Goran (Cyrillic: Горан) is a Slavic male first name often used in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Montenegro, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia.

Variations[link]

• female Gordana (Cyrillic: Гордана)
• female Goranka (Cyrillic: Горанка)
• female Gorana (Cyrillic: Горана)

Nicknames and cognomen[link]

• Goca [ɡotsa] (in Montenegro)
• Gogi [ɡoɡi]
• Gogo [ɡoːɡo]
• Goksi

Origin and Meaning[link]

• In the South Slavic languages, Goran translated means "woodsman", "the man from the mountains" or "highlander"
• The name can also have a metaphorical meaning "tall as a tree", "the big one", "the tall one" or "the good looking one"
• Following 1988^{[citation needed]}, Goran has become a very popular name. Parents wishing their child health and prosperity have chosen Goran in hopes of their child growing up to be as tall as the mountains, and as strong as the rocks that fall from it.

Name day[link]

• February 24 → Croatian-Catholic Calendar
• July 31 → Serbian-Orthodox Calendar

Famous namesakes[link]

• Göran Eriksson, Swedish football manager.
• Goran Stojcheski, Macedonian, general manager at BMG Universe - Macedonia.
• Goran Popović, Serbian worker at CIP d.o.o.
• Goran Bregović, Bosnian musician and composer
• Goran Kuzminac, Italian musician and composer
• Goran Ivanišević, Croatian tennis player, 2001 Wimbledon Champion
• Goran Slavkovski, Macedonian-Swedish footballer
• Goran Popov, Macedonian footballer
• Goran Bogdanović, Serbian politician
• Goran Višnjić, Croatian actor
• Goran Vlaovic, Croatian footballer
• Goran Gavrančić, Serbian footballer
• Ivan Goran Kovačić, Croatian poet
• Goran Hadžić, Serbian politician in Croatia
• Goran Karan, Croatian pop singer
• Goran Jurić, Croatian and Yugoslavian international footballer
• Goran Pandev, Macedonian football player
• Goran Marić, Serbian footballer
• Goran Bunjevčević, Serbian footballer
• Goran Sablić, Croatian footballer
• Goran Dragic, Slovene basketball player

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Goran

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2009)

Eugene Hütz
Hütz performing at Bonnaroo, June 2008
Background information
Birth name	Yevheniy Oleksandrovych Nikolayev-Simanov
Born	(1972-09-06) September 6, 1972 (age 39) Boiarka, Soviet Union (present day Ukraine)
Origin	Boyarka, Ukraine
Genres	Gypsy punk
Instruments	Guitar, vocals, fire sand bucket
Years active	1999–present
Associated acts	Gogol Bordello J.U.F. Les Claypool

Eugene Hütz (Ukrainian: Євген Гудзь, Yevhen Hudz′; born Yevheniy Aleksandrovich Nikolayev-Simonov, Russian: Евгений Александрович Николаев-Симонов), September 6, 1972) is a Ukrainian-born singer and composer, most notable as the frontman of the critically acclaimed New York Gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello. Hütz is also a DJ and actor.

Early life[link]

Hütz was born in Boyarka, near Kiev, to a Russian father and a mother who was of half Roma ancestry.^[1][2] His father was a butcher who also played guitar in one of Ukraine's first rock bands, Meridian. Hütz learned English through his musical "mentors" because

Russian rock always had lyrics that were superb and more advanced than the original Western rock ‘n’ roll, I think. Of course, Western rock is much stronger when it comes to performance and production, but Russian song writers were the champions of writing lyrics. So naturally I picked mentors who taught me how to tell a story, like Johnny Cash or Nick Cave or Leonard Cohen or Shane MacGowan from The Pogues. I learned English through my mentors. I feel like they are kind of my uncles in this sense.^[3]

Hütz's ride to the United States was a long journey through Poland, Hungary, Austria and Italy. Descendants of gypsies called the Servo Roma (a tribe known for its blacksmiths, horsetraders and musicians), Hütz and his family fled their hometown after hearing of the Chernobyl meltdown. Enduring a seven-year trek through East European refugee camps provided Hütz with an immigrant experience that is reflected in his songwriting. However, it is Hütz's Roma and Ukrainian background that is his central inspiration, influencing his lifestyle and the music of his band Gogol Bordello.

Hütz arrived in Vermont in 1992 as a political refugee through a resettlement program with his mother, father and cousin Yosef.^[4]

Gogol Bordello[link]

Hütz started his musical career back in Ukraine with the band Uksusnik. While in Vermont, Hütz formed the punk band The Fags.^[4] Later, Hütz moved to New York and took on his mother's German maiden name of Hütz. It was in New York where he met members of Gogol Bordello including violinist Sergey Ryabtsev, accordionist Yuri Lemeshev, guitarist Oren Kaplan, drummer Eliot Ferguson and dancers Pam Racine and Elizabeth Sun.

