{"id":2348,"date":"2018-05-21T21:12:22","date_gmt":"2018-05-21T19:12:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newedgemagazine.com\/?p=2348"},"modified":"2018-05-21T21:13:30","modified_gmt":"2018-05-21T19:13:30","slug":"big-band-grosuplje-on-all-that-jazz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newedgemagazine.com\/index.php\/big-band-grosuplje-on-all-that-jazz\/","title":{"rendered":"BIG BAND GROSUPLJE \u2026 ON ALL THAT JAZZ"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cLet\u2019s start with the basics.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It\u2019s a sunny Monday morning in late October when I meet with three members of Big Band Grosuplje at the \u0160pica caf\u00e9 in Ljubljana. Klemen Kotar, the band\u2019s conductor (and occasionally a saxophone player), \u017dan Pajek Aramba\u0161i\u0107, BBG president. and Ne\u017ea Pajek Aramba\u0161i\u0107, the pianist and social media editor, sit down and order their caf\u00e9-au-lait and as soon as the formalities are over, I get my first 101 in jazz \u2013 the big band topic, in particular. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTechnically speaking, it\u2019s five saxophones, four trumpets, four trombones and a rhythm section.\u201d explains Klemen, \u201cthat\u2019s the ideal we strive towards. In our case\u2026it\u2019s a wild bunch.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Big Band Grosuplje, BBG for short, was founded twenty years ago by Braco Doblekar and the Grosuplje music school \u2013 they celebrated their 20th anniversary in summer 2017 with a concert featuring Braco himself. \u201cI\u2019d say four of our current members are still \u2018the originals\u2019,\u201d says \u017dan \u2013 he and Ne\u017ea are among the younger members of the bunch. \u201cWe invited all of the old members to our 20th anniversary and discovered there are approximately 60 of them, including those who stepped in as substitutes when needed.\u201d Even though they\u2019re called Big Band Grosuplje \u2013 and Grosuplje is the band\u2019s main venue \u2013 the members come from all over. \u201cMost of us are actually from Grosuplje but there are people from Ljubljana, Nova Gorica\u2026\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re kind of \u2018tutti frutti\u2019,\u201d Ne\u017ea pitches in. \u201cChilli con kajmak, you could say,\u201d says Klemen. <\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s clear one thing up \u2013 big band, even though featured in the band name, is a type of band. There are many of them in Slovenia (roughly around twenty) and many more in the world. This confuses the public sometimes. \u201cIt\u2019s not the easiest thing being a big band in Slovenia\u2026 but it sure is fun,\u201d says \u017dan. <\/span><\/p>\n

And BBG does make it look like fun. If you\u2019ve ever been to one of their concerts you\u2019ll have noticed that they appear to be one big family \u2013 a really talented group of individuals with families of their own, but a family nonetheless. They meet every Monday for practice, which usually lasts for two hours give or take, and before concerts they come together for extra hours if needed. They try to make Mondays work, which is sometimes hard to do since the majority of the members are older and have families and worries of their own. This is why, they tell me, it is great that they get opportunities to travel together sometimes. In 2018 they\u2019re set to perform at the Jazz Festival in Nisville, Serbia. \u201cYou need an event like that every now and then, it brings the band together,\u201d says \u017dan. \u201cI think every group of people working together needs that. Some call it team-building; we call it intensive band practice. I mean, meeting for those two hours a week is great, but people can\u2019t always bring themselves to relax completely. Those two hours can be really therapeutic – to just shut out all your worries – but sometimes a longer trip like this one is much needed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAnd after we spend some time together\u2026 It\u2019s great. We sound better afterwards,\u201d says Ne\u017ea. <\/span><\/p>\n

The audience they prefer is a lively one, responsive. \u201cSometimes you get a tough crowd. We played this amazing set in Austria once, and the crowd was completely bland. The day before we weren\u2019t half as good but the crowd loved it.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it comes to [the audience], we don\u2019t stress too much. If they come to see us, we\u2019ll get them eventually, I\u2019d say,\u201d says Klemen on the topic. \u201cPeople usually create their own vibe when they come to listen to us play,\u201d \u017dan tells me. \u201cThere\u2019s definitely a regular audience, you can pick out their faces in the crowd, shake their hand afterwards.\u201d It also depends on the program they perform. \u201cWe did Sinatra in August in the Ljubljana Old Town and lots of people showed up.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

They try to balance their program, keep it both instrumental and vocal with the help of guests, singers such as Ana \u010cop or Peter Savizon. \u201cWe play some programs that are a bit more complicated \u2013 I think it helps us grow. And by doing so we also educate our audience,\u201d says \u017dan. They get their gigs by reaching out or via connections Klemen has. The sponsorship of the US Embassy is also a great help. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBut I also think that the trick is not to perform too often.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe main problem we\u2019re facing is the lack of younger members. Kids don\u2019t attend music school anymore, not as much as the previous generations did,\u201d \u017dan expresses his concerns. \u201cAnd even if they do, sooner or later they turn to rock and pop,\u201d adds Ne\u017ea. In jazz, the intros to the songs are longer \u2013 sometimes a piece is entirely instrumental. Jazz is the type of music you listen to, not just something you put on for background sound and don\u2019t pay attention to the composition. Every part of jazz music is intricate, played passionately. <\/span><\/p>\n

And BBG\u2019s future plans? They have a couple of performances they already know about, such as the festival in Nisville in summer and the project they\u2019re doing on the 2nd of February \u2013 a combo (small formation) with Help! A Beatles Tribute in Kulturni Dom Grosuplje. The combo will also perform at the opening of a retrospective exhibition of the American \u2013 Slovenian writer and journalist Louis Adami\u010d at the National and University Library in Ljubljana. In May, BBG will also give a concert at the same venue, honouring this great writer who was born near Grosuplje. As for the rest \u2013 they\u2019ll seize opportunities they get. One thing\u2019s for sure \u2013 if you love jazz or you want to get a first taste of it, BBG\u2019s concerts are worth checking out.<\/span><\/p>\n