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Krajanske Zpevanky – a Czech song festival
The Croatian Czech Union and Czech Beseda Rijeka organized the fifth annual gathering of Croatian Czech singing groups and choirs named "Krajanske Zpevanky." For the fourth time, the event took place in Rijeka, this time sponsored by the Mayor of Rijeka Mr. Vojko Obersnel with financial support of the Croatian National Minorities Council, the City of Rijeka and the Primorsko-Goranska County.
The festival took place on Saturday, October 14, 2006. The performances of singing groups started at 6 PM on the stage of Croatian Culture Home on Sušak. Twenty Czech groups participated in the program, with the guest performance of Women's Choir Marinići from Viškovo district near Rijeka. Altogether, 385 singers participated in the event, along with their conductors, and some also accompanied by a band.
Singing groups and choirs from Lipovac, Virovitica, Veliki and Mali Zdenci, Zagreb, Gornji Daruvar, Končanica, Daruvarski Brestovac, Lipovljani, Slavonski Brod, Jazvenik, Treglava, Doljani, Međurić, Sisak, Kaptol, Nova Gradiška, Prekopakra, Bjelovar, Daruvar, Marinići and Rijeka participated in the event.
We were honored to welcome the Czech Ambassador in Croatia Ph.D. Petr Burianek, Czech and Slovak minority representative in Croatian Parliament Mrs. Zdenka Čuhnjil with her husband, the Mayor of Rijeka Mr. Vojko Obersnel, representative of the President of Croatian National Minority Council Mr. Zoran Stanković, Deputy Mayor of Daruvar Mr. Dalibor Rohlik, representatives of other minorities active in Rijeka, representatives of Rijeka City Council, etc. On behalf of the Croatian Czeh Union, there was the Union President Mrs. Lenka Janota, President of the Union Culture Council Mr. Jaroslav Klubičko, Union Secretary Jaro Kulhava, reporters from the Jednota magazine and Radio Daruvar.
The event organization was rather demanding, but Czech Beseda Rijeka was very successful at it, receiving assurances that all participants and guests were very pleased in Rijeka. The participants came to Rijeka in the afternoon of October 14th, on eight buses. At the highway exit, members of the Czech Beseda Rijeka waited for the buses. Each of them was the guide of one bus, taking care of and leading the travelers of that bus during their stay in Rijeka. After the lunch, organized for all participants, our guests took the opportunity to explore Rijeka and take the walk by the sea in the beautiful fall weather. At 4 PM they came to the Croatian Culture Home where they got settled in their dressing rooms, the group leaders had a meeting, and the singers even had a chance to rehearse.
Mayor Obersnel, ambassador Burianek, Parliament representative Čuhnjil, Union President Janota and the president of Czech Beseda Rijeka Mrs. Husak met at 5 PM in the unfinished building of the Czech Home. They looked around the building and spoke about the possibilities of ensuring further financing to be used to continue the work on the building and finalize it.
The program, featuring all groups and choirs, started at 6 PM. Lenka Lalić and Ivica Nikolac did a great job of hosting the program, assisted by the festival director Snježana Herceg. Because there were so many choirs, each group had only six minutes for their performance, but the program still lasted for three and a half hours. As we could see, it is possible to present the results of the hard work of singers and their conductors, and sing two or more songs, in only six minutes. It was a real celebration of Czech song, much respected, loved and cherished by the Czech people in Croatia. The final performance was impressive, including nearly 400 participants who sang the so called "anthem" of Croatian Czechs "This our little Czech song," lead by Lela Vezmar and accompanied on the piano by Jaroslav Klubičko.
After the program, the dinner was served for all participants in the unfinished building of the Czech Home. The outstanding organization of the hosts paid off here as well. The guests were traditionally welcomed with local brandy and figs. More than 450 meals were served in record time, sweets and cakes piled on the tables, coffee, drinks… more than enough of everything, served in no time. The size of the new Czech Home was reflected in the fact that so many people were comfortably seated on only one floor of the building, leaving enough room for a bar, a food court and a dance floor. Musicians from Doljani started playing, everybody sang, and many guests even danced to the Czech music after the successful performance. Many friends and relatives from different Czech towns, some out of touch for years, met again, brought together once again by the Czech language and song. After midnight, the guests prepared for the night voyage to their towns, said goodbye to their friends from Rijeka, and promised each other that they would meet again to the sounds of Czech songs.