Hütz performing with Gogol Bordello

In 1999, Gogol Bordello released their debut full-length Voi-La Intruder, produced by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds drummer Jim Sclavunos. In September 2002 the band released their second album Multi Kontra Culti vs. Irony. In 2005, the band released the E.P. East Infection followed later that year by the SideOneDummy debut Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike, recorded by Steve Albini. Gogol Bordello’s next offering, Super Taranta! (produced by Victor Van Vugt) became one of their most critically acclaimed releases with music critic Robert Christgau calling Gogol Bordello “the world's most visionary band.”^[5] Their next album, Trans-Continental Hustle, was released on April 27, 2010, and the LP on May 11, 2010.^[6]

Gogol Bordello's live shows and Hütz's stage presence has earned them invitations to places such as The Whitney Museum in New York, The Tate Modern in London and the Venice Biennale in Italy. Gogol Bordello has played events such as Coachella, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Glastonbury, Roskilde Festival, Reading, Virgin Mobile Fest, Leeds, Bumbershoot, Austin City Limits Music Festival, and A Campingflight to Lowlands Paradise.

Other projects[link]

Since moving to New York, Hütz has also made a name for himself as a DJ with a style best represented on his experimental side project J.U.F. (Jüdisch-Ukrainische Freundschaft) and a newer incarnation, MITITIKA. He has also performed and recorded with the Kolpakov Trio.

Hütz made his film debut in the 2005 film Everything Is Illuminated, playing the character Alex. In addition to starring in Everything Is Illuminated, Hütz wrote and performed (as part of Gogol Bordello) some of the music for the film's soundtrack. Much of Gogol Bordello makes a cameo appearance in an early scene in the movie.

Hütz is also the subject of the 2006 documentary, The Pied Piper of Hützovina. Directed by Pavla Fleischer, The Pied Piper of Hützovina chronicles Hütz’s annual trip across Ukraine and Eastern Europe exploring his musical and cultural roots.^[7]

In 2008, Hütz starred as the lead character in Filth and Wisdom, the film that marks Madonna’s directorial debut. The film premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 13, 2008.

Hütz wrote the introduction for the Subculture Books edition of Taras Bulba, released in December of 2008.^[8]

Hütz has also worked with Les Claypool on various materials; he performed on Claypool's album "Of Fungi and Foe", on the track "Bite Out of Life".

Influence[link]

In the 2006 movie Wristcutters: A Love Story, the character of Eugene (played by Shea Whigham) is based on Hütz and several of Hütz's songs are featured in the film.

In the January 2008, Gucci menswear show in Milan, Hütz was cited as the key inspiration for the collection.^[9]

Personal life[link]

Hütz is an avid supporter of Romani rights, using his music to introduce the gypsy culture to a wider audience. When he’s not touring with Gogol Bordello, Hütz can be found DJ-ing at the Bulgarian Bar also known as "Mehanata" in New York or touring with the Russian gypsy group Kolpakov Trio, led by his mentor Sasha Kolpakov. Eugene has no siblings, although he refers to his maternal cousin as his brother; his cousin made an appearance in the movie Everything is Illuminated playing the trumpet. Both Eugene and his cousin are 1/4 Romani. His maternal grandmother is his tie to his Romani roots, although this knowledge was kept away from him until he was fourteen. In October 2008, Hütz told the L.A. Weekly that he had moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.^[10] In November 2009, he told Pagina/12 that he had moved to São Paulo.^[11]

Filmography[link]

• Kill Your Idols (2004) as himself
• Kill Your Darlings (2004 short film) as the prince
• Everything Is Illuminated (2005) as Alex
• The Pied Piper of Hützovina (2006) as himself
• Gogol Bordello Non-Stop (2008) as himself
• Filth and Wisdom (2008) as A.K.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Eugene Hütz at the Internet Movie Database
• Eugene Hütz on National Public Radio
• Gogol Bordello Non-Stop (2008)
• Gogolbordello.com
• Mehanata
• Kill Your Idols
• Interview with Eugene Hutz by musicOMH.com, 2008
• Eugene Hütz Interview with L.A. Weekly, October 2008
• Eugene Hütz Interview with Aaron Hillis of IFC News, October 2008
• Eugene Hütz Interview with ION Magazine, July 2010
• Interview with Eugene Hütz and Santeri Ahlgren, December 2010

