Franjo Dugan
(1874-1948), studied mathematics and physics at the University of
Zagreb, and was outstanding organ
player and composer, the Zagreb Cathedral organist since 1910.
It is maybe worth
mentioning that the German pianist Alfred
Brendel,
at that time 10 years old, met Franjo Dugan in Zagreb, who gave him
lessons
that he found extremely useful. He also appeared at a children's
theatre in Zagreb. In Dugan's textbook Music Acoustics
(in Croatian),
published poshumously,
Franjo
Dugan st., Glazbena
akustika,
Kiklos - Krug knjige, Zagreb, 2014., ISBN 978-953-56937-6-5 (302 str.)
(information at kiklos.hr@hotmail.com )
one can find the following surprising and little known fact (see pp.
279-295, in the appendix to the book written by Veljko
Lipovšćak, Franjo Dugan st. -
prvo javno snimanje za gramofonske ploče u Europi):
The
first remote public
registration of a gramophone record in continental Europe
was organized in
Croatia's
capital Zagreb in 1927, and it was the third such registration in the
world (USA, New York in 1925 and GB, London in 1926); the concert
of Croatian
Christmas carols with Franjo
Dugan as the organist in the Zagreb
Cathedral (stuffed with 2000 worshippers who were singing), had been
electronically
transferred to the studio, later known as Dvorana Istra
(Istria Hall in Zagreb), and registered there for the Edison - Bell - Penkala
Co. in Zagreb.
Narodil nam se Kralj Nebeski
Tebe Boga hvalimo
The
verses for the Austrian national anthem "Land der Berge, Land am
Strome",
were written by Paula
von Preradovic (1887-1951),
Austrian writer and poetess, grand-daughter of the Croatian poet Petar
Preradovic (1818-1872), with the
music of W.A. Mozart.
Land
der Berge, Land am Strome,
Land der Äcker, Land der Döme,
Land der Hämmer, zukunftsreich.
Heimat bist du grosser Söhne,
Volk begnadet für das Schöne,
Vielgerühmtes Österreich,
Vielgerühmtes Österreich!
Heiss umfehdet, wild umstritten,
Liegst dem Erdteil du inmitten
Einem starken Herzen gleich.
Hast seit Frühen Ahnentagen
Hoher Sendung last getragen,
Vielgeprüftes Österreich, Vielgeprüftes
Österreich.
Mutig in die neuen Zeiten,
Frei und gläubig sieh uns schreiten,
Arbeitsfroh und hoffnungsreich.
Einig lass in Brüderchören,
Vaterland, dir Treue schwören,
Vielgeliebtes Österreich, Vielgeliebtes Österreich.
Land
of mountains, land on the river,
Land of fields, land of cathedrals,
Land of hammers, rich in outlook.
You are the native home of great sons,
A people uniquely gifted for the beautiful,
Much applauded Austria.
Fiercely embattled, ferociously
contested,
You lie at the center of the globe,
Like a strong heart.
Since the days of your early ancestors
You have borne the burden of a sublime calling,
Much-tried Austria.
Courageously we stride
Into the new times, free and devout,
Industrious and of firm heart.
In unison choruses of brotherhood
We pledge our allegiance to thee,
Fatherland,
Much-loved Austria.
She wrote a lot about
Croatia, its people, history and nature, for example "Königslegende"
in 1950, "Pave und Pero"
in 1940, and "Dalmatinische
Sonette" in 1933.
It is interesting that
Paula von Preradovic's verses were
chosen among as many as 1800 entries submitted
for the Austrian national anthem in 1947.
When Paula von
Preradovic died in 1951, the Wiener
Sanger Knaben (The
Vienna Boy Choir) sang the Austrian national anthem on the
funeral, with her verses.
Paula
von Preradovic: Gesamelte Werke,
Verlag Fritz Molden
(her son), Wien, 1967.
Austrian
Bundespresident Dr. Thomas Klestil:
...Ich glaube, die knappste
Beschreibung der Geschichte und der Zukunft unseres Landes
verdanken wir nach wie vor Paula von Preradovic, der Dichterin
unserer Bundeshymne. Dort heisst es - mit dem Blick über
tausend Jahre hinweg - in der zweiten Strophe: "Heiss
umfehdet, wild umstritten liegst dem Erdteil Du inmitten - einem
starken Herzen gleich!" So ist
es -
und so muss es bleiben. (1996)
Petar Perica
(1881-1944) wrote verses for two sacral songs still extremely popular
among the
Croats: Do nebesa nek se ori
(in 1900, at the age of 19) and Rajska
Djevo (in 1904, at the age of
23). In 1901 he entered the Society of Jesus. Killed without trial by
communist partisans in 1944 on the islet of Daksa near Dubrovnik.
Many thanks to Br. Ivo Domazet SJ for the photo.
Vaclav
Huml is distinguished
Croatian violinist and pedagogue of the Czech origin (Beroun, Bohemia,
1880 - Zagreb, Croatia, 1953). He studied in Prague with Otokar Sevcik,
and concerted in Lavov. Since 1903 he was working and living in Zagreb
as a teacher of violin and chamber music at the Croatian Music
Institute School. From 1921 until his death he was a professor at the
Music Academy. Besides that he performed as a soloist and as a member
of chamber ensembles, and was a co-founder and the first violin of the
Zagreb Quartet in 1919.
During
his pedagogical career he educated more than 200 violinists, so he is
regarded as a founder of the Zagreb Violinistic School. Among his
students are Vlado
Kolic and Zlatko Balokovic.
In memory of the Huml's work and activity the Croatian Music Institute
founded an award in 1953 bearing his name for the best graduates of
string instruments at the Music
Academy in Zagreb.
From 1977, in Zagreb, every four years, the International
Vaclav Huml Violin Competition
is holding on. Source.
The first opera for children in history (in which children play music, sing and dance) was composed in 1918 by Franjo Štefanović (1879-1924), a Croatian composer born in Petrovaradin, educated Zemun, Osijek, and in Zagreb. Its title was "Šumska kraljica" (Forest Queen). The corresponding text (to which the opera was composed) was written by Mihvol Peitz. Premiered in 1921 in the city of Petrovaradin, it is still popular among children. Information by Zov Srijema, prosinac 2016, str. 4-5 (Glasilo Zajednice protjeranih Hrvata iz Srijema, Bačke i Banata). Šumska kraljica in Sombor.
Viktor Radelj (Radeglli, 1861-1941),
Croatian composer born in Constantinople in Turkey from Croatian
parents, most probably from the region of Konavle
near Dubrovnik, where
the second name Radelj still exists. He studied music at the
conservatories in Milan and
Paris. His first opera, La Colomba, was composed when he was 45 years
old. However, his most interesting opera was Shaban, composed as a
Turkish opera, ie, with oriental rythms and melodies. Its premiere in
the Volks-Opera in Vienna in 1918 (on 20 th and 24th February and 1st
March), under the baton of S. Sternich from Zadar, was described by Dr.
