ISPF 2019 

It has been some time since Samobor and percussion have seriously fallen in love.

After a decade of colouring the Samobor Autumns with numeros shades of percussion and marimba music, and bringing exciting concerts by renowned international guests under the name of Ivana Bilic Marimba Week, we have decided to turn to the starry skies and warm summer nights for new inspiration.

Now it`s time for Samobor in summer to dream, shake and swing to the rhythms of music.

This year we are bringing to you sophisticated vibraphone music by  Grammy winner Andrey Pushkarev, spicy and fresh, upcoming musicians like Ayami & Dan, chamber music with elegance by Ivan & Christina, a BUNKER sound invasion with INK & Miodrag Gladović, the dynamic FLAM-a duo and Samobor percussion forces -  SUDAR beat

See you in Samobor

Ivana Kuljerić Bilić   is an international marimba virtuoso and percussion artist. Known for her versatility, she regularly appears as soloist with European orchestras. Her concert activities include recitals, crossover projects, stage productions, cd recording sessions, appearances at live tv shows and cooperations with artists and ensembles in Europe, USA, China and South America, in halls such as the Merkin Hall in New York, Palacio de las Bellas Artes in Mexico City and Franz Liszt Hall in Budapest. She gives masterclasses, participates in percussion festivals and serves as jury member at competitions.

Ivana is member of the INK Experiment duo and has been the solo timpanist of the Symphony Orchestra of the Croatian RTV. She is the recipient of all major Croatian performers’ and discography awards. She is a commissioned author, her pieces are published by Edition Svitzer, Malletworks, Cantus & Inkoplastika Edition. A pupil of I. Lešnik, she currently teaches at the Zagreb Academy of Music.

Ivana is a Marimbaone artist with her own signature line of mallets.

Our
Artists

ANDREI PUSHKAREV

Vibraphone

Vibraphonist Andrei Pushkarev was a student of Professor Alexander Blinov at the Kiev Tshaikovsky National Conservatory. During his studies at the Conservatory, Andrei began to create his own works including his own compositions for vibraphone solo. Andrei continued to study orchestral percussion, but the vibraphone had captured his soul.  The vibraphone became much more than a favorite instrument to him. The vibraphone, a true solo instrument, was capable of transporting listeners to a world filled with new thrilling sounds and colors

Since 1999, Andrei serves as percussionist and arranger of the famous Kremerata Baltica. In ensemble and in duo with Gidon Kremer he has performed at the most prestigious concert halls around the world. including Carnegie Hall in New York, Albert Hall in London, the Musikverein and Konzerthaus in Vienna, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and so on. As a member of the ensemble he recorded for Nonesuch, Deutsche Grammophon, ECM etc. As a soloist he can be heard on the CD release “After Mozart” which received a Grammy Award in 2001 in the U.S. as well as the Echo Award in 2002 in Germany.

Andrei Pushkarev has performed with renowned musicians including Yo Yo Ma, Martha Argerich, Vadim Repin, Julian Rachlin, Gabriela Montero, Didier Lockwood, Michel Portal, Mario Brunello, Peter Sadlo, David Friedman, Katia Skanavi, Gabor Boldoszki. Additionally, he has worked with highly-regarded conductors such as Yury Temirkanov, Voldemar Nelsson, Roman Kofman.

Since 2009 Andrei Pushkarev has regularly given Master-classes all around the world (South America, Europe and Australia). He has served as a judge in numerous International percussion competitions such as TROMP percussion competition (Holland) and International PAS Competition (Italy), Northwestern Competition (USA) and many others. 

Since 2013 Andrei Pushkarev is endorser and the official performer of “Majestic Percussion” and “Innovative Percussion”. 

Andrei composes and arranges for orchestras and different chamber groups.

