Zrinka Ljutić was the winner of the skiing World Cup slalom in Semmering, Switzerland, for 2024/25. This was the first Croatian victory since legendary Janica Kostelić in 2006. “I felt all over the place and I really didn’t know if I’m fast enough so I tried to push all the way down,” Ljutic said about her all-attacking final run. Except of her native Croatian language, Zrinka is very fluent in English and German.
Dragutin Cifrek distinguished Croatian miniature painter and calligrapher
Dragutin Cifrek is distinguished Croatian painter, calligrapher and miniaturist, living in Slovenia. He completed his studies at the Academy of Arts of the University of Zagreb . In 2005, his self-portrait was awarded the first prize on an international competition organized in Finland. It was even chosen to appear on a postage stamp in Finland (on the photo)! Here we provide his very beautiful miniatures inspired by the rich tradition of Croatian Easter eggs painting. Mr. Cifrek was born in a village of Makoišće gornje on the north of the city of Zagreb.
Indian Mathematics Day in Croatia 2024
About 40 mathematicians plus several guests have participated at the meeting honoring the birth of Srinivasa Ramanujan, the greatest Indian mathematician in history. This yearly event, already fourth in order, was organized at the Mathematics Department of the Faculty of Science of the University of Zagreb . The principal sponsors were the Embassy of India , the mentioned Math Department, along with the Croatian Mathematical Society (its president Professor Vesna Županović is on the photo), and the Croatian-Indian Society . Three short, but very interesting 15 min lectures were delivered by distinguished Croatian experts Andrej Dujella, Zvonimir Šikić, and Mirko Primc.
Esperanto connecting Croatia globally
Croatian Esperanto literature has its beginnings since 1908. Croatian Esperanto-League (KEL, Kroata Esperanto-Ligo, Hrvatski espernatski savez ) was founded in Zagreb in 1909. Many Croatian literary books have been translated into various languages worldwide due to their translations into Esperanto. Especially interesting are translations into Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Bengali, and Parsi languages. So, for example, children of Bengal can read Strange Adventures of Apprentice Hlapić by Ivana Brlić Mažuranić due to its translation from Croatian into Esperanto. On the photo – Mrs. Spomenka Štimec, former president of KEL.
Rudolf Matz 1901-1988 distinguished Croatian cello teacher
Croatian born Rudolf Matz (1901-1988) began work on what would become his First Years of Violoncello in the early 1940-s, and he would continue to expand, revise, and make more complete this monumental undertaking for the next 45 years. His interest and experience as a teacher, performer, composer and author informed the content of these of these technical exercises, etudes, and concert pieces, as did his early life experience as a competitive sprinter and his later interest in and study of anatomy, physiology, and ergonomics.
G2 Meeting Second Generation, November 14 and 15, 2024
The largest, best, and longest-running business networking conference between Croatia and the diaspora – MEETING G2 – will take place on November 14 and 15, 2024, at the Westin Hotel in Zagreb, the right place to connect, meet Croats from all over the world, and meet 10 top award winners. Hear their success stories, their love for the homeland, get inspired, and realize your full potential! On the photo – Mara Vitols Hrgetić. Since 2015 she and her husband Josip Hrgetić, they organize annualbusiness meetings for Croatia and its diaspora.
Nenad Bach speaking at TEDx Zagreb: PingPong vs Parkinson Uncommon Solution, Nov 21, 2024
In 2010, Nenad was diagnosed with Parkinson. In 2017, he launched PingPongParkinson” – a non-profit organisation dedicated to helping as many people as possible find relief from Parkinson symptoms by playing ping pong. This initiative has quickly evolved into a global movement spanning 25 countries and five World Championships. The organization’s story is captured in a recently published book, “PingPongParkinson”: It Started with a Tremor and It’s Shaking Up the World”. On November 21, 2024, Nenad will release his seventh album.
Helen Merrill aka Jelena Ana Milcetic, one of the most distinctive jazz singers ever
Helen Merrill, distinguished Croatian-American jazz singer, was born in New York in 1929 as Jelena Ana Milčetić. Her both parents are from Croatia, originating from the island of Krk. Accorading to Joao Moreira dos Santos, she is one of the most distinctive jazz singers ever. Her music production i senormous, including also songs that she sung in Italian, Japanese, French, and her native Croatian languages. Some of the melodies that she sung in Croatian are “Kyrie” (glagolitic church song), “Tanac” (Dance, from the island of Krk in Croatia), and “Ti si rajski cvijet” (You are a heavenly flower).
Mario Viscovich: Punat ugostio pjesnike Hrvatske izvandomovinske lirike (HIL)
Ljeto, more, poezija i gitara sljubili su se na dvadesetčetvrtom susretu pjesnika “Hrvatske izvandomovinske lirike” (HIL), koji je održan u Puntu, otok Krk od 14. do 17. lipnja o.g. Pokrovitelji susreta su bili Općina i TZ Punat, Grad Krk i TZ Krk, Hrvatska matica iseljenika Podružnica Rijeka, Triglav studio apartmani i hostel Kantun. Organizator programa i utemeljitelj pjesničkih susreta HIL-a gospodin Mario Viscovich osmislio je bogat sadržaj pjesnicima HIL-a koji su stigli iz brojnih država od Australije do Amerike.
