The climax of the Last Minute Open Jazz Festival awaits us on the next two Saturdays

02.08.2023.

Slaviša Srdić

"I admire these young and brave musicians who were born for good old jazz. They should be given the widest possible space.''

After two exciting evenings of the Last Minute Open Jazz Festival in Bale, we have reached the halfway point. Now it's time to take a look behind the scenes and hear the organizers' impressions. 

The current course of the festival

Tomislav, how would you describe the atmosphere and experience on the first two Saturdays of the Last Minute Open Jazz Festival 2023?

I'm honestly surprised by how many people showed up and how wonderful everything was. Incredibly high caliber performances, great bands, a great jam at our Kamene priče jazz tavern after the festival.... I really don't have words to thank this brilliant and loyal audience!

How have audiences and artists responded to the new format of the festival, which takes place over four Saturdays?

I was afraid that the energy would dissipate and the second Saturday wouldn't really be attended, but I was wrong and now I see that it went fantastically because I listened to my intuition.

More people came than the first night, which was never the case. The bars were crowded and literally all the caterers near Tomasso Bembo Square were in a good mood. They themselves were surprised by the response and the energy between us was wonderful.

The people in the two newly opened bars in our neighborhood are really wonderful! It is hard for me to find the right words to express my joy that Bale is now enriched by two more fantastic bars, following the worldwide trends and offering top quality. Congratulations to all who have been involved in this.

Are there any special moments that you have experienced during the first two Saturdays of the festival?

I am surprised by our rhythm section led by Aleksandar Lukić, which is quickly becoming a leader in Croatian jazz. This trio is characterized by great and thoughtful music and very good performers. Bravo!

On the second Saturday, the incredible Ana Ursula Najev, an excellent actress from Split, known from the series Kumovi, fell from Mars. She left the audience breathless with her interpretation of various genres. Her enchanting character and style transported us to the early thirties and to the time when jazz was what it should be today, but was not.

How are you preparing for the third Saturday of the festival? What can visitors expect from the performance of Spice Melange?

I am afraid of rain. If it doesn't rain, it's going to be a crazy night. I feel in my bones that it is destined to be. I admire these young and brave musicians who were born for good old jazz. I believe more and more that the Trieste Conservatory is currently one of the better schools in Europe and that they should be given as much space as possible.

How is this year's festival different from previous years, especially with the changes you have made to the format?

The difference is that we are more precise in our selections, clearer in our themes, and better prepared for the problems associated with organizing the work. You learn a lot over the years, and I'm already so old and tired from various escapades in my job that it all runs smoothly for me now. I feel in tune with the music and the people, with heaven and earth. 

The influence of the Last Minute Open Jazz Festival on the jazz scene in Croatia and in the region.

How has the festival influenced the jazz scene in Croatia and beyond?

Insufficiently. The jazz scene in Croatia has been stagnating for a long time. Croatia is unable to establish a jazz academy, and Kamene piče is currently the only jazz club in the country. In Bale. What more can be said about this? People are trying their best, playing nicely, trying to organize and perform, but the big interests of HTV (Croatian Radiotelevision) and the losing policy of Tourist associations throughout Croatia are taking their toll.

It is rumored that we are the most ordinary inn from the Balkans. Istria is trying to some extent in Bale, Grožnjan, etc.. The whistling continues in the slow rhythm of a Sunday afternoon. Our festival is much more important for musicians in Slovenia, Italy and Austria than for someone in Zagreb, for example. 

The festival is free for the audience, but it still costs....

We receive 2.5 thousand euros from the Ministry for the organization of the festival, which just covers the price of the beer and sandwiches that consumed at our place during these days. But this is not important. Bale supports us and help us to survive.

Many thanks to the municipality of Bale and our mayor Edi, who understands what it is all about and knows that we have to fight for the guests with culture, not only with concrete and boring villas without sense and future. 

Interesting, safe, fresh and clean

How do you maintain the quality and freshness of the festival every year?

We try to be sexy in every segment. Interesting, safe, fresh and free from the boredom that overcomes us all.

How would you describe your role and experience as a festival organizer?

This is my child, I invented and realized the festival and I still take care of it with the help of my staff and the wonderful Melita Lovričević, who is my right hand in the obligatory afternoons spent laughing and making cookies in a pile of papers and emails....

Do you have a special message for the visitors who will come to the third Saturday of the festival?

I do. Come! Your observation creates an image. Without an observer, there is no reality. Quantum mechanics is a wondrous discipline that delves into the universal laws of the existence of everything. 

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