Eles Blenefeld in the Vienese daily "Neues Wiener Journal."
Information by the courtesy of Dr. Miho Demovic.
Additional information about Viktor Radelj:
Miho Demović: Glazba u
Dubrovniku za vrijeme austrougarske uprave, u pripremi, 2015
Naš zemljak kompozitor turske opere, Prava Crvena Hrvatska (PCH, weekly
founded by Fran Supilo, published in Dubrovnik from 1905 till
1918), March 1918, p. 1.
Smrt hrvatskega skladatelja v Carigradu [PDF], Jutro (Morning, daily, except
Mondays), Ljubljana, 28 October 1941, p. 5 (in the right column); Smrt hrvatskega skladatelja v Carigradu. Hrvatski
skladatelj Viktor Radelja je umrl nedavno v Carigradu v starosti 80
let. Ker je že od leta 1890. prebival z družino v Carigralu, je
hrvatski javnosti le slabo znan. V Carigradu je dosegel lep sloves.
Pred odhodom v Turčijo je študiral na konservatoriju v Milanu in
Parizu. Že leta 1887. so v Milanu izvajali njegovo prvo opero "Colombo"
katere dejanje se godi na Korziki. Napisal je več drugih oper in leta
1913. je prejel mednarodno nagrado.
Franjo pl. Lučić (1889-1972),
Croatian composer, was playing organs not only in the Zagreb Cathedral,
but also in the Zagreb Synagoge. Listen to his Angus Dei
composed in 1940, or Fantasy
in C-minor.
Vlado
Kolitsch (Vlado Kolić,
1899-1979), born in Zagreb, was a renowned violin pedagogue. His
studied at the Zagreb Conservatory under Vaclav Huml.
His musical debut in the USA was in 1925, at Cargnegie Hall in New
York, playing a violin which had been used by Mozart in 1786. Vlado
Kolitsch became a professor at the Academy of Music in Los Angeles,
USA.
Vlado Kolitsch (Kolić),
Croatian violinist.
Photo by the courtesy of the Library of Congress, USA; many thanks to
Vladimir Novak, Zagreb.
He is inventor of the Kolitsch
shoulderest, patented [PDF,
click on the photo below ] in 1936 (a previous version of the violin
shoulder rest has been patented by another Croatian in 1930, also from
Zagreb: Mirko Medakovic, [PDF]).
The Kolitsch shoulderest
is manufactured in many countries.
Vlado Kolitsch was in
possession of a Mozart's violin.
New York Ticket Agent Saves Instrument Said
to Have Been Used by Mozart. The alertness of a ticket agent in the
northbound station of the Ninth Avenue elevated at Fourteenth street
New York, last week balked the theft of two violins belonging to Vlado
Kolitsch, Croatian violin ist, who made his debut at Carnegie Hall this
season. One of the violins is said to have been used by Mozart in 1786
and is valued by its owner at $17,000.
Kolitsch, accompanied by his secretary and a friend, was returning from
a concert to the Hotel des Artistes at 1 West Sixty-seventh street. It
was near midnight when they reached the elevated platform and no train
was in sight. The violins, in one case, were laid upon a bench. When a
train rolled into the station the men got aboard, forgetting the
violins. At the next station Kolitsch notified the agent of his loss.
The agent, in turn, notified the Fourteenth street agent. When he left
the phone the agent saw a man carrying a violin case walk briskly
toward the exit turnstiles. "Just a minute," exclaimed the agent.
"Where did you get that violin case?" The man ignored the question and
went on. The agent threatened to call a policeman and the man dropped
the case and fled. When Kolitsch arrived a few minutes later his
violins were waiting for him.
Once when Vlado Kolitsch
met Zinka
Kunc-Milanov, she reminded him
that they have met 25 years ago in a Zagreb church when she, as a
little girl singing in the church choir, held a candle for him who was
a boy violinist, so he could warm up his fingers before playing in the
cold church. Information by the courtesy of Vladimir Novak, Zagreb.
It is little known that Igor
Stravinsky
(1882-1972), distinguished Russian pianist and composer, had two of his
sisters-in-law married to descendants of the noble Croatian family of
Jelacic. More precisely, one of his
mother's sisters, Sophia, was married to Aleksandar Jelacic
(1874-1916), from the Russian
branch of the Jelacic family, and another, Catharina, was married to Nikola Jelacic.
Igor Stravinsky mentions him in his 1937 autobiography as a person with
merits in his musical development. Many thanks to Mrs. Marija Ljiljana
Fabricius-Ivsic from Koeln for this information. Concerning
Stravinsky's mother Ana, see here.
Rudolph Matz
(1901-1988) is perhaps the
greatest cello theoretician in the world
(opinion expressed by Leonard Rose). He wrote manuals for cellists that
even today are considered among the best for young cellists throughout
the world. Matz studied cello, composition and conducting at the Zagreb
Academy of Music, and became professor of cello at the University of
Zagreb in 1950, where he stayed until his retirement in 1972. He wrote
about 300 vocal and instrumental compositions, about 100 of them for
cello. He is the author of the monumental 32 volume Prve
godine violoncella in
Croatian (1948-1962), translated into English as
First Years of Violoncello. He
also wrote the widely used For
Young Hands, 54 Short Etudes.
Rudolph Matz was a top
Croatian sportsman. As a sprinter he won the first place in the Prague
in 1921, beating also German sprinters. He was a record holder in
Croatia on 100 (for 11 years!), 200, 4x100, and 400 m. He stressed that
the work of a music educator is similar to that of a trainer.
Matz served as a jury
member at the International
Tchaikovsky Competition in
Moscow in 1966, 1970 and 1974, and at Gaspar
Cassado's competition in
Florence in 1973. Matz was also a pioneer in establishing the field of music therapy
as a profession in Croatia. He founded among other the Zagreb Chamber
Orchestra, predecessor of the Zagreb Soloists (I Solisti di Zagreb).
Since 1996 an annual International
Competition Rudolph Matz is
held in Dubrovnik
organized by Croatian String Teachers' Association.
A monograph published in honour of Matz has been written by an american
musicologist:
Lit. Zrinka Jelčić: Veliki opus
vedrine /
Rudolf Matz, Muzej Grada Zagreba, Zagreb 2017.
