We spoke with Amira Medunjanin, who has been representing Balkan culture and tradition on the world music scene for decades with her art, about the opening of the Wild Beauty Art festival, countries she hasn't visited, altitudes she hasn't conquered, inspiration and new songs.
With his first performance in Durmitor, on July 6 at Macan poljana, he will open the Wild Beauty Art festival accompanied by a band consisting of violinist Leopold Stašić, guitarist Arslan Trtak and bassist Mario Rašić.
The music you perform opens the door to many trips, and you have performed on almost all continents. You recently returned from touring Australia. Looking at the location or country, which performances were particularly interesting to you?
Medunjanin: Honestly, it would be ungrateful to single out certain performances, because really, out of over a thousand concerts, it's hard to single out some. All performances so far have been extremely beautiful. But above all we can thank the people who come to the concerts. You know, I remember everything and remember details easily. As soon as I see the people I met at those concerts, I immediately know when, where and how the concert went. And as for traveling, I haven't been to many wonderful places in the world. And I intend to visit some places where I gave concerts. Here, I have never been to South America and China. But there will be an opportunity, I hope, as long as it is healthy and peaceful.
At the Wild Beauty Art festival, you will perform on Macan poljana, at 1.500m above sea level. Have you had similar experiences?
Medunjanin: Yes, I did. I performed at the CosmoJazz festival in France on Mont Blanc in 2016. I think that the area where the concert was held was at the same altitude. However, the organizers originally planned for our performance to take place in an outdoor location at an altitude of some 2200m. And everything went according to plan, they were supposed to transfer all the equipment to the location the night before. Unfortunately, even though it was the summer period, the weather suddenly changed and the concert could not be held at those 2200m. And I vowed that I would hold that concert sometime, because Mont Blanc is truly incredible.
Have you visited Durmitor, Žabljak and performed in these areas before?
Medunjanin: Unfortunately, I have never been to Žabljak. I am often in Montenegro, but I never find time to go. And I'm regularly on the mountain, it really relaxes me and recharges my batteries. I am extremely glad that we will be performing at the festival and I believe that we will have a nice time together with a fascinating landscape.
How does the ambiance, location, environment affect you and the performance? What, in general, inspires, moves and motivates you at performances?
Medunjanin: Of course, the ambience is very important for motivation for both the musicians and the audience. But I always say that the people who come to the concerts are the biggest inspiration and the strongest motive for the concert to be of high quality. You see, the songs we perform are known to most people and touch us and the audience equally. We can find ourselves in every verse and every tone. And as the concert goes on, it all comes together and that combination of energy of the people in the space and the musicians on the stage is truly incredible.
Which program will you present at the WBA? Will there be any surprises in terms of song choices?
Medunjanin: We are preparing for the upcoming performance. We are coming as a quartet with Leopold Stašić on violin, Mario Rašić on bass from Zagreb and Arslan Trtak from Quebec on guitar. And yes, we have a program, but we don't know how long it holds water. We'll see how people react. I mean, we never perform the same songs and every concert is different, so that we and the audience don't get bored. Usually we go by the list and then we'll see. It all depends on the people who come to the concert.
You announced that you are preparing a new album. If I am well informed, it is different from the previous ones, it is the first author's album.
Medunjanin: Yes, it is in the works and we hope to have more information soon. There is still a lot of work to be done. I have released 9 solo albums so far, seven of them studio albums, and I always tried to make the next one different from the previous one. And so it will be this time.
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