Comments on: Historical Slovenian Popular Music

Historical Slovenian Popular Music

tellurian — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 00:34:41 -0800

Slovenian compositions, mainly performed by solo singers (with piano or orchestra accompaniment) and by different orchestras and smaller vocal groups. The tracks are listed here. Might I suggest you start with Vinko Vodopivec and see if this the sort of thing you like?

By: flapjax at midnite

flapjax at midnite — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 05:26:10 -0800

Apparently, my "browser does not support the ActiveX Windows Media Player." I may never know if this is the sort of thing I like.

By: Faze

Faze — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 05:27:43 -0800

Way to go, tellurian. The Slovenians are a wonderfully musical people with an amazing tradition of choral and small group vocal singing. When Yugoslavia broke up, Slovenia stayed peaceful while the rest of the nation enjoyed an orgy of murder. They are among the most wonderful people in Europe, and Slovenian-Americans are pretty decent, too. The big Slovenian music story in America, however, was the invention in the mid-1940s, of Cleveland-style polka music (NOT to be confused with the hideous, vulgar, drooling Polish-push-honky style polka from Chicago and elsewhere). A bright, cosmopolitan combination of native-Slovenian melodies, dixieland jazz, and Guy Lombardo-esque sax-work, Cleveland-style polka is jaunty, infectious and impossible to dislike. It's most famous practitioner is, of course, Frank Yankovic. (Walter Ostanek: He the man now.) But he's a little slick and too-commerical for some. I like Johnny Vadnal and Slovenian button boxers of all stripes. A brief visit to the Cleveland-Style Polka Hall of Fame will get you started.

By: tellurian

tellurian — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 07:32:02 -0800

Apparently, my "browser does not support the ActiveX Windows Media Player." Heh! Here are the relevant Wikipedia pages: ActiveX and Windows Media Player. I believe (I encountered your very same problem initially) that you are given alternatives with links if you want to view the material - I took it and I'm glad I did. Your choice. Faze, as much as I admire your enthusiasm, I much prefer the offerings from 'Stari zvočni ponetki'. I'm a sucker for tradition and authenticity. I'm not saying that contemporary bands don't have ties, but the heart and guts in those original recordings are transcendent. Cleveland-Style Polka sounds cool and I hope the tradition carries on.

By: Faze

Faze — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 08:33:35 -0800

tellurian: It's all authentic, man!

By: tellurian

tellurian — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 09:29:38 -0800

Point taken. I meant in the sense of perpetrator, original.

By: sciurus

sciurus — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:50:56 -0800

Thanks for the link to the Cleveland-style Polka museum, Faze. I'm going to have to stop by. If you're ever back in Cleveland, we need to meet up!