Rudolf
and Margita Matz Memorial Collection
will be set up in their appartment in Zagreb, Mesnicka 15, which once
famed for its encounters with musicians and intimate concerts. In 1967
Matz was visited by a celebrated cellist Mstislav Rostropovich. Rudolf
Matz composed the melody of the anthem of
the cultural
society Napredak (Advancement)
in Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Ljerko
Spiller
(1908-2008) was a famous Croatian and Argentiean violinist, of the
Jewish origin. He graduated the study of violine from the University of
Zagreb, Croatia. In 1930 he started to lecture at the Paris
École Normale de Musique. In 1935 he was one of the winners
of the prestigious Warsaw Henryk Wieniawski Violin Competition. On the
eve of WWII he moved to Argentina, where he continued his very fruitful
activity. Spiller is the author of one of the best
violin textbooks for children (Kinder
lernen Geige spielen,
published by PAN in Zürich,
Switzerland). He frequently played Croatian composers, like Ivan Mane Jarnovic, Franjo
Dugan, Milko Kelemen, Krsto
Odak, etc. In 1997 he obtained
the Order of Danica Hrvatska (The Order of Croatian Morning Star) from
president Franjo Tudjman. More information
by Zlatko Stahuljak, in Croatian.
Any
admirer of classical music certainly knows the
Zagreb Soloists, conducted by
maestro Tonko Ninic
(until 1997).
In the last 50 years they
had more than 3500 concerts, among others in the Royal Albert Hall and
Royal Festival Hall (London),
in Carnegie Hall (New York), Musikverein (Vienna), in Mozarteum
(Salzburg),
in Hercules (Münichen), in Tonhalle (Zürich), in
Teatro Real
(Madrid),
in Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), in Salle Pleyel (Paris), in Santa Cecilia
(Rome),
in Cajkovski concert hall (Moscow), in Opera House (Sydney), in
Festival
Hall (Osaka),
in Coliseo (Buenos Aires), in Victoria Hall (Singapur). They also
had solemn concerts at the General Assembly of the
UN.
During the Croatian War of Independence the
Zagreb Soloists gave about seventy benefit concerts (to raise founds
for Dubrovnik,
destroyed schools of music in Croatia, then for the destroyed building
of the Croatian National Theatre in Osijek, Children' s Hospital in
Zagreb, devastated
Croatian churches
and monuments). They also played a series of concerts to celebrate the
newly-independet Republic of Croatia. Source: Hispania
Clasica.
The
Zagreb String Quartet, founded
in 1919, which performed about 5,000 concerts until the end of 20th
century, many of them throughout the world.
Dora
Pejacevic (1885-1923) is the
first important female composer in Croatia (the first known Croatian
women composer is Jelena
Pucic-Sorkocevic). In her short life she left
behind her a rich opus of 58 pieces; she was portrayed among others by Maximilian Vanka
(see below).
Her works have been played already during her lifetime in Dresden,
München,
Prague, Budapest, Vienna, and in her native town of Nasice in Croatia.
A regular Memorial of Dora
Pejacevic is held in Nasice. Yoko Nishii Japanese pianist issued 2CD in Tokyo
with music of Croatian female composer Dora Pejacevic.
Dora Pejacevic: Allegro, [wma]
9.2 MB,
live
performance in the chapel of Prandau
- Normann palace, Valpovo, 2005,
Mirta Pletersek-Blaskovic (violin) and Petra Gilmung (piano), with kind
permission
Dora Pejačević, portrait by Maxo Vanka, distinguished Croatian painter
Krsto
Odak
(1888-1961), important Croatian composer of sacral music, in particular
church music inspired with old Croatian glagolitic
texts.
the
violinist Zlatko Balokovic
(1895-1965); he was in possession of Guarneri's famous violin "the
King" from 1735 (one of the last violins built by Giuseppe Guarneri del
Gesù, "the King" was named in honour of King Joseph of
Hapsburg, estimated to nine million dollars); he donated "the King" to
his beloved city of Zagreb in 1964;
Guarneri's
famous violin "the King"
from 1735 ,
kept in Zagreb
Balokovic's
series of concerts in Kopehnagen, Oslo, Stockholm,
Berlin, Budapest, Vienna, Dortmund, The Hague, Utrecht, Amsterdam,
Maastricht,
Paris, 1928-1929.
During the WWII he was the president of the American Croatian Congress
(in New
York), and president of the Committee of All Nationalities, which
organized humanitarian
help in many coutries. In
1966
his
widow
Joyce
Bourdon
Balokovic
founded Zlatko
and
Joyce
Balokovic
Scholarship from which HAZU
allocates stipends for gifted Croatian students
to study at Harvard
University. When Nikola Tesla
died in 1943, Baloković played on his violin
during the funeral ceremony.
Grave of Zlatko Baloković (distinguished Croatian violinist) in the
Mirogoj Cemetery in Zagreb,
carved by Antun Augustinčić. Photo by Nikola Piasevoli, Zagreb.
Lovro
von Matacic,
one of the greatest
conductors of the 20th century (1899-1985), started his career in 1919
as conductor of orchestras in Osijek, Novi Sad, Ljubljana, Belgrade,
Riga, and in Zagreb in 1932. From 1942-1945 he was conductor of the
Vienna Opera. After 1945 he was imprisoned by the Yugoslav communist
regime, and together with Croatian painter Kristian
Krekovic
sentenced to confiscation of all movable and immovable property. In
1950's he became organizer of Festivals in Dubrovnik
and Split. In 1956
Matacic moved to Germany to conduct East Berlin Opera and the famous
Dresden Staatskapelle, then conducted at Bayreuth in 1959, and from
1961 to 1966 was Gereralmuikdirektor in Frankfurt. He was also guest
conductor in Vienna Opera, Milan Scala, in Chicago, Naples, Palermo,
Rome, London, Cleveland, Tokyo, Prague, etc., and was elected the
honorary director of the Japanese Orchestra in Tokyo. From 1970 to 1980
he was conductor and artistic director of the Zagreb Philharmonic
Orchestra, and almost simultaneously from 1973 to 1979 had the same
role in the Monte Carlo Orchestra.
Lovro Matacic is the laureate of
the Bruckner Medal
and of the International Bruckner Society, recipient of the Bruckner
Ring from Viennese Symphonic Orchestra (one among only a few of the
most outstanding conductors),
recipient of the
Smetana Medal from the Czech government and Janacek Medal,
Hans von Bellow
Medal from the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra,
medal for artistic
work from the Prince Rainer of Monaco,
the Cross of the
First Order for Science and Art from the president of Republic of
Austria,
and of numerous
recognitions in Croatia.
Under his baton great performances were accomplished (and recorded by
Columbia Records) by Yehudi Menuhin, David Oistrakh, Enrico Caruso,
Beniamin Giglio, Maria Callas, Herbert von Karajan, Bruno Walter,
Arthur Rubinstein and others. Lovro Matacic founded a fund for
specialization of young conductors.
One of predecessors of his noble family participated in the defense of
Siget under the leadership of legendary Nikola
Subic Zrinski
in 1566. In 1945, during the communist rule in ex-Yugoslavia, he has
been sentenced to death (this information has been provided to the
author of this text by two independent sources: dr. Miho Demovic and
mr. Josip Moser), only due to the fact that he was an active and top
musician in Croatia during the WWII, and liberated upon the
intervention of Croatian diaspora and his wife Elizabeta Lilly Matacic.