This biographical article relies on references to primary sources or sources affiliated with the subject, rather than references from independent authors and third-party publications. Please add citations from reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (January 2011)

Goran Karan
Background information
Birth name	Goran Karan
Born	(1964-04-02) April 2, 1964 (age 48) in Belgrade, Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia
Origin	Croatia
Genres	Pop
Occupations	Singer
Instruments	vocals, piano, hammond organ, acoustic guitar
Years active	1988–present
Website	http://www.gorankaran.hr

Goran Karan (born April 2, 1964 in Belgrade), is a Croatian singer from Split. He specializes in songs influenced by Dalmatian folk music and is known for his powerful and refined tenor voice. Karan's collaboration with composer Zdenko Runjić led to some of his finest work, which won him several awards.

Karan was the lead singer of Croatian rock group Big Blue, before becoming a solo artist in 1997.

In 2000 he represented Croatia at Eurovision Song Contest, after winning the Croatian pre-selection Dora. In the Eurovision Song Contest, he won the ninth place with his song "Ostani" ("Stay").

In 2005 he was one of the judges in Hrvatski idol, Croatian version of Pop Idol. Karan's song "Ružo moja bila" won the 2005 Split Festival song competition, as well as 2005 Sunčane skale festival in Herceg Novi.

In summer 2007, deeply moved by the Kornati fire tragedy, in which 13 volunteer firemen perished, composed in the spur of the moment the song "Ovo nije kraj" ("This Is Not the End"), gathered under the name Split Star a group of famous singers (Oliver Dragojević, Marko Perković Thompson, Tedi Spalato, Dražen Zečić, Giuliano, Alen Nižetić, Hari Rončević) from the Split area, that performed it with him in a music video, all of this in less than fifteen days [1].

Albums[link]

• Kao da te ne volim (Like I Don't Love You) - 1999
• Vagabundo (Vagabund) - 2000
• Ahoj! (Ahoy!) - 2003
• Od srca do usana (From Heart to the Lips) - 2005
• Zlatna kolekcija (Golden Collection) - 2005
• Dite Ljubavi (Child of Love) - 2008

External links[link]

• (Croatian) www.gorankaran.hr (Official site)
• (Croatian) gorankaran.atspace.com (Fan site)

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Doris Dragović with "Marija Magdalena"	Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2000	Succeeded by Vanna with "Strings of My Heart"
Preceded by Romana Panić	Sunčane Skale winner 2005	Succeeded by Milena Vučić

This article on a Croatian singer is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

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Göran Persson
31st Prime Minister of Sweden
In office 22 March 1996 – 6 October 2006 (&1000000000000001000000010 years, &10000000000000198000000198 days)
Monarch	Carl XVI Gustaf
Deputy	Lena Hjelm-Wallén Margareta Winberg Marita Ulvskog Lars Engqvist Bo Ringholm
Preceded by	Ingvar Carlsson
Succeeded by	Fredrik Reinfeldt
Personal details
Born	(1949-01-20) 20 January 1949 (age 63) Vingåker, Södermanland
Political party	Swedish Social Democratic Party
Spouse(s)	Gunnel Claesson (div.) Annika Barthine (div.) Anitra Steen
Residence	Övre Torp, Södermanland
Alma mater	Örebro University College
Cabinet	Cabinet of Persson
Religion	Lutheran/Church of Sweden
Signature

Hans Göran Persson (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈʝœːran ˈpæːʂɔn]) (born 20 January 1949) was the Prime Minister of Sweden from 1996 to 2006 and the leader of the Swedish Social Democratic Party from 1996 to 2007. He was Minister for Finance from 1994 to 1996.

Conceding defeat in the September 2006 general election, he announced that he would resign as party leader, and Mona Sahlin was elected to succeed him as party leader in March 2007. Since August 2007 he has worked as a part time corporate lobbyist for the JKL Group.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life[link]

Persson was born in Vingåker in Södermanland, Sweden, in a working-class home. He has in recent years revealed that he wanted to become a priest as a young man;^[1] however, he applied to the college in Örebro where he took courses in social science (mainly sociology). He completed 80 college credits (120 ECTS credits) in the subject before he left the college in 1971 without graduating. According to himself he had at the time almost completed an education in social and political sciences.^{[citation needed]} As the college later received credentials as a full university, the renamed Örebro University gave him an honorary PhD in medicine in February 2005, an award that provoked some controversy.

He first married Gunnel (née Claesson) in 1978, with whom he has two daughters. They divorced in 1995. On 10 March 1995, he married Annika Barthine, whom he divorced in December 2002. On 6 December 2003, Persson married Anitra Steen, who became his third wife.