 AYAMI OKAMURA &

DAN DeSIMONE

(Shiki Duo)

percussion

Shiki is an international percussion duo currently based in Germany. Since 2015, the duo has began their exploration of arranging a wide variety of music ranging from jazz, electronic, film, video game, and classical music as well as contemporary virtuosic and theatrical repertoire. Shiki has performed on both the east and west coasts of the United States as well as two summer tours in Japan premièring new works by several well known composers.
Dan deSimone is an international American percussionist and composer currently living in Germany. In 2016 he received his major at the Boston Conservatory as the first one in contemporary music, Dan has worked with well known contemporary artists and ensembles including Helmut Lachenmann, Glenn Kotche, Mark Applebaum, Asko Schönberg Ensemble, Schlagwerk Den Haag, and others. In 2016, deSimone was a prize winner and recipient of the audience award at the TROMP percussion competition in Eindhoven, Netherlands. He has since been a guest artist and collaborator at the Zeltsman Marimba Festival, Southern California Marimba, the “Legare Incontro” 2017 Japan tour, and as an artist and jury member in the IPEA percussion competition in Shanghai China. Dan is constantly working on new arrangements and compositions.

Ayami Okamura is a Japanese percussion soloist and chamber musician based in Germany. She is focused on making arrangements for classical/modern repertoire, world music, pop, and jazz tunes, and therapy through music. Ayami has won top prizes in the Italy International Percussion Competition, the Japan Classical Music Competition, and Great Wall International Competition. She was the guest artist at Southern California Marimba, Boston Tromp International Percussion Seminar, Boston GuitarFest and Zeltsman Marimba Festival. Besides Shiki duo, she has performed with Izumi Hoshino as violin and marimba duo “MixUs”, and with Japanese percussion ensemble “Legare Incontro”. Ayami's recording of "Suite for Solo Marimba" by S. Sheppard is available on CD baby, iTunes, Spotify and Amazon. She recently recorded D. Friedman’s “Tell Me A Story” for percussion quintet and “Charlie Chaplin” for marimba solo .
Ayami is an endorser and artist of “Mike Balter Mallets”, and “KOROGI Marimba”.

IVAN MANCINELLI &

CHRISTINA SCHORN MANCINELLI

(El Cimarron Ensemble Duo) 

MARIMBA & guitar

The duo, was founded in 1999 within the “El Cimarrón Ensemble” following the successful performance of H.W. Henze’s homonymous chamber opera at the opening of the Salzburg Summer Festival in 1999.

They have ongoing cooperation with composers of contemporary music (S.E.Panzer, S.Taglietti, S.Hakenberg, Vito Palumbo, Raffaele Bellafronte, Gabriele Proy, Balz Trümpy, Jack Fortner, Luca Lombardi, Brad Hufft, Virginia Guastella, Helmut Jasbar, Agustín Castilla-Ávila, Gianluca Podio, etc…). They have performed several times Ennio Morricone’s “Terzo Concerto for guitar, marimba and orchestra. As a duo or as ensemble they have performed at: the NDR of Hamburg, the festival "Aspekte"  Salzburg, the Opera of Nürnberg, the Teatro Civico at Sassari, Festival “Sommer im Altmühltal” , the Festival “Orpheus” in Fresno, the Festival Nuova Consonanza in Rome, the “Wiener Gitarrefestival”, the Teatr STU,  the "Kiev Musik Fest", Festival "Contrastes"  Lviv, the Ruhr 2010 , at Cantiere Internazionale dArte di Montepulciano, at the Arena Festival in Riga, at the Gaiva Festival in Vilnius, the Gasteig, the Semperoper Dresden, etc…

They have participated in several CD’s projects: El Cimarrón (H.W.Henze) and a CD featuring Swiss composer Balz Trümpy for WERGO,  “Memoires of Elagabalus” and “The Egg Musher”, for VDM Records, music by A. Piazzolla and M. de Falla for Bongiovanni Records, new compositions by various composers for STRADIVARIUS.