Having spent more than one year in the Yugoslav communist prison, he
was expelled from Croatia to Skopje, capital of Macedonia (as well as
dozens of other top Croatian intellectuals), where he laid the
foundations of the Skopje Opera. Upon intervention of Krste
Crvenkovski, a Macedonian politician, he had the chance to work again
in Croatia (but only in Rijeka) from arround 1953. (This information by
the courtesy of Mr. Josip Moser, b. in 1942).
Boris
Papandopulo
(1906-1991), distinguished Croatian
composer and conductor
Boris Papandopulo u Poljicima
(Gradac kod Gata) 1983., dirigira svoju Poljičku pučku misu. Fotografija iz
monografije
Nedjeljko Mihanović & Hrvojka Mihanović-Salopek: Povijest društva Poljičana, Zagreb
- Podstrana 2021.
Josip
Kasman (1850-1925), born on the
island of Losinj, baritone, and the first Croat that had opportunity to
sing in the New York Metropolitan (in 1883)
Milka
Trnina (or Ternina, 1863-1941);
according to Giacomo Puccini,
author of the famous opera Tosca,
she was the best "Tosca" that he had opportunity to listen to (on the
London première in 1900); see Milka Ternina at the Royal Opera
House, Covent Garden; only in
Convent Garden in London Milka had 56 performances between 1895 and
1906.
Also, she was the first Tosca in Great Britain and in the United
States.
Nada
Premerl: Milka Ternina and
the Royal Opera House (in
English and
Croatian),
Muzej
Grada
Zagreba,
Zagreb
2006. ISBN 953-6942-24-0
1898
Charter from the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb conferring
honorary membership to Milka Trnina (source [Premerl,
p 86]), containing the Croatian
Coat of Arms
Maja
Strozzi-Pecic (1881-1962),
Thomas Mann wrote about her in his Dr.
Faustus ("...she is probably the
best soprano of both hemispheres"), while Igor
Stravinski devoted his four
compositions to her.
Ančica Mitrović b. Gjurski (Rijeka, Croatia,
10.XII.1894 – Zagreb, Croatia, 20.VI.1986), opera singer
Rudolf
Klepac
(1913-1994), famous Croatian bassoon (fagott) player ("Rubinstein on
bassoon"),
professor at Mozarteum in the city of Salzburg, Austria, honorary
citizen of Salzburg
A
famous Croatian opera singer Tino
Pattiera (1890-1966) was born in
the lovely town of Cavtat near Dubrovnik.
His career started in Croatia, in the Opera of Osijek, where he sang as
baritone. He had a great career in Dresden and Berlin. Pattiera was
teaching singing in the Prague and in Vienna
(Academy of Drama and Music). He is buried in his native town of
Cavtat.
A
distinguished Croatian composer Ivan Brkanovic
(1906-1987) was born near the town of Kotor in Boka kotorska.
He studied at the Music Academy in Zagreb. Among others he was a
director of The Zagreb Philharmony and professor at the University of
Sarajevo. He composed Bokeljsko kolo, Konavosko pirovanje, opera Zlato
Zadra (Gold of Zadar), etc.
Milan
Horvat (1916-2014),
distinguished Croatian conductor, collaborated with world's most famous
orchestras. He conducted the National Symphony Orchestra in Dublin,
Symphony Orchestra ORF in Vienna, Lausanne Chamber Orchestra. He has
PhD in Law.
Andjelko
Klobucar
(1931), organ player and church music composer, played throughout
Europe, including the church of Notre Dame in Paris, Westminster Abbey
in London, Basilica of St. Maria degli Angeli in Assisi.
He conducted the
Vienna State Opera for more than forty years (1133 performances in 56
operas!).
During ten years
Klobucar directed Symphonic Orchestra and the Opera in Graz, Austria.
During nine years
he was director of the Opera of Stockholm, Sweden.
During six years
Berislav Klobucar was director of Opera and Philharmonic Orchestra in
Nice, France.
He conducted in the Milano Scala, in the New York Metropolitan, and at
prestigious festivals like those in Bayreuth and Salzburg. His
extensive repertoire contains as many as 115 opera titles, and his
most favorite authors are Beethoven, Wagner, and Richard Strauss. The
above data are based on an article by Nenad Turkalj published in Hrvatsko Slovo, 5. November 2004,
p. 19.
Zeljko Brkanovic
is distinguished Croatian composer of contemporary music. He composed
the "Diptych for bayan and camera orchestra" which has been played by
the Soloists of the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra in Moscow. It was
composed in 2006 upon the request of a famous bayan virtuoso Vitalij Muntjan
(Russia - Croatia), who was also the first one to play the piece.
Miroslav
Miletic, viola player, founded
the Pro Arte
string quartet in Zagreb, which in 1970's was among 10 best string
quartets in the world. Among his numerous students was Hiroshi Hirano,
violist from Japan (Tokyo). As a composer he promoted Croatian folklore
and church music (in particular from the island of Hvar). He considers
the Croatian folklore music the most beautiful and the richest in the
world. In 1975, accompanied by the Leningrad Philharmonic, he played
his Viola concert. Maestro Miletic collaborated also with K.
Stockhausen on electronic music. He has his works published at Schott,
Berben, Meckverlag, Pizzicatto etc, and an LP issued in the USA.
Milan
Turkovic, one of the few
internationally known bassoon soloists, originates from an
Austro-Croatian family. He is a member of the Ensemble Wien-Berlin (a
woodwind quintet he formed together with principal players of the
Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic), the Concentus Musicus of Vienna, and
the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in New York.
Vjekoslav
Sutej (1951), a renowned
conductor (for four consecutive years conducted the Viennese Symphonic
Orchestra during Christmas
concerts held in Vienna, with
the participation of such famous singers like Jose Carreras - concert
in Arena di Verona in 1995, Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, the
event being transmitted worldwide), from 1990 to 1993 musical director
of Teatro La Fencie in Venice, conducted the Royal Philharmonic
Orchestra in Sevilla (Spain) from 1990 to 1996, and the Houston opera
orchestra (the USA) from 1992 to 1997, conducted Carmen in Arena di
Verona,
Giorgio
Surian (1954), the greatest Croatian opera singer in history,
is the internationally acclaimed bass-baritone of worldwide reputation.
Thanks to the incredible vocal capabilities, he has made more than 160
appearances in his career so far. He sings in different languages that,
alongside Croatian, include Italian, French, German, Portuguese,
Russian, Czech, English... After starting his international career in
La Scala in Milan, he interpreted more than 160 opera roles (sic!) in
world's best concert halls like The Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden
in London, Straatsoper in Wien, Opera de Lyon, Arena di Verona, Teatro
la Fenice... See his videos,
as well as his 2015 participation at the Dvigrad International Early
Music Festival, Croatia with his fantastic interpretation of
Pergolesi's La serva padrona.
