I am sure that many of you, like me, have lived about ten lifetimes this year, the most chaotic, stressful, unpredictable and scary perhaps ever. But we are still here, hanging on, and hoping for better things. But 2020 was not such a disaster for everyone. In fact, if you take a step back from all the doom and gloom and try and look on the brighter side of life, there is an awful lot of positivity to celebrate, especially if you are Croatian. In an effort to balance the understandable depressive posts on the web, here is an ode of recognition to 25 things which made Croatia shine in the pandemic year of 2020. On the photo, an amazing cat-like Croatian island.
Author: Nenad N. Bach and Darko Žubrinić
Branka Musulin 1917-1975 distinguished Croatian pianist
Branka Musulin, fantastic Croatian pianist, completed the Academy of Music of the University of Zagreb at the age of 19. She spent most of her pianistic life in Germany, and played under the baton of Hans Mueller-Kray, Willem Mengelberg, Hermann Abendroth, Franz Konwitschny, Karl Boehm, Georg Solti and Sergiu Celibidache. She had numerous pianist concerts throughout Europe, especially in her native Croatia and in Germany, as well as in Japan. Since 1958, she lectured at the Hochschule fuer Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Frankfurt am Main, first as Dozent and then as Professor. She should not be forgotten!
Maxo Vanka film to be made | American Sistine Chapel
Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka has the following mission: to conserve and protect for permanent public exhibition the nationally recognized Maxo Vanka Murals within St. Nicholas Croatian Catholic Church in Pittsburgh, enabling the immigrant artist’s “gift to America” to serve as an enduring catalyst for community engagement and education, inspire social and cultural dialogue, celebrate diversity, and forge connections through reflections on the extraordinary American experience. Murals by Maxo Vanka are not just Croatian cultural heritage. Unique. One and only. The planned film should have been done 50 years ago.
MIRET ecological sneakers made with 97% natural materials
Hrvoje and Domagoj Boljar, from the town of Duga Resa near the city of Karlovac, Croatia: “We are industry insiders who have inherited a factory from our father in our 20s. We have manufactured sneakers for some of the most famous high-end brands in the world. We realised that the footwear industry is horrible to the environment. So we set out to use our manufacturing experience to really redesign shoes from bottom up and make them compatible with nature. Step into durable and comfy unisex sneakers and leave no toxic legacy to the next generations that will walk the Earth.”
Marina Jurica singing meteorologist lead commentator for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory since 2019
Marina Jurica graduated from UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) with two degrees: one in Meteorology and the other in Opera Performance. She is persuing both of her passions. She worked in Orlando, Florida, before becoming chief meteorologist at CBS47 in 2016. She was the first female chief meteorologist in the USA, and is still one of the few female chiefs. She appeared as professional opera singer in the Canadian tour of “Les Miserables” and debuted her own show “Seasons of Love” on Broadway in 2018. Her father is from the island of Lastovo, and mother from the city of Opatija, both in Croatia: “I am a first generation American, my ENTIRE family is Croatian. Growing up in a Croatian home and French immersion school, I became tri-lingual quickly.”. On the photo, Marina Jurica is with her son John.
Steve Rukavina behind the story about Joe Biden President-Elect of the USA
On the photo from 2010, Steve Rukavina with Joe Biden, who was back then vicepresident of the USA, now President -Elect of the USA. Steve Rukavina has Croatian roots, and he visited the land of his parents 19 times. He is very active in the NFCACF (National Federation of Croatian Americans, Cultural Foundation), as well as in fostering closer ties between Croatia and the USA. NFCA has organized more than 250 meetings with the USA Ministry of Foreign Affairs and with American diplomats. On Nov. 2020, Steve Rukavina gave an interview to Croatian journal Veeernji list.
Artur R. Bagdasarov wrote a new monograph: Croatian Language – a View from Russia
Artur R. Bagdasarov, an Armenian scholar living in Moscow, expert in Croatian language, has published a new monograph: Hrvatski jezik. Pogled iz Rusije (Croatian Language – a View from Russia), Moscow 2020, 388 pp. The book is intended primarily for Russian readers willing to learn more about Croatian language. The book can be useful to anybody, from experts to amateurs. Dr. Bagdasarov is a recipient of a prestigious INA Award for his activities in popularizing Croatian culture internationally. Furthermore, he is an author of numerous articles published in various Croatian journals.