Ivan Mancinelli graduated with Mr. Forestiere (Conservatory N. Piccinni, Bari), and with P. Sadlo (Mozarteum Salzburg). Since 2003, he is being frequently invited as a guest percussionist by the RAI Symphony Orchestra in Turin. In the same year his essay "Cello Suites, dal Violoncello alla Marimba", (Cello Suites - from the Violoncello to the Marimba) has been published by “Edizioni Pugliesi”. His solo CD with Bach's 6 Suites for Cello, transcribed for Marimba, was published by Bongiovanni Records. He has played many first performances at international festivals and performed as soloist with orchestras.With the Haydn orchestra of Bolzano he premiered Ney Rosauro’s Concerto for Marimba, Timpani and orchestra, soon to be published on a new CD by STRADIVARIUS. Since  2005, Ivan is teaching at the Conservatory in Trieste. He plays on Adams Musical Instruments. 

FRANCESCO MAZZOLENI &

LUIS CAMACHO MONTEALEGRE

(FLAM-a DUO)

percussion

Flam-a Duo is a percussion duo created in 2016, while Francesco Mazzoleni (Treviso, Italy) and Luis Camacho Montealegre (Alcázar de San Juan, Spain) crossed their paths on their Master Degree studies in Zagreb Music Academy, under the mentorship of professors Igor Lešnik and Ivana Kuljerić Bilić. 
Already from its creation, the duo has performed at important festivals throughout Europe: Ivana Bilić Marimba Week (Samobor, Croatia), Salotto Musicale (Treviso/Belluno, Italy) International Percussion Ensemble Week (Bjelovar, Croatia) and Percussion Camp (Tenerife, Spain). The duo has performed on the occasion of the 2018 Birthday of Art, with a live broadcast in the EBU network
Although the duo started principally focusing on marimba repertoire (with which the duo has won two Second Prizes in IV Percute Chamber Music Competition in 2016 and in the Universal Marimba Competition celebrated in Belgium in 2017), the style of Flam-a has developed into a wider range, that would include all types of percussion. They have premiered several Croatian pieces written specially for the duo and have participated in the video clip promotional project for the new Music Academy recording studios.

IVANA KULJERIĆ BILIĆ & NIKOLA KRBANYEVITCH

(I.N.K. Experiment Duo)

percussion, electronics, voice

I.N.K. Experiment Duo is a dynamic and creative ensemble interested both in classical music and new styles, seeking inspiration from collaborations with composers and artists of different backgrounds. The peculiar mix and blending of their classical background and various professional experiences - rock, pop, contemporary, experimental and traditional music, is at the source of duo’s flexibility and spontaneity.
The duo has been active since 2014, appearing at international concert halls, music festivals and percussion events in The Netherlands, Germany, USA, China, Switzerland, Croatia and France (Dubrovnik Summer Festival, Osor Musical Evenings, Zeltsman marimba Festival, Amsterdam Marimba Weekend, Westfalen Classics, PASIC, Rittenhouse SoundWorks, IBMW, Kalima, Teng Yu Ning Xin Festival,...).They are both active as teachers, Ivana being on faculty at the Zagreb University in Croatia and Nikola at the Evreux Conservatory in France. They have given masterclasses and workshops worldwide and served as jury members at competitions.
The duo have several ongoing international projects and collaborations:

“INKarnation” is a tango nuevo crossover trio cooperation with bandoneon in France, featuring original creations and arrangements.

“Watchers of the Skies” is an arrangement collection of progressive rock music from the 70ties, with Nikola and Ivana leading a large percussion ensemble. In 2018 they have started the collaboration with the jazz/rock quartet Chui and will be featured guests on their new album. Multimedia projects in France and Croatia “ElektroINKeMenT”, “Arabesques pour des ombres imMobiles” and “Orange vs Blue” with multimedia artists, composers and installations. 
They have commissioned pieces from international artists (L. Guinot, T. Stepančić, J-L Rimey Meille, G.Stout, G. Tudor, O. Jelaska, K Komljenović…) and arranged music of various genres.