Lyra,
excellent choir of the Jewish Community in Zagreb, winner of many
international competitions (including the one held in Yerusalem in
August 1996 on the occasion of 3000 years of the city), conducted by Emil
Cosetto. He has very nicely
arranged numerous folk songs from various parts of Croatia for choir
singing.
Mr
Cosetto is also known to have rearranged a beautiful Croatian song Fala
(Thank you) as a funeral song on the occasion of Tito's death in 1980,
thus distorting its original message.
Collegium
pro Musica Sacra has won silver
medal at the fourth International competition of church choirs
"Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina" held in Jerusalem, on the occasion
of 3000 years of existence of this ancient city. The Collegium
has been founded in 1970.
Akademski
zbor bazilike srca Isusova
(academic choir), conducted by Robert
Homen, with its 100 singers, has
won the first place at VI
Concorso internazionale di Musica Sacra "Giovanni Pierluigi da
Palestrina" held in Rome in
Chiesa di Sant' Ignazio in 1988, in the category of mixed choirs.
Cesarice,
a small women's choir founded in 1993 (students of University of
Zagreb), with repertoire mostly related to Dalmatian folk songs, and
conducted by Bojan Pogrmilovic,
has won the first place on prestigiousIX
Concorso Internationale do Canto Corale 1998,
held in Verona, Italy. During the XI
Concorso Internationale held in
2000, among 24 participating choirs from Europe and Australia, the
Croats occupied four first places: Dalmatinke
from Split and Blajke
from Blato on the island of Korcula (women's choirs), Luka
from Ploce and Vokalisti Salone
from Solin (men's choirs). This is already fifth consecutive win of
Croatian choirs on this prestigious international competition in
Verona.
Melita
Lorkovic (1907-1987) was an
internationally known classical pianist... Her successes were tempered
by the years shortly after the war [1945] when her husband Radoslav
Lorkovic Sr. was shot by Tito's
communist regime. Following a devastating period of being thrown out on
the street with two children and losing her position at the University
[of Zagreb], she survived in a small flat teaching neighborhood
kids
piano lessons... At a concert in Belgrade Tito himself attended the
performance and was so impressed that he went backstage and asked if
there were any personal favors he could grant Ms. Lorkovic. Melita
responded, "Yes. Could you
tell me where you shot my husband?"
...
Source:
Radoslav Lorkovic, grandson of
killed Radoslav Lorkovic Sr. Mr. Radoslav
Lorkovic Jr, a contemporary USA
musician, was born in Zagreb, Croatia, in 1958. A detailed description
of his activities is available on his web site: Radoslav
Lorković.
Melita Lorkovic was
professor at the Music Academy in Zagreb (1929-1945), at the Music
Academy in Belgrade (1948-1960), and at the National onservatory in
Kairo (1960-1972).
Ref. Radovan Lorkovic; Melita
Lorkovic (1907-1987) Pozajici
| Lorkovici | Melita i ja, Zagreb,
2012., s popratnim CD-om, ISBN 978-95-7168-06-3
It is estimated that on the territory of Croatia about 800 (eight hundred) organ instruments
existed in various churchs. More than 100
(hundred)
of them were destroyed during the Serbian aggression on Croatia in the
1990s. It was a planned destruction, often in tragic circumstances,
especially on the Croatian territory of Banovina (more than 30
destroyed organs and the accompaning churches), i.e., the area of
Sisak, Petrinja, Karlovac etc. Information by maestro Edmund
Boric-Andler, during his public lecture organized by Društvo Zagrebačke
klasične gimnazije (Sodalitas Gymnasii Classici Zagrabiensis)in Zagreb,
16th of April 2018.
the
violoncellist Valter Despalj
(1947), with violinist Maja
Despalj-Begovic founder of
private music school for exceptionally gifted children, see STRINGS ONLY!,
Zadar, Croatia (Despalj School of Music) . Maestro Despalje founded the
CELLOMANIA
project in Zagreb in 1991.
the
violoncellist Monika Leskovar
(1981), winner of the prestigious
Tchaikovsky competition in Japan
for 1995 (a student of maestro Valter
Despalj), the third prize at the
1997 Rostropovic competition
in Paris, the second prize at the 1998 Eurovision contest for young
instrumentalists, winner of the 1999 Roberto
Caruana competition in Milano,
Italy, the second prize at the famous ARD
competition in 2001.
Luka
Šulić (1987) shared
the First Prize at the prestigious Witold Lutoslawski International
Cello Competition held in 2009 in Warsaw. Its honorary president during
his lifetime was legendary Mstislav Rostropovich. With Stjepan Hauser,
he created duo of global fame, 2 CELLOS.
Luka also won special prize for the best performance of Lutoslawski's
Sacher Variations.
Dražen Domjanić
is Croatian pianist born in the town of Čakovec, living with his family
in Liechtenstein. He is artistic director of Musik
& Jugend (Music and
Youth) which organized many master classes and concerts aiming to help
young musicians from Central Europe, with emphasis on Croatia.
Radovan Vlatkovic
(1962), distinguished horn soloist, playing in the Philharmonic
Orchestra of Berlin,
the Zagreb guitar
trio: Darko Petrinjak, Istvan Römer, Goran
Listes,
Viktor
Vidovic (1973) and Ana
Vidovic
(1980), brilliant guitarists (brother and sister); Ana has won the 1998
International Guitarist Competition "Francisco Tarrega" in Benicasim,
Spain, among forty competitors up to the age 32, see Toutes
les qualités d'une jeune virtuose
at Societé luxembourgeoise de guitare classique. She also
won first prizes at "Albert Augustinum International Competition" in
Bath, England, at the "Ferdinando Sor Competition" in Rome. She had
concerts in London, Paris, Vienna, Salzburg, Rome, Budapest, Warsaw,
Tel Aviv, Copenhagen, Tronto, San Francisco, Houston, Austin, Dallas,
St Luis. Ana
entered the Music Academy in Zagreb at the age of 13, as its
youngest-ever student. Listen to her numerous recitals.
Zoran Dukic
(1969), a Croatian classical guitarist, a student of maestro Darko
Petrinjak in his native Zagreb, is one of the most prominent players of
the new generation. He won an amazing number of prizes, more than any
other guitarist in the world. Here are some of them (source www.gitarrist.net):
First Prize "International Guitar
Competition" in Mettmann, Germany 1991.
First Prize "Andrés Segovia"
Int. Guitar Competition in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, 1991.
First Prize "Dakar International Guitar
Competition" in Senegal, 1992.
First Prize "Guerrero International
Guitar
Competition" in Madrid, Spain, 1992 - plus the special jury prize for
the best interpretation of Spanish music).