In 2004 Persson and Steen purchased the 190 hectare agricultural property Övre Torp by Lake Båven in Södermanland. During 2006 the couple started the construction of a large house on the property.

He has maintained his Christian faith and is a member of Swedish Association of Christian Social Democrats.^{[citation needed]}

Health problems[link]

On 8 July 2002, Persson fell while riding his bicycle at Harpsund and broke his left clavicle.^[2] Following this accident he was unable to lift his left arm for some time and almost fainted during a speech in Almedalen on 10 July 2002 and after a meeting with then British Prime Minister Tony Blair on 15 July 2002.^[2][3] Present with him during the accident was Pär Nuder, then Minister of Finance, and Sten Olsson, then State Secretary. Pär Nuder wrote in his book Stolt men inte nöjd ("proud but not satisfied"), released in 2008, that Persson had fallen while riding his bicycle because he was drunk after consuming large amounts of alcoholic beverages.^[4] Persson said in response to these claims: "I can't exactly recapitulate the event but I can say as much that I'm surprised that Pär Nuder remembers anything".^[5][6]

In September 2003 Persson was diagonosed with hip osteoarthritis and surgery was recommended. He chose to go through Sweden's public health-care system instead of seeking private treatment; he was put on a waiting list, and finally received a hip replacement operation in June 2004. During that 9-month period he walked with a limp and reportedly was on strong painkillers; he had to cancel several official trips due to the pain he was in.^[7]

Political career[link]

Prime Minister Göran Persson speaking at May Day event in 2006, at Norra Bantorget in Stockholm

Persson was in office for more than ten years, making him the second-longest continuously-governing prime minister of Sweden second to Tage Erlander. He is known for his oratorical prowess, often dispensing with prepared speeches or preparing them without the aid of his staff. During his time, he has faced several shocking incidents, such as the Gothenburg riots in 2001, the 2003 murder of the minister of foreign affairs, Anna Lindh, the tsunami disaster in 2004, and the conflict over the publication of satirical Muhammed cartoons in Danish newspapers, leading to threats of violence against Scandinavians and burning of embassies in the Middle East and the resignation of Swedish Foreign Minister Laila Freivalds.

In the early seventies he worked for the Swedish Social Democratic Youth League (SSU), and was a member of the national board from 1972 to 1975. Later, he served as a city council politician at the small municipality of Katrineholm. In 1979 he was elected Member of Parliament, but went back to local politics to serve as Municipal Commissioner (kommunalråd) of Katrineholm from 1985 to 1989.

National politics[link]

In 1989 he was made Minister of Schools in the Ministry of Education during the first Ingvar Carlsson cabinet, until the election in 1991 when the Social Democrats were voted out of office. Persson was one of the brains behind the "Persson-plan" which was presented in 1994 targeting the prevailing economic situation. Sweden at the time still suffered from the recession which began during the early nineties, high unemployment rates and a huge budget deficit. Prime minister Carl Bildt relied at the time on a fragile coalition between the Moderate Party and three other liberal or conservative parties with a strained degree of cooperation. The outcome of the 1994 election proved a success for the Social Democrats when they gained more than 45% of the votes.

Upon returning to government in 1994, Persson was made Minister for Finance, a post he held until 1996. As Minister of Finance much of his job was focused on attaining a sound financial balance in the economy. Persson often emphasizes that he "cleaned up" after the Bildt government.^[8][9]

Party leader and Prime Minister[link]

In 1996 Persson was chosen over Mona Sahlin, the Deputy Prime Minister, to lead the country after Carlsson retired. Persson began where he left off as finance minister - by continuing to spearhead government efforts to alleviate Sweden's chronic budget deficit. In 1994, the annual shortfall was about 13% of GDP. But, after implementing welfare cuts and tax increases, it fell to a projected 2.6% of GDP in 1997, which put Sweden in a position to qualify for the European economic and monetary union. However, the cost was high: unemployment rose, hovering persistently around 13%, then suddenly fell to about 6.5% the same year.

From 1998 to 2002[link]

In the 1998 election the Social Democrats gained even fewer votes than in the 1991 election, when they got voted out of office. Thanks to support that came primarily from the Green and Left parties, he managed to retain office but had to rely on support from at least two parties in the parliament. Two weeks after the election, one of the most sweeping cabinet reshuffles in Swedish history took place, with eight ministers leaving their posts.^{[citation needed]} Later the same year, the government announced proposals for far-reaching cutbacks in Sweden's military spending.

The year 1999 was seen by the Social Democrats as the vindication for the tough fiscal policies pursued since they came to office in 1994: GDP growth was estimated at about 3.6%, well above the European average, inflation remained subdued, and the budget was in surplus for the first time in the 1990s. The party proposed income tax cuts for 2000.

