Guča - the most popular Balkan brass bands music festival in Serbia
6 August 2006 - Guča, Serbia
The village of Guca in the Dragacevo district, peaceful and colorful part of western Serbia, has gained world fame owing to its Assembly of Trumpet Players, the largest trumpet event on the planet.
About 500,000 people of varying ages visit every year the Festival in Gucha. Among the foreign visitors there have been individuals from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden, Poland, Macedonia, USA.
But it is away from the main stage, in the bars, restaurants and catering tents that the action really takes place! It goes on late into the night, and starts again first thing in the morning...
The most popular musicians are the Roma - or Gypsies. Scores of bands compete in a competition for the coveted golden trumpet - an award that leads to a recording contract and enough wedding bookings to keep the winning band busy for months.
The traditional Dragacevo trumpet - its cult kept alive for nearly two centuries regardless of political and social considerations - has with time become world-renowned. It is owing to the trumpet that the name of Serbia has resounded worldwide, in all the continents. Some orchestras, when they appear on stage, whether for official competition national dress, the authentic and indigenous dances and other folkinspired elements, coupled with music, have become an integral part of national gathering.
The virtuoso music performers, the trumpet players to the paradox and make the story more authentic - are for the most part fully self-taught. They play by ear and quite spontaneously, relying on their musical memory; they play from the heart and soul, and their music reaches out to listeners precisely for this quality.
The Gucha Assembly of Trumpet Players continues to grow year after year: today, this musical feast of recognizable national skills is more popular, more diverse and bigger than ever before.
With considerable experience in organizing Assemblies, today the traditionally hospitable Guča has earned its place on the map of world music festivals, inviting high interest from ethno music lovers, and deservedly so.
As an internationally recognized trumpet capital, and a singular corner of positive energy, a place with accumulated joy, gaiety and spontaneity, coupled with the piercing yet gentle sound of the trumpet, Guča is a place of catharsis of the heart and soul while the festival lasts. The names of Boban Markovic, Milan Mladenovic, Ekrem Sajdic, Elvis Ajdinovic, Fejat and Zoran Sejdic have carried the glory of the Serbian trumpet across the world.
This year the festival will take place from 30 August until 03 September.
www.guca.co.yu/
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