Yoko Nishii's lecture about Croatia in the Toba High School in Japan 2020
The city of Toba in Japan has a high school attended by 169 students. Yoko Nishii, living in the city of Ise close to Toba, has delivered a lecture about Croatia, its history and culture, repeated for all six classes of the school (on 25th and 26th October, 2020). Yoko Nishii has prepared 150 beautiful slides dealing with Croatia. She is not only fluent in Croatian language, but as a pianist she visited almost every corner of Croatia: she had as many as 49 soloist concerts in 24 cities throughout the country.
Croatian soccer international matches in 1940 with Switzerland and in 1990 with the USA
Nenad Bach: Svaka čast ekipi kreativaca koji su ostvarili kako sam dogadjaj tako i ovaj film koji će ući u povijest, htjeli to neki ili ne. Svaka čast Nenad Petrić, Dado Komerički i Ivan Blažičko, izvrsno ste složili ovaj film, bez dinamičke rupe, sve teče kako treba, s puno emocija i činjenica. Ivan John Opačak, što za reći nego veliko HVALA, pokazali ste svoje sportske i ljudske kvalitete. Zadnja rečenica u filmu Mladena Vedriša, zapovjednika kriznog štaba u Zagrebu za vrijeme rata te predsjednika HNS-a 1990-1994 govori sve: “Ništa manje nije bio drugačiji odnos u ratu. Bila je to bitka Davida i Golijata koju smo u ratu dobili. Prema tome mi kao nacija imamo jedan snažan potencijal. Imamo snagu za presudne momente, imamo talent …” On the photo Troy Dayak, USA soccer player, who discovered his Croatian roots in 1990.
Paul Bucha recipient of the Medal of Honor has Croatian roots
Paul “Buddy” Bucha was born on August 1, 1943, in Washington, D.C. He is of Croatian descent; his paternal grandfather immigrated to the United States from the Croatian town of Našice. He graduated from Ladue Horton Watkins High School in 1961. An all-American swimmer in high school, Bucha was offered athletic scholarships to several universities but turned them down and attended the United States Military Academy at West Point. After graduation he earned a Master of Business Administration at Stanford University before beginning his military career at Fort Campbell. Bucha was sent to Vietnam in 1967 as a captain and commander of Company D, 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment.
Damjan Rodin 1910-1968 Croatian priest in Brasil founder of Vila Croacia in Rio de Janeiro
Damjan Rodin was one of the first Croatian priests to move to Brazil after the Second World War, where he organised the religious and community life of the ethnic Croatian community in Sao Paulo. In Rio de Janeiro he continued his important work for Croatians and Brazilians. He was born in the Šibenik hinterland (in the town of Prvić Luka on the island of Prvić) and moved to Brazil in 1947, working as parish priest in Sao Paulo. He raised a favela in Rio de Janeiro now known as Vila Croacia, part of the Senador Camara district.
Yoko Nishii presenting Dora Pejacevic and the town of Nasice in Croatia
In this article we present a nice video prepared by Yoko Nishii (Ise, Japan), dedicated to the 135th anniversary of the birth of Dora Pejačević (on the photo), the first Croatian woman composer of international reputation. In this video, Yoko plays Pejačević’s “Chanson sans paroles” in C Major Op. 5 (Song without words), accompanied with lovely sceneries from the town of Našice, where Dora was living, and where Yoko already had several pianist concerts. Yoko Nishii had nearly fifty soloist concerts in as many as 24 Croatian cities and towns. We should also stress that she speaks Croatian.
Christophe Dolbeau published his monograph "By the Croatian Patriots" in French in 2019
Christophe Dolbea published his new monograph entitled Aux cotes des patriotes croates (By the Croatian Patriots), as a private edition, in 2019. The book commprises 11 chapters, and ends with a complete bibliography of the author. In the middle of the book, twelve pages containing the photos of the main persons described in the book are exhibited. The book deals with Croatian emmigration in France, with parts of which the author was very close. We also learn of Dominque Gay, a young Frenchman who fought during Homland Defensive War and tragically died in Croatia in 1992 near te town Drniš. The book represent an important contribution to the study of the history of Croatian emmigration in France.