In 2000 a strong economy, falling unemployment, and the impact of the Internet appeared to breathe new life into the “Swedish model” of a welfare society, one that had seemed dead and buried during the deep recession of the early 1990s: growth reached 4%, and unemployment fell to the lowest level in years. The Social Democrats, however, failed to capitalize on the economic boom. Opinion polls showed the party struggling to return to its post-election 36% approval level. Instead, the smaller Left Party, a Social Democrat ally, picked up support with its program of increased public spending and opposition to Swedish membership in the European single currency.

Economically, the bursting of the dot-com boom by 2001 had marked implications for Sweden. Ericsson, the world's largest producer of mobile telecommunications equipment, shed thousands of jobs, as did the country's once fast-expanding Internet consulting firms and dot-com start-ups.

Gross domestic product growth of 3.6% in 2000 was expected to have fallen to around 1.5% in 2001, and only a minor recovery was forecast for 2002. The government was hoping that tax cuts, subsidies on child-care expenses, and wage increases would boost consumer confidence with real disposable income to increase by 5.4%. Exports were also expected to pick up in 2002, helped by the weakness of the Swedish krona, which hit record lows against both the dollar and the Euro in 2001.

2002 election[link]

This section requires expansion.

In the 2002 election the Social Democrats increased their number of seats in the parliament primarily at the expense of the Left Party. Persson continued to lead a minority government instead of forming a coalition, despite earlier demands from his supporting parties to participate in the government.

2006 election[link]

This section requires expansion.

After the defeat at the general elections of 17 September 2006, Persson immediately filed a request for resignation, and declared his intentions to resign as party leader after a special party congress in March 2007.^[10] On 13 April 2007, Persson also announced his resignation from the Riksdag (where he had served 1979–1985 and from 1991) to be succeeded by Caroline Helmersson Olsson from his native Vingåker.

1996 - 2006 Foreign policy[link]

Göran Persson (center) with George W. Bush and Romano Prodi at Gunnebo Slott near Gothenburg, Sweden, 14 June 2001.

In foreign policy Persson belongs to the right-wing of the Social Democrats.^{[citation needed]} Among other things, he supported the 2001 United States invasion of Afghanistan, because it was in line with the UN Security Council's decision and because only military centers were to be targeted.^{[citation needed]} However he protested against the 2003 invasion of Iraq, because it was not accepted by the UN and was seen as unnecessary aggression with a risk of high civilian casualties.^{[citation needed]} Despite his differences with George W. Bush, Persson has admitted that he is a "truly underestimated politician" in Europe, referring to Bush's abilities as a politician rather than his political views, and the fact that many Europeans see Bush as a less than intelligent leader.^{[citation needed]}

Regarding Sweden's membership in the European Union, Persson has been an advocate of an expanded Swedish role in the organization. During Sweden's presidency of the EU in the first half of 2001, Persson with assistance from foreign minister Anna Lindh presided over the organization and contributed towards the enlargement which took place in 2004.^[11][12] He advocated for a Swedish entry into the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), however in a 2003 referendum a majority of Swedes voted against joining the EMU.^[13][14]

After leaving office[link]

In October 2007, Persson released his memoirs, "Min väg, mina val" (My path, my choices). [1] In March 2007 a documentary series consisting of four one-hour episodes aired on SVT, chronicling Persson's time in office. The documentary became controversial due to Persson's negative comments about both his party members and staff and against his political opponents.

Persson left his seat in the Riksdag in April 2007. In May 2007 he announced that he would be working as a consultant for the Stockholm-based PR firm JKL in the future. In April 2008 he was installed as chairman of the board of Sveaskog, a forestry business group owned by the Swedish government.

In late 2008 he became member of the European Council on Tolerance and Reconciliation, a not-for-profit organization established to monitor tolerance in Europe and prepare recommendations on fighting xenophobia and intolerance on the continent.

In March 2010, Persson was elected to the Board of Directors of World Resources Institute.^{[15] [16]}

Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance, and Research[link]

In 1998 then Prime Minister Persson initiated international talks on the establishment of an inter-governmental organisation for Holocaust education, which resulted in the founding of the Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance, and Research (ITF). The ITF now has 27 Member States. He had already raised the issue of Holocaust education within the Swedish Parliament, initiating a national information campaign with the aim for 'facts about the Holocaust to form the platform for a discussion on democracy, tolerance and the fact that every human was of equal value.'^[17] The Campaign was entitled Living History, or Levande Historia.

