With the women’s singing group of Bojana Nikolić’s School of Serbian and traditional singing (Ženska pevačka grupa, Škola srpskog i tradicionalnog pevanja Bojane Nikolić)
After almost two years of COVID-19 lockdowns, quarantines, and restrictions, my singing group was finally invited to sing at events and competitions. I am so lucky to be surrounded by incredibly talented singers!
This year was the first time I have ever been to a singing competition. I have to say that I love it – and not just because we were relatively successful on our first attempt! I love listening to all the other groups, I love the nervous anticipation, I love getting dressed up and putting on red lipstick and then getting back into my normal clothes when it’s all over, and most of all I love showing other people how beautifully we sing.
Here is a quick overview of our performances in 2021.
We took third place at the Vocal Ethno Music Festival for Youth in Negotin, Serbia in the category of traditional music (August 28, 2021). We performed several beautiful songs, including the following ones which I led or had a part in: “Kraj bunara zeleni se trava,” “Ja dragana voljela tri dana” (ganga), “Oj jesenske duge noći,” and “Ja sam, dragi, ona rujna zora” (groktalice). Unfortunately, there is no public video of this performance (yet!).
We were awarded “Group with the most promise” at the Fourth International Festival of Traditional Singing, hosted by the Croatian Cultural Center Bunjevačko Kolo in Subotica, Serbia (October 16, 2021). I led the song “Zeleni se suma na daleko,” and my wonderful fellow singer sang “Alaj mi se ogrozdila venja.”
We competed at Krajiški Biseri in Plandište, Serbia (October 17, 2021). I led our competition song “Ja sam, dragi, ona rujna zora.” Our non-competition song was “Moj dragane, pitaj svoje mame.”
We performed at a book promotion event at the crypt of St. Mark’s Cathedral in Belgrade, Serbia (December 9, 2021). I led “Oj ubava, ubava devojko” and co-led “Ja sam, dragi, ona rujna zora” with my excellent fellow singer.