Hrvatski

Borna Šercar's Jazziana Croatica

Date created: 03.07.2014.
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Borna Šercar's Jazziana Croatica

Cable-car ride to Mount Srđ included in the ticket price. Departurers from 8.30 pm to 9.00 pm
 

Vojkan Jocić – saxophone

Zvjezdan Ružić – piano

Tihomir Hojsak – double bass

Borna Šercar – drums

"Listening to the music recorded by Borna Šercar's Jazziana Croatica (whatever that may mean) group, and about to write a review for the CD in your hands, I was amazed not only by the high individual quality of all the members of the quintet (of course, I already knew Šercar and Gelo) but also by the wholly defined, identifiable, and yet and above all original style. There are a lot of ‘Coltraneisms’ and ‘Milesian’ modal quotations, but ultimately Croatia (and beyond!) now has a new and original, high class jazz combo.

First, just a few words about (we can already say that) their original style, determined to a considerable extent by original collective arrangements, because Šercar wrote most of the compositions, with two brilliant interpretations of originals by other authors: Thompson’s Battalion (unlike the “militant” original) is rendered in an almost elegiac mood, while the interpretation of Blagoje Bersa’s Sunny Field is a real master-piece! That should have been, definitely, the first track on the CD: from the introduction, the soft-guitar (‘Methiniesque’) riff and the (so rarely used) arco-bass sound through the sound and tempo climax to the logical ‘soft’ ending.

Vojkan Jocić is the right man in the right spot. In spite of certain Grossman-Liebman ‘echoes’ this CD qualifies him for the first league of Croatian jazz soloists. The same goes for pianist Zvjezdan Ružić and bassist Tihomir ‘Arco’ Hojsak.

Today Ante Gelo is truly ‘Mr. Music’ in Croatia:  pedagogue in the Croatian Jeunesses Musicales school in Grožnjan and musical director of all major events in Croatia.

As regards Borna Šercar, by bringing together this group and generally organizing this project he outgrew - in my experience and after all those years in jazz - by far and large what can be expected from a drummer!

Bravo Borna, just carry on and best regards to your old man!"

Boško Petrović, March 2010