Anica Markov – A Dalmatian Girl from Two Continents
“A Dalmatian girl from two continents” is an autobiographical book in which the author describes her untypical life from her birth up to her adulthood. She was born in Split, Croatia as the fourth child in a well-to-do family. However, due to political reasons, her parents decided to emigrate when she was 15. She loved Croatia and her life there, and she hated to emigrate. The book illustrates some memories of her childhood in various cities of Croatia. Then she continues describing her adulthood in a refugee camp in Italy, emigration to Chile and finally to Venezuela where the family settled. However, her love for Croatia was always present in her life.
Johnny Mercer, distinguished American singer, lyricist and songwriter, has Croatian roots on his mother's side
Among the best known of Johnny Mercer’s songs are “Moon River”, “Autumn Leaves”, “Days of Wine and Roses”, and “Hooray for Hollywood”. He wrote the lyrics to more than 1,500 songs, including compositions for movies and Broadway shows. He received nineteen Oscar nominations, and won four Best Original Song Oscars. His roots on his mother’s side are Croatia: his grandfather (Ivan Josip Čučević, i.e., John Joseph Ciucevich) was born in Croatia on the island of Lastovo.
Yoko Nishii Japanese pianist touring Croatia, Hungary, and BiH in 2024
In Sptember 2024, Yoko Nishii had a series of three concerts: in Vukovar, Osijek, and Vinkovci. She even delivered a public lecture in Vinkovici, dealing with Croatian-Japanese ties. She also had concerts in Budapest (at the Embassy of Japan, but with mixed Japanese, Hungarian and Croatian programs), as well as in Mostar in BiH, and in Zagreb. During her rich pianist career, Yoko Nishii had as many as 61 soloist concerts in 26 Croatian cities. She had her first concert in 1999, in the city of Opatija on Croatia coast.
Croatian Library for the Blind in Zagreb visited by Joginder Singh Nijjar and Jane Sha
Mr. Jogdiner Singh Nijjar, president of the Croatian-Indian Society in Zagreb, accompanied with Jane Sha and Darko Žubrinić, have visited the Croatian Library for the Blind in Zagreb . Except of the library, this institution contains a printing house for the needs of blind persons. The building where the library is placed contains also The Blind Theatre Company “New Life” (the oldest blind theatre company in Europe! Founded in 1948), the Typhlological Museum, Radio Club, Chess Club, as well as Sports Club for the blind persons. On the photo: tamburitza orchestra consisting of blind children.
Baby Lasagna is the true winner of the 2024 Eurosong Contest in Malmö
Music and text by Baby Lasagna (= Marko Purišić). Comments: 0% cursing 0% bad 100% TALENT 100% RIM TIM TAGI DIM | Not every legend is a winner. Not every winner is a legend. | TOTALLY blown away by the singer, the song, the video, the story, the folklore, the humour, the sadness, the anxiety, the rhytm, the power, the freshness, I’ll send my12 points from Norway! | I cannot believe this song wasn’t number one in Eurovision | I meowed back. 12 points from the United States! | 200 points from Scotland…
Miro Gavran's comedy "The Doll" premiered in India in Shimla
The Doll is the story of an android woman, written by Miro Gavran. It has been premiered in the Shimla Town in India, in the Gaity Theatre. The theatre was founded already in 1887. The story was translated from Croatian into Hindi by Saurabh Srivastava. The play is directed by Kedar Thakur, and the main roles are played by Rupesh Bhimta and Yashvi Bhardwaj. Miro Gavran’s plays have been translated into 42 languages worldwide, and seen by more than four million people.
Armenia and Croatia marking the establishment of their diplomatic ties in 1995
Lipnja 2024. su koncerte pod nazivom ‘ Glazbeni pozdravi Armeniji iz Hrvatske ‘ i ‘ Hrvatska sakralna baština – pjevajuća molitva na izvoru kršćanstva ‘, te humanitarni koncert za Armenski Caritas pod nazivom ‘ Glazbeni zagrljaj Armeniji iz Hrvatske ‘ održali u Yerevanu hrvatski glazbeni umjetnici, sopranistica Nikolina Pinko, tenor Stjepan Franetović i pijanistica i orguljašica Evu Kirchmayer Bilić.
Symphony of Care dedicated to Nenad Bach created by BAI
Nenad Bach – a great person who has brought joy to so many people around the world with his music and whose fight for world peace and against Parkinson’s is a role model not just for me, but for thousands. He certainly deserved a song that honored his incredible commitment! But that it would be me, of all people, who would create this song is as hard to imagine as the fact that it is apparently even “pretty good”. Have a listen! … Text by Thorsten Boomhuis, a member of PPP in Germany. On the photo – a part of a drawing of Nenad Bach by Cynthia Nelms Byrne.
Hrvojka Mihanovic-Salopek: U ogledalu znanstvenih prosudbi II. sv.
Monografija je objavljena 2024. u izdanju poduzeća Biakova, Zagreb 2024. Bavi se književnim i likovnim analizama više autora: Frana Vinka Maroevića, Nikole Andrića, Miroslava S. Mađera, Marijana Matkovića, Jakše Fiamenga, Borisa Biletića, Gorana Gatalice, Josipa Botterija Dinija, Zvonimira Mihanovića, Slavka Ježića i Ive Frangeša. Autorica je ugledna hrvatska znanstvenica, suradnica HAZU i predsjednik Društva hrvatskih književnika.