The New Balkan Rhythm festival was held from August 25 to 27 for the second time in Sremski Karlovci at the Radulovački Ecological Center. With the team of teachers we know from last year’s edition, reinforced by Elena Hristova (Skopje), workshop participants had the opportunity to attend twelve different workshops. Body music, which successfully avoids being classified into any of the artistic fields, includes singing, body and vocal percussion, movement, dance, tap dance and is the most diverse of the performing arts.
High quality workshops, great teachers and artists, all in a very pleasant environment and atmosphere.
Workshop participant
The festival started with an artist residency. Teachers from Germany, Spain, USA, Macedonia and Serbia gathered on Fruška gora to prepare musical material for the opening concert of the Festival held on August 25.
The press conference, which was held in cooperation with the Tourism Organization of the City of Novi Sad, can be viewed at the link.
The songs that the artists covered were traditional songs from Spain (Maria Ramo de Palma, Sorteao), from Kosovo (Vrbice, vrbo zeljena), from the Afro-Cuban tradition (La Negra Tomasa), as well as original songs by Ben Schuetz (Owen, Sebastian & Dario and Ivan), Max Pollak (Samba do Barba) and Alice in WonderBand (New Balkan Rhythm, festival anthem).
The educational part of the Festival brought twelve interesting workshops. On the first day, Elena Hristova (Skopje) held a singing workshop Macedonian tachycardiac rhythms. She prepared a traditional polyphonic Macedonian song with a complex odd exotic rhythm, Lele S’nce, mori, lele glava. Ben Schuetz (Hamburg) was combining different rhythms from Brazil and Peru with African roots. Max Pollak (New York) and Anna Llombart (Barcelona) held three-day workshops. Pollak focused on embodying music, and Llombart on awakening the inner dancer.
I am thrilled with the concert of the festival artistic team. In our region, this is a unique event and as such it is really impressive. It’s phenomenal what they achieved and how they presented body music to us!
Concert audience
During the three days everyone who attended the workshops had a lot of fun. In addition, participants learned more about the traditions of different cultures. Body music workshops always make you explore and expand your comfort zone.
The second and third days brought workshops of Alice in WonderBand (Marko Dinjaški and Ana Vrbaški, Sremski Karlovci), Odd and even rhythms and Musical games. Ben Schuetz led the workshops Argentinian Chacarera Rhythm in the Body and Improvisation: Body and Voice.
An unforgettable event at the second festival was certainly the opening concert on August 25.
The teachers were joined at the concert by two Macedonian artists, Vladimir Stojčeski (bass guitar) and Petar Hristov (soprano saxophone), members of the Macedonian group Baklava, which Elena Hristova has been leading for two decades.
Baklava performed part of their repertoire, original songs and traditional songs from the Balkans. They were joined in the performances by Ana Llombart and Max Polak, a rhythmic battery with tap shoes, Ben Schuetz and Marko Dinjaški on body percussion, and Ana Vrbaški with voice and body percussion.
A surprise performance opened the festival concert: Marko Dinjaški and his eleven-year-old student, Milan Gagić, performed a number inspired by Pink Elephants, a song from the Disney cartoon Dumbo. Milan has been studying drums and body percussion for a year and is one of Marko’s most talented students.
The concert was part of the KultFest program of the Tourist Organization of Sremski Karlovci, a partner of the Festival. The festival concert was opened by the provincial secretary for tourism and economy, Nenad Ivanišević.
PR of the festival, Jelena Antić Gagić, was the host of the program.
After the first day of the workshop, everyone got to know each other and became a musical family. That is why at the festival we create wonderful memories, and Sremski Karlovci and Serbia shine as an example of hospitality, plentiful, delicious food, wonderful nature, good-hearted people and events.
The final event of the festival was now traditional wine tasting at the Veritas winery on Fruška Gora.
We would like to thank our partners and sponsors, as well as the community, which supports us every year.
Thank you for attending the workshops, making our announcements visible, participating in the crowdfunding campaign, coming to the concerts, advising us and contributing in all the ways you can.
We create a better world together!
Partners: Tourism organization of Municipality of Sremski Karlovci, Environmental Movement of Vojvodina, Special primary and secondary school Milan Petrović Novi Sad, 9Design, Veritas Winery Sremski Karlovci, MrV production, GigsTix, Faros Lumen, City of Novi Sad, Sekretarijat za kulturu Grada Novog Sada, Pokrajinski sekretarijat za privredu i turizam
For everything you want to know, feel free to contact us.
It was a wondrous experience!
Participant of the festival workshops