As Long as We are Children, So Long We are Adults ^Featured

Agriculture was the basic profession of everyone, and the land taught them self-discipline and respect for nature. In spite of his love for music, Bane Krstić studied agriculture. He neared the urban Novi Sad when he began to train gymnastics and running in DTV Partizan. He founded his first band Pa šta ('So what') in 1980, playing only Beatles tunes, and nine years later, after meeting Mika Krstić’s Garavi sokak and the view of the world of the main hero Mile Dileja, he came out with his first album. That was when he gave his band its new name – Garavi sokak.

It was a sign that his life was moving in a completely new direction. He did what no one before him had done, he put on peasant clothes, put a guitar across his chest and set off along his road. He bore his straw hat a little to the side, like a true Bohemian, like his ancestors, as he carries it today, twenty four years later, after twelve albums, innumerable hit tunes and over one thousand concerts throughout Serbia, the region and the world.

In an interview for the Home of the Good News, Bane Krstić provided interesting answers about his career, family, tradition...

The Krstić family, as you put it, is 'older than Novi Sad.' How do you remember your childhood?

”My childhood was like most others, filled with happiness and games. We made most of the toys we used ourselves. Slingshots, bows and arrows, fishing rods, skates... An integral part of everything were animals - dogs, horses, and birds”.

How do you remember the times when you rose early in the morning to work the fields?

”I cannot say we were excited to do it, but such were the times. We had to do it. And what you must do is not difficult. The entire family was out working in the fields. As a rule in the evening we were rewarded - either going swimming or to a cinema”.

How do you remember the times you played Beatles tunes and wore long hair?

”For me the Beatles were and remain the biggest aesthetic event. It was because of that music that I formed the band Pa šta which lasted seven years, until I wrote my first songs and formed Garavi sokak".

The Bishop of Budim Danilo, your uncle, comes from your family. How do you remember him?

“Uncle Danilo was a world-class intellectual, and at the same time a spiritual person devoted to high ideals. He was funny, he was temperamental and he was gentle. You can no longer meet that type of people. Our conversations were direct and very useful for me. His advice was and remains useful".

What about your relationship with Zvonko Bogdan?

“(Folk music star) Zvonko Bogdan is the king of the tamburitza world, sentenced to smoky taverns and forgetfulness. He is the last Mohican of an epoch in which there arose and there lives the bridge between the past and the future. We respect each other and from time to time we co-operate. Often I ask him for some advice, and he always gives it to me unselfishly".

You are known for your hat, how many hats do you have? Why have you chosen a straw hat for your trademark?

“I have a couple of hats, I don’t collect them. Usually I give them after performances to someone in the audience. I like hats because they represent an ancient natural prop for various occasions in Vojvodina Province. Straw hats are used both for work and solemn occasions and having fun ".

Why does tamburitza music fascinate you so much?

“Because it is an authentic reflection of our mentality, for which we are known and recognised throughout the world. It resembles us and we resemble it more than any other kind of music.

The tamburitsa band named ‘S’ kraja sveta’ (‘From the end of the World’) accompany you on your concerts and are permament guests at the traditional concert in Belgrade. What ties do you have with them and the restaurant ‘Kraj Sveta’ (‘The End of the World’)?

“Unfortunately after 50 years in operation the waterside restaurant is to be closed. It will be torn down and turned into God knows what. It’s a place where time stands still, at which in peace and without electricity you can take a breather from the city chaos.

You shot your video clip for the song ‘Ja plačem samo kada ljuštim luk’ (‘I Cry only when Peeling Onions’) in Belegiš, on the banks of the Danube. How will you remember that part of the region of Srem?

“I find that every location on the Danube is great. The beach on which we shot the clip, as soon as I saw it, I nicknamed ‘Maldives on the Danube’ ".

You once said that the song which could best describe your work, and even your life, would be ‘Ko te ima taj te nema’ (Whoever has you does not have you’). Why?

“Because the song is known and enjoyed by millions of people throughout the world who understand our language, regardless of education, social status and any kind of adherence.”

A regular at your performances is ‘Ćihu ćihu ćihuhu’ (locomotive sound). Why have you chosen that song to take your guests at your performances back to their childhoods?

“Because one of the most important things is to preserve the child inside us, for as long as we are children, so long we are adults.”

How was the song ‘Ruzmarin’ (‘Rosemary’) created?

“The song was written after my mother’s story about her first love...”

Your new song ‘Kad su stvari same’ (‘When Things are Alone’) has a message, that we should never be alone and that someone always loves us and we love someone. ‘Kad su ljudi sami, prestanu da znače’ (‘When people are alone, they lose all meaning’) says a part of the song. How true is it? How much and why is love essential?

“Love is really very important, because when you don’t love then you are what you are, but when you love you are better than you are...”

Do you have a message for young people?

“Happiness needs courage”.
 
Source: Home of the Good News