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| MOSTAR
SEVDAH REUNION |
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The
idea of initiating "Mostar Sevdah Reunion", was born during
the most severe war in Bosnia & Herzegovina. The accordion
sound of Mustafa Santic and the voice of Illijaz Delic are
of genuine beauty, passion and emotion. The group is completed
by two guitarists, violin, drum and clarinet.
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The
idea of forming "Mostar Sevdah Reunion" started in the summer of
1993, during the worst war destruction of Mostar. Dragi Sestic was
working as a music editor at the local "war radio station" in Mostar.
One evening he visited one of many candlelite concerts, which were
performed for a small audience trying just for a moment to forget
the war. For the first time in his life he saw and heard Ilijaz
Delic, who had spent most of his career and life in Belgrade performing
in the most famous bars and restaurants of the city. Amazed by Delic's
interpretation of sevdalinkas (traditional Bosnian songs), Sestic
made contact with him and went back to the radio station to share
his impression with friend, journalist Faruk Kajtaz. A few days
later, Delic came to the radio station to perform some songs for
the program (in those days his accordion player was Elmedin Balalic).
After that concert Sestic and Kajtaz, impressed by Ilijaz's singing,
had a pretty crazy idea for those days to make a big world star
of Ilijaz. In October 1993, Sestic recorded one audiotape with Ilijaz
"Biseri Sevdaha" (The Pearls of Sevdah), which was released in limited
edition because of war circumstances. One month later, in November
1993, Mustafa Santic, a great friend of Ilijaz, came to the radio
station. There he met Sestic and Kajtaz. Mustafa was already known
as a big virtuoso on the accordion and the clarinet. After their
performance of sevdah, the fundamental basis of the future band
was clear - the fantastic vocal of Ilijaz Delic and the virtuosity
of Mustafa Santic.
After the end of the war in Mostar, Sestic went to the Netherlands.
Slowly, the idea of a band of world-class quality performing traditional
Bosnian music was frozen. Everybody was busy with his own life,
career, ….
A few years later, in September 1998, Sestic returned to Mostar
for a holiday, bringing some of the recent CDs of the world music
to his friend Kajtaz. After listening to those CDs, they concluded
that it was time to renew the idea of starting a band with the name
"Mostar Sevdah Reunion". They met very supportive people in the
"Music Center Pavarotti", who had a great sense for sevdah music
- David Wilson, the director of the center and one of the establishers
of the "War Child" organization and Eugene Skeef, great percussionist
and in those days a musical therapist and also a man who gave strong
support and spiritual power to the whole idea. Senad Trnovac, excellent
rock-jazz drummer from Mostar, joined the band and they made the
first demo tracks. Because of the connections of the Music Center
Pavarotti with world music stars, somehow those demo tracks ended
up in the hands of the famous producer Brian Eno, one of the donators
and coordinators of the whole project in Mostar connected with "War
Child". Sometime at the end of October 1998, Eno came to Mostar
to visit the music center and he had a meeting with Sestic and Kajtaz.
After a few hours of "inspiring" conversation with Eno, Sestic and
Kajtaz knew that they were on the right musical track. Eno left
them with the promise that he would do as much as possible to help
release the CD. After a few months of waiting, Sestic and Kajtaz
decided to finish all of the material for the CD. They went back
to the studio in January 1999, but with four more musicians : Amir
Karahasanovic -guitar, Miralem Basic & Adnan Zimic -bassprim, and
Kosta Latinovic -berde bass. With completed material, Sestic went
back to the Netherlands to search for the publisher and record company.
After making many contacts, he chose Dutch record label "World Connection",
which is supporting the new recording budget. Sestic then invited
Miso Petrovic and Sandi Durakovic, a virtuoso guitar duo from Mostar
that was living in the Netherlands, and Branko Petkovic, a famous
violin player from Sarajevo to join the band. "World Connection"
sent Esma Redzepova - "The Queen of the Gypsies"- as a special guest
to perform two songs on the CD. The final material was recorded
in July 1999 in the studio of "Music Center Pavarotti" in Mostar,
under the direction of Dragi Sestic and Faruk Kajtaz. The CD was
released in October 1999.
The dream of a summer war night became a reality!
(http://www.mostarsevdahreunion.com) |
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