TEREZA CATAROV
SINGER & COMPOSER
"Koren masterfully intertwines Romanian and Bulgarian heritage with contemporary jazz, honouring women's intergenerational struggles through intricate arrangements which envelope Catarov's intensely powerful vocals" ****(4 stars review -Jazzwise)
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"Catarov's voice, often floating high and pure above the band's thoughtful backing sometimes draws on a darkness reminiscent of Roma singers Džansever or Ljiljana Buttler. It's a refreshing take on a familiar sound" (4 stars review Songlines)
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"The almost whispered vocals really draw you into an alternative reality" - Soweto Kinch - BBC Radio
"Fantastic artist called, Tereza Catarov, has a new album called Koren, a poignant and powerful debut album" Nikki Yeoh - JazzFM UK
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"Singer and composer, Tereza Catarov...her new album is a sublime work of art" Chris Philips - JazzFM UK
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“Based in London and drawing upon her Romanian and Bulgarian roots, Tereza is a well polished artist who I cannot wait to hear more from”
Jay Phelps - Somethin’ Else at Jazz FM London
About.
Tereza Catarov brings a powerful and evocative blend of modern jazz sensibilities and the haunting beauty of Balkan folk traditions. Her music is a soul-stirring journey through memory, heritage, and the lives of women who came before her. Rooted in both Romanian and Bulgarian cultures, she weaves ancient melodies and intricate rhythms into bold, contemporary jazz arrangements, music that feels at once timeless and modern, rich in nuance, passion, and unmistakable identity.
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At the heart of her work lies Koren (meaning root), a debut album that gives voice to the women who shaped her earliest world. Inspired by her grandmothers and the wider community of elders from her childhood, the album unfolds as a series of musical portraits, songs that honour lived experience, transmitted knowledge, and the emotional weight of inherited stories.
These are not reconstructions of the past, but living songs, reimagined through a modern jazz lens.
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Released to widespread acclaim, Koren has been named one of the Essential Albums of 2025 by Peter Quinn (Jazzwise / Songlines), and selected among the year’s most significant releases in his annual roundup for The Arts Desk, praised for its depth, clarity of vision, and distinctive voice.
The album also received 4-star reviews from Jazzwise and Songlines, while its debut single reached No. 1 in Nikki Yeoh’s Nucleus (Jazzwise) chart — affirming Catarov as a singular presence in today’s European jazz landscape.
Official Video
"Racka"
Bio.
Tereza Catarov has studied at prestigious universities in Romania, (National University of Music, Bucharest) the Netherland (Prince Claus Conservatory, Groningen) and in UK (Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London).
She has collaborated with well-known musicians like: David Binney, Jacob Collier, Kaya Thomas Dyke and Alex Simu.
She has performed on famous jazz stages like: EFG London Jazz Festival, Swinging Groningen, JazzX, Jazz in the Park, Barbican, South Bank Centre, Vortex Jazz Club, Pizza Express Jazz Club Soho (London).
Her music has received good reviews such as the one in the renowned website London Jazz News, and her composition Infinity has been broadcasted on Jay Phelps ' show Somethin' else, from the London radio JazzFM.
In Koren, Tereza Catarov's debut album, she translates in music the life stories of the women from the community she grew-up in. The music reproduces the voices of the women from the past, whose experiences have passed to the women from the present through their life stories and through their thought patterns. Tereza Catarov overlays the voices of generations of daughters, and her compositions, inspired by the grandmothers' songs, enrich the local cultural heritage and the transcultural heritage of the modern world.
The musicians who have joined this musical journey are: Yiorgos Bereris (Greece) – a talented pianist who has developed a personal musical language inspired by jazz and Balkan music traditions; Cem Evin (Turkey), a virtuosic guitar player already noticed by jazz publications such as London Jazz news and compared with Pat Metheny; Thodoris Ziarkas (Greece)– an inspiring double bass player, co-founder of the London psych-jazz band Valia Calda; Billy Pod (Greece) – an amazing drummer who has been added in the list of Top 10 new and upcoming drummers by French “Batterie” Magazine.