First Prize "20th International Guitar
Competition" in Vina del Mar, Chile, 1993 - plus the Prize of the
Public
First Prize "20th Francisco
Tárrega Int. Guitar Competition" in Benicasim, Spain, 1994 -
plus received the Prize of the Public
First Prize "International Guitar
Competition Printemps de la Guitarre" Belgium, 1994 - plus the Special
Prize from the "Belgian Composer's Association"
First Prize "Andrés Segovia
International Guitar Competition" in Granada, Spain, 1996 the only
guitarist to win both of the "Andrés Segovia" competitions -
Granada & Palma
First Prize "De Bonis International
Guitar
Competition" in Cosenza, Italy, 1997 - plus the Prize of Public
First Prize "Manuel Maria Ponce
International Guitar Competition" in Tredrez-France, 1996
He had solo concerts in more than 30 countries on all five continents.
He is teaching at the Royal Conservatory of Music in The Hague,
Holland, Hochschule für Musik in Aachen, Germany and at the
Escuela Superior de Musica de Barcelona, Spain.
Robert Belinic
(1982) has been acclaimed in the New York press as "a consummate
musician of grace and stature who turns mere notes into magic."
Croatian guitarist Robert Belinic was the sole winner of the 2001 Young
Concert Artists European Auditions in Leipzig, Germany. In 2002, he
became the first guitarist to win the Young Concert Artists
International Auditions in New York. He is recipient of the Fergus New
Artist Prize, Princeton University Concert Prize and the Beracasa
Foundation Prize
.
Maksim
Mrvica, a young pianist born in
1975 in Sibenik, who has won the Nicolai
Rubinstein International
Competition of Pianists in Paris in 1999, and the International Pianist
Competition Pontoise
in Paris in 2001 (his second name - Mrvica - means "crumb" in Croatian
language!).
He was at the age of 15 when bombs fell almost constantly on his native
city of Šibenik. Maksim remembers "There
were more than 1000 grenades a day. At one point there were seven whole
days
when
we stayed
in the basement and didn�t see the sun. "But you got used to it: you
had
to go on living."
MAKSIM Mrvica The World Premiere Performance.
Rachmaninoff-Rimsky-Korsakoff: Flight
of the Bumble Bee.
... For Maksim, living meant playing the piano. He would meet his
teacher Marija
Sekso in the basement of Šibenik's music school and forget
the war, losing himself
in the music for hours at a time. ... As well as grenades, there was
the constant threat of being attacked by Serbian
snipers - any time spent outside was a danger.
For three years the whole family slept each night on the concrete floor
of the shelter in their basement. They occasionally were able to escape
to a house on one of the islands off Šibenik's coast, but
although he was away from the bombs, being away from his piano was
tortuous for Maksim and, despite the dangers, he always welcomed the
family's return to the city.
For more details see
here.
Mia Slavenska
(born in Slavonski Brod, 1914-2002), became ballerina of the Zagreb
Opera (1930-33), studied also in Vienna, and joined the Paris Opera in
1933. In London she danced with Anton Dolin before joining the Ballet
Russe de Monte Carlo (1938-42). She later formed her own company, Ballet Variante.
In 1953
she established the Slavenska-Franklin
Ballet
company with Frederic Franklin. In 1950's she was prima ballerina of
the Metropolitan Opera in New York. She had the main female role in the
ballet film "A Streetcar Named Desire". By the end of her career she
was
teaching in Los Angeles, California. Slavenska starred in a wonderful
French film, La Mort du Cygne (Ballerina, 1938).
The Dubrovnik
Summer Festival, which puts on
dramatic, music and ballet art, was founded in 1950. A special
attention is devoted to the plays of Marin Drzic and William
Shakespeare. Especially famous is the Hamlet
performance on the old tower of Lovrijenac.
Due to its exceptional ambience, offering enormously powerful aesthetic
experiences, it is regarded to be the best stage for Hamlet
in Europe.
Zlatan Srzic
graduted in conducting from the Hochschule für Musik und darstellende
Kunst under Professor Milan Horvat in Graz, Austria. He graduated in
violin from the Zagreb Academy of Music. Music Director of the Zagreb
Chamber Orchestra “Gaudeamus” since 1978. He conducted in Austria,
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, France, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein,
Hungary, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland. He performed with huge
success at the Brive International Music Festival in France. Zlatan
Srzic was awarded the Jean-Fredenc Perrenoud Prize at the Vienna
International Conducting Competition in 1994. Since 1977 he has been
engaged as lecturer and conductor of the Osaka Kyoiku University
Symphony Orchestra. Since 1998 he has been chief conductor of the
Kansai City Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as guest conductor of Osaka
Chamber Orchestra and Nara Philharmonic Orchestra (Japan). He recorded
for Croatia Records, Suzy-CBS and KCPO Japan. Zlatan Srzic was Chief
conductor of the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra since May 2004.
The Osor Musical Evenings
(Osorske glazbene veceri ) have been founded in 1976 by Mr Danijel
Marusic,
a well known Croatian film producer (known for having produced "Nase
malo misto"). Osor is a beutiful and very old stone town at the joint
of two islands - Cres and Losinj. The music evenings take place each
year in July and August with classical repertoire, including
masterpieces of Croatian masters, old and new.
Musical Evenings in Donat,
a summer festival in Zadar which began in 1961, include performances of
medieval, renaissance and baroque music. A large number of outstanding
European ensembles participated with masterpieces not only from their
own country, but also with Croatian musical heritage (Skjavetic,
Lukacic, Bosanac and others). See Dr Katarina Livljanic: A
Sketch on a Fulfilled Wish,PDF,
in Croatian and English.
Svetislav Stančić
(1895-1970) was a Croatian pianist and distinguished music pedagogue.
Everybody knows that the anthem
of the European Union is the melody of "Ode to Joy" (in German, Ode
an die Freude) from Beethoven's 9th Symphhony (and with verses of
Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke). It is little known that this melody
was proposed for the anthem of EU by dr. Lujo Tončić-Sorinj (1915.-2005.), born in Vienna.
His paternal roots are from Croatia, from the city of Split. Lujo
Tončić-Sorinj was a minister of foreign affairs of the Republic of
Austria in the period of 1966-1968, and the secretary general of
European Council between 1969 and 1974. In 1998, he published the
folowing monograph in Croatia's capital Zagreb: Usamljena borba Hrvatske: Od
pobjede jezika do pobjede oružja (Lonely Fight of Croatia: From
the Victory of Language to the Victory of Arms).
Branka Musulin
(1917-1975), Croatian pianist, studied piano under the guidance
of Svetislav Stančić already since the age of eight in her native town
of Zagreb, Croatia.