Honours and awards[link]

• Raoul Wallenberg Award (USA, 2001)^[18]
• Honorary doctorate from Dankook University in Seoul (South Korea, (2004)
• Honorary doctorate from the University of Örebro (2004)
• The Sophie Prize, "for his political leadership in the field of climate policy" (Norway, 2007)^[19]
• H. M. The King's Medal, 12th size with chain (2009)^[20]
• Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, First Class (Estonia, 2011)

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Göran Persson

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Göran Persson

External links[link]

• Government Offices of Sweden - Göran Persson

v t e Prime Ministers of Sweden De Geer, Sr. Posse Thyselius Themptander G. Bildt Åkerhielm Boström von Otter Boström Ramstedt Lundeberg Staaff Lindman Staaff Hammarskjöld Swartz Edén Branting De Geer, Jr. von Sydow Branting Trygger Branting Sandler Ekman Lindman Ekman Hamrin Hansson Pehrsson-Bramstorp Hansson Erlander Palme Fälldin Ullsten Fälldin Palme Carlsson C. Bildt Carlsson Persson Reinfeldt

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Goran Bregović
Background information
Also known as	Brega
Born	(1950-03-22) March 22, 1950 (age 62)
Origin	Sarajevo, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia
Occupations	guitarist, composer, band leader
Instruments	Guitar, Vocals, Bass
Years active	1969–
Associated acts	Kodeksi, Jutro, Bijelo Dugme
Website	www.goranbregovic.rs

Goran Bregović (Serbian Cyrillic: Горан Бреговић, pronounced [ɡɔ̌ran brɛ̂ːɡɔʋitɕ], born 22 March 1950 in Sarajevo, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia) is one of the most internationally known modern musicians and composers of the Balkans. He currently splits his time between Paris and Belgrade, where he settled down during the Yugoslav Wars.^[1][2]

Bregović has composed for such varied artists as Iggy Pop and Cesária Évora. He rose to fame playing guitar with his rock band Bijelo dugme. Among his better known scores are Emir Kusturica’s films (Time of the Gypsies, Arizona Dream, Underground).

Musical style[link]

Bregović’s compositions, extending Balkan musical inspirations to innovative extremes, draw upon European classicism and Balkan rhythms.^[3]

Bregović's music carries Serbian, Bosnian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Greek and Romani themes (in that order) and is a fusion of popular music with traditional polyphonic music from the Balkans, tango and brass bands.

Early life and career[link]

Goran Bregović in concert at Carnegie Hall, New York on 19 October 2011.

Bregović was born in Sarajevo, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia, to a Serbian mother and Croatian father.^[4] His father was an officer in the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA). When his parents divorced he remained living with his mother in Sarajevo.

Goran played violin in a music school. However, deemed untalented, he was thrown out during second grade. His musical education was thus reduced to what his friend taught him until Goran's mother bought him his first guitar in his early teens. Bregović wanted to enroll in a fine arts high school, but his aunt told his mother that it was supposedly full of homosexuals, which precipitated his mother's decision to send him to a technical (traffic) school. As a compromise for not getting his way, she allowed him to grow his hair long. Upon entering high school, Goran joined the school band "Izohipse" where he began on bass guitar. Soon, however, he was kicked out of that school too (this time for misbehaviour - he crashed a school-owned Mercedes-Benz). Bregović then entered grammar school and its school band "Beštije" (again as a bass guitar player). When he was 16, his mother left him and moved to the coast, meaning that other than having a few relatives to rely on, he mostly had to take care of himself. He did that by playing folk music in a kafana in Konjic, working on construction sites, and selling newspapers.

Spotting him at a Beštije gig in 1969, Željko Bebek invited 18-year-old Bregović to play bass guitar in his band Kodeksi, which Goran gladly accepted.

Eventually, Kodeksi shifted setup so Goran moved from bass to lead guitar, resulting in Kodeksi having the following line-up during summer 1970: Goran Bregović, Željko Bebek, Zoran Redžić and Milić Vukašinović. All of them would eventually become members of Bijelo dugme at some point in the future. At the time, they were largely influenced by Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath. During the fall of 1970, this resulted in departure of Željko Bebek, who (both as rhythm guitar player and singer) got phased out of the band. At the end of the year, Goran's mother and Zoran's brother arrived to Naples and took them back to Sarajevo.

Then in the autumn of 1971, Goran entered university and decided to study philosophy and sociology. He soon quit, however. At the same time, Milić Vukašinović left for London, so Goran and Zoran started playing in a band named Jutro ("Morning"). In the next few years, the band changed lineups frequently, and on 1 January 1974 changed its name to Bijelo dugme ("White Button").

