Croatia 2021

After Duncan Laurence’s victory in Tel Aviv in 2019, the 2020 Eurovision Song Contest was due to take place in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, however, the event was cancelled in March 2020 due to the emerging COVID-19 crisis. Almost immediately preparations began to ensure that a 2021 Contest would go ahead.

Miroslav Tadić (guitarist) and Yvette Holzwarth (violinist, vocalist) perform unique arrangements based on the rich treasury of Balkan folkloric music and incorporate improvisation from a wide range of styles. Together they create a musical universe that combines and juxtaposes material from many sources — including Baroque, Flamenco, North Indian classical music, Eastern European folk traditions, Americana, Blues, Jazz, and Rock. Tadić's pioneering work on the guitar and Holzwarth's sensitivity and responsiveness come together in a symbiotic dialogue using the language of expressive inflections, rhythms, and sonic experimentation. Take a journey into their musical playground.

In March 1575, a party led by the Venetian diplomat Giacomo Soranzo set out on a mission to Constantinople. They sailed down the Istrian coast, along the length of present-day Croatia, and on to the Bay of Kotor. Much of the land they passed was the territory of the Serenissima – inhabited by both Italians and Slavs, and of strategic importance since it was exposed to constant Turkish threats from the Balkan hinterland.