Ronald Braus and guests the concert on the occasion of the Feast of the Assumption
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Despite rain and stormy weather on the Assumption of Mary holiday on August 15, the eighth traditional concert “Ronald Braus and Guests” was held on the nearby island of St. Andrew by Rovinj.
A special guest of this already popular cultural event was Radojka Šverko, who showed, with her interpretations with ease of her own festival hits as well as songs from successful films and world pop, why she has the status of the first lady of the Croatian music scene even after four decades of professional singing. Her performance, supported by a trio under the lead of professor Vladimir Babin, was started with the song „Amazing Grace,“ and she opened up the heart and soul of the audience with one of her biggest hits and Croatian evergreens „Kud plovi ovaj brod.” (Where Does This Ship Sail).
An almost one-hour performance of the great artist the audience cheered with thunderous ovations and applause. An especially warm welcome of the audience went to the performance of “Ljubavne pjesme” (Love Songs) from the rock opera “Gubec beg” (Governor Gubec) which Šverko performed in a duet with Ronald Braus.
An Istrian, and born in Pazin, Radojka Šverko reminded the audience of her music beginnings which are connected with Rovinj and the island of St. Catherine, on which she held her first professional performance. As a real host and gentleman, Braus took advantage of the moment after the performance and gave the great artist a cake and a monograph of the city “Rovinj on Old Postcards” for her 60th birthday and 40 years of performing.
With the music diva, the ovations of the public were given to some well-known and friendly faces. The soprano Lidija Horvat – Dunjko, a dear guest of Rovinj, performed arias from the operetta “Grofica Marica” (Count Mary) and the opera “Gianni Schicchi” while the mezzo-soprano Blanka Tkalčić- Breglec chose the aria from “Carmen” and “Juliška.” The host of the evening, baritone Ronald Braus sang the aria from “Figaro,” a kind of a trademark of the concert nights on the Red Island, and in duets with the opera singers Horvat – Dunjko “Don Giovanni” and with Tkalčić- Breglec “Vesela Udovica“ (Happy Widow). The piano accompaniment of the famous opera singers was the task of maestro Mario Čopor.
The actress Mila Elegovic, who was the host, made sure that the night would be casual and pleasant. With her jokes and comments about the stormy weather she got the sympathies and acceptance of the audience which, because of the rain, instead of by the mausoleum of the family Hutterott, gathered in the congress hall of the hotel “Istra.“ There was a telephone call made after the concert to the celebrated Croatian actor Bobi Marotti. For now, he received the award “by wire” for unselfish contribution to the promotion of the city of St. Euphemia to which he has been coming for fifty years every summer, as well as a lifetime achievement award.
The eighth in a row concert night under the name “Ronald Braus and Guests” was organized by the Tourist Association of Rovinj and the hotel-catering house “Maistra” Inc.