Bijelo dugme[link]

Bregović played lead guitar and composed most of the music for the rock group Bijelo dugme (White Button). They were one of the most popular bands in SFR Yugoslavia right from their arrival on the scene in 1974 until their folding in 1989.

After Bijelo dugme[link]

At the time Bijelo dugme was falling apart, Goran entered the world of film music. His first project was Emir Kusturica's Time of the Gypsies (1989). This turned out to be a great success (both the film and the music from it). Goran and Emir's collaboration continued, and Goran composed music (which was performed by Iggy Pop) for Emir's next film Arizona Dream (1993).During the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina Goran lived in Paris but he also lived in Belgrade. His next major project, music for Patrice Chéreau's Queen Margot was again a great success, and the film won two awards on the 1994 Cannes Film Festival. Next year's Golden Palm went to Underground, for which Goran Bregović composed the music.

In 1997, he worked with Turkish singer Sezen Aksu on her album Düğün ve Cenaze (Wedding and Funeral). After that album, he continued making composite albums with other musicians that were based on his music and singers' lyrics.

He made an album with George Dalaras in 1999 named Thessaloniki - Yannena with Two Canvas Shoes. In the same year, Bregović recorded an album called Kayah i Bregović (Kayah and Bregović) with popular Polish singer Kayah which sold over 650,000 copies in Poland (six times platinum record).

In 2001, he recorded another album with another Polish singer, Krzysztof Krawczyk, titled "Daj mi drugie życie" ("Give Me Second Life").

In 2005, Bregović took part in three large farewell concerts of Bijelo dugme.

A number of works by Bregović can be heard on the soundtrack to the 2006 film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, most notably "Đurđevdan." The film itself actually features more Bregović samples than the soundtrack.

Weddings and Funerals Orchestra[link]

Bregović performs with a large ensemble of musicians. A brass band, bagpipes, a string ensemble, a tuxedo-clad all-male choir from Belgrade, and traditional Bulgarian and Roma singers make up his 40-piece band and orchestra.

Since 1998, Bregović has been performing his music mainly in the form of concerts all over the world with his Weddings and Funerals Orchestra. This consists of 10 people (in the small version) or 37 (in the large version, although at some instances this number will be different, depending on participants from the host country).

The small orchestra consists of Alen Ademović (vocals, drums), Bokan Stanković (first trumpet), Dalibor Lukić (second trumpet), Stojan Dimov (sax, clarinet), Aleksandar Rajković (first trombone, glockenspiel), Miloš Mihajlović (second trombone), Dejan Manigodić (tuba) and Goran himself. The uniqueness of the orchestra comes from the voices of the Bulgarian singers Daniela Radkova-Aleksandrova and Ludmila Radkova-Traikova. The large orchestra usually has singers from the Belgrade Orthodox male choir, string performers from Poland, or from the country in which they perform, as well as other local performers.

Eurovision[link]

During the Eurovision 2008 final in Belgrade Arena, Serbia, he had a small concert.^[5] He also composed the Serbian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2010; 'Ovo Je Balkan' sung by Milan Stanković.

Personal[link]

In 1993, Bregović married his long-time girlfriend Dženana Sudžuka. The wedding ceremony held in Paris featured film director Emir Kusturica as the groom's best man and longtime Bijelo dugme backing vocal Amila Sulejmanović as the bride's maid of honour.

The couple has three daughters: Ema (born in March 1995), Una (February 2002) and Lulu (May 2004).

Bregović owns real-estate properties all over the world, but spends most of his time between Belgrade, where most of his musical collaborators reside, and Paris, where his spouse lives with their three daughters.

He also has a daughter named Željka (born out of wedlock from a previous relationship) who gave birth to Goran's grand daughter, Bianca. He has a brother named Predrag who lives in New York City and sister Dajana who lives in Split.

On 12 June 2008, Bregović injured his spine in a fall from a tree. He fell four meters from a cherry tree in the garden of his home in Senjak, a Belgrade district, breaking vertebrae. However, according to the doctors, his condition was "stable without neurological complications."^[1] After surgery, he made a quick recovery and on 8 July and 9 July, he held two big concerts in New York City, where for more than two hours each night, he proved his performance skills had not suffered from the accident.^[6]

Bregović prefers to avoid delving into politics. "Yugoslavia is the intersection of so many worlds: Orthodox, Catholic, Muslim," says Bregović. "With music, I don't have to represent anyone except myself -- because I speak the first language of the world, the one everyone understands: music."^[7]

List of film scores[link]

Goran Bregović Wedding and Funeral Orchestra in Donetsk. March 15, 2006.

