Masterful voices among the pearls of Albanian music for the "Whistle" of Kosovo (PHOTO)

"Two years have passed since our dear Nexhmije Pagarusha is no longer among us to come and support us physically in our evenings, as she used to do, even though her health was poor. She lives and breathes around us, we have her with us every day and at every moment through the musical treasure that she left us", was the warning given to the concert by tenor Ramë Lahaj. And he was completely right when he said that "she breathes around us". Such was the concert where some of the most outstanding operatic voices of Albanian music have neatly brought the pearls of music

Ten minutes before the start of the concert, the attendees hardly found any free seats. The hall full of people on their feet was the intro to the Amphitheater of the University Library in Pristina to immerse themselves in the colorful world of Albanian sounds. And this even in unheard works. When the hall lights are turned off, the stage is draped in purple. The stage is given to the soloists accompanied by piano sounds. The third night of the "Rame Lahaj International Opera Festival" has been defined as an evening with innovations and selected voices. It is dedicated to one of the voices that today are hardly repeatable in these parts. As a dedication to the "whistle" of Kosovo, Nexhmije Pagarusha, this evening has been announced since the Festival program was published. The focus has been on the works of Albanian composers, and the soloists, following these sounds, have conveyed the skill of interpretation on stage. Inspiration was provided by two names that were the headlines of the evening: Nexhmije Pagarusha and composer Česk Zadeja. The evening honored the creative opus of the Shkodran composer on the 95th anniversary of his birth. These two dedications have added the weight of responsibility to the performers who are well-known names on the Kosovar scene. According to the president of the Festival, Ramë Lahaj, this Festival would be incomplete without the singer who has left behind a rich musical treasure.

"Two years have passed since our dear Nexhmije Pagarusha is no longer among us to come and support us physically in our evenings, as she used to do, even though her health was poor. She lives and breathes around us, we have her every day and every moment with us through the musical treasure she left us", wrote tenor Rame Lahaj, on Tuesday morning, when he invited the public to this evening.

Arta Jashari, Zana Abazi-Ramadani, Mirlinda Koci, Klodjan Kaçani, Armand Likaj and Granit Musliu have kept the audience attentive for more than an hour with a game that complements the singing. The works of the composer Cesk Zadeja have dominated.

"I try to dedicate my whole career to causes and of course to sing in an evening where Nexhmije Pagarusha writes on the poster, for me it is a great honor because I grew up with her songs", said the soprano Arta Jashari for KOĖN. He has appeared on stage several times, where he performed the work "Romance" from "Oh ky tregim" and "Wedding" by Česk Zade and "Te kroni" by Prenk Jakovo. The interpretation of these operatic arias to bring them to the Prishtina audience for the first time has created a special emotion for the soprano Jashari.

"This has been a special journey because we haven't heard the works before, but we have worked on them from the beginning ourselves and I love Česk Zade and I had double emotions when I sang his arias", he added further Jashari. A special space, "RLIOF" is also giving young talents in singing. He aims to raise their capacity to another level through masterclasses conducted with the vocal master, the French tenor, Jean Bernard-Thomas. Mirlinda Koci was part of the master class last year and this year she opened the special evening dedicated to Pagarusha. Among the young voices was tenor Granit Musliu. Baritone Armand Likaj from Albania has already become known to the public in Pristina for his deep voice and playing in the service of what the work conveys. The emotion he conveys on stage, he claims, is multiplied by the audience here.

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"The first time I am at 'RLIOG', but I experienced it with a special emotion knowing about all this work and investment to make such an important contribution to art in Pristina. It was a pleasure and in particular it is an extraordinary pleasure for me to experience such strong emotions of a wonderful audience from whom I always find warmth", said Likaj for KOĖN.

In the premiere works, where verses of love are woven and hymns are sung about the motherland, the soloists have studied with special dedication their breakdown in order to convey them with emotion to the audience in the hall.

Albanian pianist Menan Bërvenik, who lives in Vienna, often accompanies performances where Albanian is sung. Even in Pristina, he followed the performance of all the artists on stage. By interweaving singing with piano playing, they have permeated the creative opus of well-known Albanian composers.

"Mostly, I am a little experienced in Albanian music, but it has been a very varied job, especially to collaborate with such extraordinary talents that Kosovo and Albania have", he told KOHEN.

Soloists from Kosovo and Albania, well-known names in both countries, have also performed in duets in front of the public. With the interpretation of the song "Lule borë", they were joined by the well-known soprano Elbenita Kajtazi and the tenor Ramë Lahaj, who climbed the stage together with the guests of the Festival who led him, and repeated it in the three nights of the Festival. And the public joined them in another form: through applause during the interpretation of the song "Snowflake". Evenings like these are considered to be very necessary for the public in Pristina, especially for the fact that they highlight the wealth of Albanian music.

"An evening, which I would say is missing from our music scene. An evening full of compilations of works by Albanian composers. I also heard some of the works for the first time. As I said, we have a very beautiful music, what is missing is the promotion of our artists. I am convinced that the Festival focuses on this point", composer and conductor Memli Kelmendi told KOĖN.

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The "Rame Lahaj" opera festival will end on July 31 in the "Skënderbeu" square, where the special guest will be the soprano Angela Gheorgiu.

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