After studies at the Academy of Music of the University of Zagreb, that
she completed in 1936 (i.e., at the age of 19),
Branka Musulin continued her studies in Paris with Alfred Cortot and
Yvonne Lefébure, and then in Rome with Max von Pauer in Germany and
Alfredo Casella.
She played under the baton of Hans Müller-Kray, Willem Mengelberg,
Hermann Abendroth, Franz Konwitschny, Karl Böhm, Georg Solti and Sergiu
Celibidache. She had numerous pianist concerts throughout Europe,
especially in her native Croatia and in Germany, as well as in Japan.
Since 1958, she lectured at the Hochschule
für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Frankfurt am Main.
Lit.: Main. Ernst Krause, Josef Hegenbarth: Das Bildnis Branka Musulins. Verlag
der Kunst, 1958 - German
The
well known musical ``The Canterbury Tales'', which played in London
for quite a long time, was directed by Vlado
Habunek, an outstanding name in
theatrical life of Croatia.
An
important cultural manifestation held in Zagreb is the Music
Biennale,
devoted to contemporary, experimental and avant-garde music. It has
already a long tradition: in 1995 we had the 18th Biennale. Let us
mention only a few names:
Milko
Kelemen, professor of
composition in Stuttgart, who founded the Biennale; his Requiem
for Vukovar, Osijek, Dubrovnik, Sarajevo,...
has been performed in the music hall of the G. Pompidou Centre in Paris
in March 1995 by the 2e 2m Orchestra (conducted by Paul Mefano).
Josip Magdic
(1937), whose masterpieces attract attention of the European cultural
audience in the recent years: some of them are devoted to the study of
sounds of war he experienced during three and a half year's Greater
Serbian siege of Sarajevo (April 1992- November 1995), capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He also created a music caricature about the UNPROFOR eternal and
unforgettable statement: We do
not know who is shooting.
Igor Kuljeric
(1938-2006), distinguished Croatian composer and conductor, known for
his volcanic energy, finding inspiration among others in very old
Croatian glagolitic heritage. We cite his reflections about Croatian
music: Pluralism and rich
diversity of Croatian musical heritage - from the oldest, almost
archetypal times till contemporary musical art - are rare in world's
proportions. It is particularly valuable for us and I am firmly
convinced that we should not neglect, not to say renounce, any layer of
this national heritage. Renouncing would mean disrespect of our
predecessors, and it would not be forgiven by our descendants... (source)
The Sea Organ
in the city of Zadar is a unique musical and architectural object
conceived in 2005 by Croatian architect Nikola
Basic, with assistance of Ivan
Stamać, an expert in audio
engineering. The sea waves produce spontaneous, random music by means
of tubes built under a set of large marble steps along the coast.
Many tourists come to
listen to this musique
aleatoire, and enjoy
unforgettable sunset with a view to nearby islands. In 2006 the Sea
Organ in Zadar, Croatia, obtained the European Prize for Urban Public
Area in Barcelona.
Mirjana Bohanec, Croatian opera singer, diplomat
and a film star
Several masters of
classical music which belong to younger generation are:
Sasa
Britvic and Mario Penzar
(laureate of the 1989 Flor Peeters International Organ Competition in
Mechelen,
Belgium) founded in 1999 in Zagreb the Croatian
Baroque Ensemble
which specialized in Baroque music.
An
outstanding Croatian composer is Frano
Parac. I can recommend you to enjoy
his music.
Frano Kakarigi, born in the city of Dubrovnik,
is Professor of double bass and chamber music in Granada, employed also
as double bassist at the City Orchestra of Granada in Spain.
Marija Vidović, Croatian soporano, is employed at
the elite Queen Sophia Academy of Music in Madrid, Spain, at the
Department of Solo Singing.
Croatian cultural
society Napredak
(Progress) from Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia -
Herzegovina,
has a nice mixed choir called Trebevic.
During the 1992-95 ferocious bombing of the city of Sarajevo, they gave
numerous concert in the ruined city (in conditions that are difficult
to describe), as well as 30 concerts in France, including Notre Dame in
Paris. Napredak also organized very successful postwar international
concerts in Sarajevo, starting from 1998.
Katarina Livljanic
founded a French international Dialogos Ensemble
in Paris in 1996. This vocal ensemble has singers from Norway,
Venezuela, Bulgaria, Sweden, France and Croatia, specialized for Middle
Age music and liturgical tradition among Mediterranean cultures. Their
program includes also old Croatian glagolitic
singing
from Istria and very archaic singing from the island of Hvar. The
glagolitic chant from medieval Croatia has been performed and recorded
with great musicological interest.
In 1999 a CD Terra Adriatica
was issued, under the title Chants
sacrés des terres croates et italiennes au Moyen-Age,
Dialogos Ensemble/Katarina Livljanic, Paris, ED 13107. The ensemble has
won prestigious awards of French critiques like Diapason
d'or and Monde
de la Musique.
Example: Puce moj [mp3],
that is, Popule meus, from Poljica.
Katarina Livljanich is
lecturing Middle Age music at Sorbonne in Paris. In 1998 she founded a
department for interpretation of Gregorian coral at the University of
Limerick, Ireland, which is one of very rare in the world. Since 2002
she is artistic adviser of the Festival of Early Music in Utrecht, the
Netherlands.
Dialogos
- ensemble vocal de musique médiévale, direction:
Katarina Livljanic
(official web site)
CHANTS GLAGOLITIQUES,
Dialogos en concert "Terra Adriatica", chants sacrés des
terres croates et italiennes au Moyen âge
Véritable
révélation de l'année, l'album Terra
adriatica a
été largement salué par la critique et
a notamment été élu "Diapason d'or" et
"Choc du Monde de la Musique"
en 1999.
Postal address:
Compagnie Dialogos 137 avenue de Choisy 75013 Paris - France Tel/fax:
+33. 1. 45.53.40.00 E-mail: dialogos@wanadoo.fr
Croatian
neurophysiologist Ante
Padjen living in Canada,
McGill, formed the orchestra I Medici McGill's musicians,
playing viola. Half of the orchestra is composed of physicians, medical
students and researchers. Padjen became a McGill professor of
pharmacology via studies in Scotland and a stint at the National
Institutes of Health in Washington. "I became interested in human
destiny," said Padjen, who believes music contains a balance that also
applies to science. "You can't appreciate the parts without the whole -
not the fingering, not the rhythm, not the notes." In a similar vein,
he says, research on cells or molecules is meaningless without a larger
context. Padjen contends that children are hard-wired to learn music as
well as language. Medical school applicants should play an instrument
as a prerequisite for enrollment, he said, "because music is the great
expander." In the interest of linking science and music, I Medici
concerts include lectures on the relationship between music and the
brain.
The non-profit I Medici
got off the ground as Padjen's string quartet 30 years ago. "My sanity
valve," says Padjen, who officially formed the orchestra in 1989.