• 1977 - Butterfly cloud (Leptirov oblak) - Directed by: Zdravko Randić
• 1979 - Personal Affairs (Lične stvari) - Directed by: Aleksandar Mandić
• 1988 - Time of the Gypsies (Dom za vešanje) - Directed by: Emir Kusturica
• 1989 - Kuduz - Directed by: Ademir Kenović
• 1990 - Silent Gunpowder (Gluvi barut) - Directed by: Bahrudin Čengić
• 1991 - The Serbian Girl (Das Serbische Mädchen) - Directed by: Peter Sehr
• 1991 - The Little One (Mala) - Directed by: Predrag Antonijević
• 1991 - Čaruga - Directed by: Rajko Grlić
• 1993 - Arizona Dream - Directed by: Emir Kusturica
• 1993 - Toxic Affair - Directed by: Philoméne Esposito
• 1993 - La Nuit sacrée - Directed by: Nicolas Klotz
• 1993 - Le Nombril du monde - Directed by: Ariel Zeitoun
• 1993 - KIKA - Directed by: Pedro Almodovar
• 1994 - soundtrack for La Reine Margot - Directed by: Patrice Chéreau
• 1995 - Underground - Directed by: Emir Kusturica
• 1997 - Music for Weddings and Funerals (Musik för bröllop och begravningar) - Directed by: Unni Straume
• 1997 - A Chef in Love (Shekvarebuli kulinaris ataserti retsepti) - Directed by: Nana Djordjadze
• 1997 - The Serpent's Kiss - Directed by: Philippe Rousselot
• 1997 - XXL - Directed by: Ariel Zeitoun
• 1998 - Train de Vie - Directed by: Radu Mihaileanu
• 1999 - The Lost Son - Directed by: Chris Menges
• 1999 - Tuvalu - Directed by: Veit Helmer
• 1999 - Operation Simoom (Operacja Samum) - Directed by Władysław Pasikowski
• 2000 - 27 Missing Kisses - Directed by: Nana Djordjadze
• 2000 - Je li jasno prijatelju? - Directed by: Dejan Ačimović
• 2005 - The Turkish Gambit (Турецкий гамбит) - Directed by: Dzhanik Faiziyev
• 2005 - I giorni dell'abbandono - Directed by: Roberto Faenza
• 2006 - Karaula - Directed by: Rajko Grlić (This is not true)
• 2006 - Le Lièvre de Vatanen - Directed by: Marc Rivière
• 2006 - Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (non-original music; "Ederlezi" from Dom za vešanje)
• 2007 - Fly by Rossinant - Directed by: Jacky Stoév
• 2008 - Mustafa - Directed by: Can Dündar
• 2011 - Baikonur - Directed by Veit Helmer

List of solo and movie soundtrack albums[link]

• Goran Bregović (1976, PGP RTB)
• Dom za vešanje (1989, Kamarad - Diskoton)
• Kuduz (1989, Diskoton)
• Les Temps des Gitans - Kuduz (1990, Kamarad - PolyGram - Komuna)
• Paradehtika with Alkistis Protopsalti (1991)
• Arizona Dream - Soundtrack (1993, Kamarad - PolyGram - Komuna)
• La reine Margot - Soundtrack (1994, Kamarad - PolyGram - Komuna)
• Underground - Soundtrack (1995, Kamarad - PolyGram - Komuna)
• P.S. (compilation 1996, Komuna)
• Silence of the Balkans (live album 1997, Mercury Records)
• Düğün ve Cenaze with Sezen Aksu (1997)
• Protopsálti (Πρωτοψάλτη)- Paradéchtika (Παραδέχτηκα) (1991)
• Ederlezi (compilation 1998, PolyGram)
• Kayah i Bregović (1999)
• Thessaloniki - Yannena with Two Canvas Shoes with George Dalaras (1999)
• Music for Films (compilation 2000)
• Songbook (compilation 2000, Mercury Records - Universal)
• Kris & Goran with Krzysztof Krawczyk (singer) (2002)
• Tales and Songs from Weddings and Funerals (2002)
• Goran Bregović's Karmen with a Happy End (2007- Universal)
• Alkohol (Šljivovica & Champagne) (2008)
• Welcome to Bregovic (2009)
• Champagne for the Gypsies (2012)

Honours and awards[link]

•  Albania: On 31 June 2006 received a copy of the key of the city of Tirana by Edi Rama on the occasion of his visit to Albania.^[8]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Goran Bregović

• Official Website
• Interview/Portrait Goran Bregović
• Goran Bregovic on Europopmusic.eu (English)
• Goran Bregović at the Internet Movie Database
• More Goran Bregovic's music
• Goran Bregovic Interview at Allaboutjazz.com