Miro Vidovic 1967-2020 world class producer with a heart of gold
Miro Vidović, born in the city of Vukovar, was one of the best Croatian music producers. Numerous distinuished musicians attended his “Morris Studio”, founded in 1997 in the city of Zagreb: 2CELLOS (Stjepan Hauser and Luka Šulić), Oliver Dragojević, Maksim Mrvica, Gibonni, Arsen Dedić, Nenad Bach, etc. He was a manager of 2CELLOS, that he directed since the very beginning. 2CELLOS said that Miro discovered them, but Miro modestly said that in fact 2CELLOS discovered him. Miro was always simple, modest, and down to the earth.
Japan remembering Vladimir Devide 1925-2010 Croatian haiku poet and mathematician
Mihovil Rismondo, Croatian painter from the city of Split (age 71), painted twelve canvases inspired by haiku poetry, under the auspices of Japanese Embassy in Croatia and the Tourist Association of the city of Zagreb. In this way, ten years since the death of Vladimir Devide have been marked, a well known Croatian haiku and mathematician. He was the greatest promoter of Japanese culture in Croatia. For his contributions in popularization of Japanese culture he was awarded the prestigious Japanese Order of the Sacred Treasure – Konsanto Zuihosho.
14th Epidaurus Festival organized in Cavtat on September 5-12, 2020
U subotu 5. rujna, po prvi puta u predvorju Kneževa dvora u Cavtatu, organiziramo svečano otvorenje 14. Epidaurus festivala. Njime među inim obilježavamo 130. obljetnica rođenja proslavljenog cavtačanina Tina Pattiere, koji nas je ne samo zadužio nego i podučio svojim primjerom kako moramo ustrajati u stvaranju umjetnosti i ljepote oko nas. Dijelić života ovog markantnog i sjajnog tenora će nam Franica Krampus Vidović, dugogodišnja profesorica Povijesti glazbe u Umjetničkoj školi Luke Sorkočevića u Dubrovniku, koja je i sama autorica brojnih studija i članaka o još uvijek nedovoljno poznatom pjevaču zlatnoga grla. Ostanite zdravo i raspjevano! Dobrodošli u Cavtat! The founder and artistic director of the Festival is Ivana Marija Vidović, on the photo.
Frano Maroevic 1908-1939 expert in maritime law and publicist from the island of Hvar in Croatia
Frano V. Maroević (1908-1939), died very young at the age of 31 in the native city of Stari Grad on the island of Hvar near the city of Split. Born in a family of mariners and shipbuilders, he was an established expert in maritime law, which he had studied at the University of Zagreb, where he also earned his PhD. He was also very interested in literature, mountaineering, sea travelling, about which he published numerous articles. In 2020, Hrvojka Mihanović-Salopek and Jeniđe Maroević-Kulaga published a luxorous, richly illustrated monograph entitled Maritimne sfere Frane V. Maroevića (Maritime Spheres of Frano V. Maroević).
Ante Glibota 1945-2020 distinguished Croatian patriot and historian of art and architecture
Mr. Ante Glibota, born in the town of Slivno in 1945, distinguished Croatian patriot and intellectual, passed away in Paris in 2020. According to the data provided by Mr. Glibota himself in 2017, during his appearance at the Croatian TV, his opus consists among others of about 220 books and catalogues published in some 15 languages (more than hundred of them in China only) and of about 550 large exhibitions organized throughout the world. His achievements are all the more impressive in the light of the fact that as a young person he spent two years in ex-Yugoslav communist prison (1972-1974).
Vukovar hosting fantastic Japanese Ningyo dolls exhibition 2020
The exhibition of beautiful Japanese Ningyo dolls has been opened on August 27th, 2020 in the city of Vukovar in the presence of Her Excellency Misako Kaji (on the photo), ambassador of Japan to Croatia. The exhbition will be opened until Septemeber 27th. Japan has a long and rich tradition of the art of dolls. It is not widely known that one of the most interesting collections of dolls representing national costumes of various countries throughout the world is kept in Croatia’s capital Zagreb, in Ethnographic Museum, collected by Ljeposlav Perinić – The King of Dolls.