Festival
of Early Music, Croatia,
conceived in 2004, has been opened by Katarina Livljanic and her
Dialogos ensemble, Paris, by performing La Vision Tondale in the famous
Euphrasius Basilica in Porec. The organizer of the festival is Udruga
Prosoli "Sveta glazba"/ Associazzione Prosoli Musica Sacra (Association
Prosoli "Sacred Music"),
Zagreb. Directors of the festival are Alojzije Prosoli (Croatia),
Francis Biggi (Italia) i Avery Gosfield (USA). The festival is
traditionally held in Istrian towns, mostly in Dvigrad, a small
mediaeval town abandoned in 1630 because of the plague and malaria. One
of the aims of the festival is to renew the town.
Simone
Young, a famous Australian
conductor, has Croatian roots on her mother's side. She was the first
woman in her generation to conduct the Berlin Philharmonic; the first
woman to lead the Komische Opera in Berlin, the NHK in Tokyo, the
renowned all-male Vienna Philharmonic. From 2001 to 2003 she was chief
conductor of Opera Australia in Sydney. She also conducted The Zagreb
Philharmonic Orchestra at the Dubrovnik
Summer Festival in 2000.
...So
her success, then, is 10 per cent inspiration, 90 per cent
perspiration? "Yeah. Otherwise you're just not going to get there."
Young's percentages are probably more even than that. The daughter of
an Australian schoolteacher-turned-lawyer ("Dad's a very strong man;
one day when he was already quite old he just decided to swap careers")
and a Croatian-born dressmaker ("Mum struggled to learn English in the
60s; Dad took Croatian evening classes"), her earliest musical memories
involve tinkering on an ancient piano at her grandmother's house, aged
three. Source.
Jama
Jandrokovic, American soprano
married to a Croat, for her Zagreb appearance chose also three songs by
Dora
Pejačević (Dear Mother, My Angel
; I Believe, My Dear, and The Scream ).
Renaata Pokupic is distinguished Croatian
mezzo-soprano praised for her expressive interpretations
Martina Filjak
is distinguished Croatian pianist of younger generation, winner of the
prestigious Cleveland International Piano Competition in 2009. For more
information see here.
Edin
Dino Zonic, born and raised in
Sarajevo, Bosnia
and Herzegovina, is a winner of
Golden Karma National Awards for 2006. He founded Unity Through Music,
a nonprofit organization. As composer, conductor and cultural
ambassador, Maestro Zonic is dedicated to continuing the expansion of
peace and unity through music, music that bridges cultural, national
and religious barriers to bring the universal message of peace.
Wladimir Kossjanenko,
associate professor at the
Academy of Music of the University of Split,
founded The
Virtuosos of Split
chamber orchestra in 2013.
Let
us mention a young Bosnian
Croat Dejan Ivanovic
from the town of Tuzla (born in 1976), who took part in the prestigious
International competition for classical guitar in Madrid in 1998 as a
representative of Croatia, and won the first prize and the special
prize.
Antonio
Macan,
born in 1988 in Frankfurt am Main, started to play piano at the age of
four. He is now a young and very perspective pianist.
Brodosplit male choir
from the city of Split is
conducted by Vlado Sunko, distinguished Croatian conductor and
composer. The coir became the world champion at the 5th World Choir
Games, Graz 2008, in the category of male chamber choirs. It is
especially known for beautiful interpretations of spiritual songs of
Christian inspiration from Croatian and international repertoire.
Cantus
Ansambl, ensemble composed of
two quintets (string and wind quintet) was founded in Zagreb in 2001.
Zvjezdice
(Little Stars), all girls' choir, founded in 1985 in Zagreb, conducted
by Mr. Zdravko Sljivac, became two-times world champions of the Llangollen
International Music Festival of
choir music (Llangollen
International Musical Eisteddfod), Llangollen,
Wales, UK, in 2001, and Outstanding Prize at Sligo
Choral Festival in Ireland. They
are often compared with the Vienna Boys Choir. Little Stars were
elected as Cultural Ambassadors of the European Union Parliament. They
had very successful concerts in Norway (Oslo, Stavanger), France
(Paris, Nantes, Auxerre), Italy (Milano, Riva del Garda), Switzerland
(Zürich), Germany (Füssen), Bosnia and Herzegovina
(Sarajevo), Austria (Salzburg), USA (New York, Pittsburgh, Dayton,
Northern Kentucky, Cincinatti, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Los Angeles,
Chicago), etc. You can listen to their singing of Croatian
Christmas Songs.
Maestro Zdravko Sljivac conducted also the World Children Choir in
Paris.
Max Emanuel Cencic,
Croatian singing prodigy, is
gifted with the most beautiful countertenor voice of our time. He was a
member of the Vienna Boys' Choir, subsequently pursuing a solo career.
He was awarded as the best new singer of the year 2003 by "Opernwelt"
magazine. His performance of Andromeda Liberata in Tokyo was named the
best concert of the year 2005 in Japan. Since 2007 Max EmanueI Cencic
is recording with the top-label EMI/Virgin Classics.
Goran Filipec young and charismatic Croatian
pianist of pronounced virtuosity
Accordcase
is important equipment for every cellist, guitarist, hornest etc. The
best, ultralight (3-5 kg) accordcases have been designed using carbon
fibre technology by Mr. Robert
Schenk in Pula, Croatia.
These cases are used by
many outstanding musicians, like Mstislav Rostropovic, Yo-Yo Ma, Valter Despalj,
Sting, Carlos Santana, Al Di Meola, to name just a few. Many thanks to
Mr. Nenad Bach
for this information.
Krešimir Stražanac, Croatian bass-bariton, studied in Stuttgart under the guidance of distinguished Croatian opera singer Dunja Vejzovic,
etc. He be a permanent member of the Zurich opera, Switzerland. At the
beginning of his career, he appeared at the Bavarian State Opera and at
the Frankfurt Opera in Germany. He was collaborating with the Bamberg
Symphony Orchestra, with the National Symphony Orchestra of Polish
Radio, etc. See also Bach Cantatas website and the Zagreb Soloists web page. Listen to
Leon Košavić (born in 1991), baritone, studied at the Academy of Music in Zagreb under the guidance of distinguished Croatian opera singer Giorgio Surian.
His appearances include numerous west european countries, the United
Kingdom, etc. He is part of the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel under the
guidance of José van Dam. Listen to
F.
Kuhac: Ilirski glazbenici,
HSN, 1994 (reprinted from 1893 edition), with afterword of academician Lovro Zupanovic;
on p. 5 Kuhac cites the following Croatian proverb: Po
zveku (glazbi) se vrieme pozna, that
we took as the motto
of this web page.
Stanislav Tuskar: Kratka
povijest hrvatske glazbe, Matica
hrvatska, Zagreb 2000.
Lovro Zupanovic:
Glazbena kultura, in [Croatia
- Europe, volume II]