer, arranger, and jazz pianist. Leviev was born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, and graduated from the Bulgarian State Academy of Music in 1960 majoring in composition under Pancho Vladigerov and in piano under Andrei Stoyanov. His professional development as a composer began at the Drama Theatre in Plovdiv. He was appointed conductor of the big band of Bulgarian National Radio after Emil Georgiev left office (1962–66). His ideas were innovative in the orchestra; pieces like Studia, Blues in 9 or Anti-waltz combined folklore and jazz. From 1963 to 1968, he worked as soloist and conductor of the Sofia and Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1965, embracing the idea of the writer Radoy Ralin, he founded Jazz Focus '65 with which he toured until 1970, achieving success for Bulgarian jazz and winning prizes at jazz festivals in Montreux, Sofia, and Prague. In 1970, he left Bulgaria and moved to Los Angeles. He performed again in Bulgaria in the early 1980s. He worked as composer, arranger, and pianist for Don Ellis (1970–1975) Orchestra and the Billy Cobham Band (1971–77). He toured the U.S. and Europe; he was music director for Lainie Kazan (1977–80). He gave concerts and recorded with John Klemmer, Art Pepper, and Roy Haynes. He toured Europe with Pepper (1980–82) and was one of the founders of the fusion band Free Flight. In 1983, he became music director of the Jazz Sessions at the Comeback Inn in Venice, California. He gave concerts in Japan with bassist Dave Holland (1983–86) and organized solo jazz recitals in Europe (1985–86). He has taught jazz composition at the University of South California and given master classes at the New Bulgarian University in Sofia. He has composed symphony and chamber works, big band, and jazz orchestra music. In the 1960s he wrote film music. He won a prize at the National Jazz Educational Congress, a Grammy Award for arrangement, and the Honorary Gold Medal of the Académie internationale des Arts in Paris (1995). He was awarded an honorary Doctor Honoris Causa by the Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts in Plovdiv (1995) and by the New Bulgarian University.