Nikola and Ivana are authors of several pieces for different ensembles (Edition Svitzer, Inkoplastika Edition). The duo is endorsed by Marimbaone.

MIODRAG GLADOVIĆ

elECTRONICS

Miodrag Gladović is a graduate engineer of electrical engineering, a musician and a multimedia artist. For years he has been very active on the contemporary art scene, as a member of the artistic duo Lightune.G with Bojan Gagić or independently, and with his work, engineering knowledge and outstanding creativity he continuously contributes to the innovativeness of the projects he participates in. The combination of his punk approach and DIY ethics, more than two decades of musical experience in bands and projects of different genres, incorporating and using new technologies in his artistic work, his sensibility for contemporary music and art – all this has made Gladović one of the most prominent names of the contemporary scene, in the first place experimental and improvisational music scene, but also of other innovative contemporary art practices.

SUDAR BEAT

percussion trio

„SUDAR BEAT“ was initiated in 2016 by percussionist Goran Gorše. who is also the founder and artistic director of the already well established Sudar Percusion Ensemble. Goran is a respected teacher of percussion (Music School „F. Livadić“, Samobor and Music School Brežice), awarded by the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports, Croatian Association of Music and Dance Pedagogues (HDGPP), Zagreb County and the City of Samobor. He graduated from the Zagreb Music Academy in 2006, under Prof. Ivana Bilić. As a member of the student percussion ensemble Bing Bang, Goran took part in percussion festivals in Spain, France, Austria, Belgium, USA, Taiwan, and was awarded with the Rector’s Award and the Best Student Percussion Ensemble Award at PASIC 2004. He is an experienced orchestra musician regularly playing in the most important Croatian orchestras such as the Zagreb Philharmonic, Croatian Radiotv Symphony Orchestra and many chamber string ensembles.

He has given numerous concerts with internationally acclaimed percussionists: Ivana Bilić, Ney Rosauro, Rachel Xi Zang, Paolo Cimmino, Dane Richeson, to name but a few.

In 2009, together with Ivana Bilić, he founded an annual international percussion event called „Ivana Bilić Marimba Week“ (IBMW), the result of which was an immediate popularization and promotion of percussion instruments in Croatia. Also, since 2016, Goran writes music for the project Poetry to go where cooperates with Sonja Zubović, the author of the project and Croatian actor Robert Kurbaša.

The members of SUDARbeat are some of his most successful pupils: Luka Ivir and Franko Štrbac.

Registration & fees

registration

Festival Fees

Early bird registration by March  15, 2019 - 150 EUR 
Regular registration by May 15, 2019 - 175 EUR 
 

Meals

(Restaurant Samoborska Klet)

Lunch and dinner coupons (5,50 EUR) can be purchased on the spot

Festival fee includes entrance pass for all concerts and masterclasses/clinics, and two private lessons

*after downloading and filling the application form, please send it to the contact address below

Contact ADdRESS

travel & accomodation

how to reach us

By Plane

Airport Zagreb, 30 min from Samobor

transfer can be organized by the Festival

By Car

Trg Matice hrvatske 3, 10430 Samobor
 

Accommodation

Hotel Livadić

Trg Kralja Tomislava 1, Samobor

Hotel Lavica

Ulica Ferde Livadića 5, Samobor

Hostel Samobor

Obrtnička 34, Samobor

Partners

ISPF Team 2019

*Ivana Cover Photo by Romano Grozić 

Artistic director / Ivana Kuljerić Bilić 

Executive director / Renata Glojnarić 

Executive producer / Goran Gorše 

Artistic producer and web master / Nikola Krbanyevitch 

Assistant producer & Social media / Suzana Komazin 

ISPF Council / Josip Konfic, Francesco Mazzoleni, 

Luis Camacho Montealegre

​

The Festival is produced by:

Pučko Otvoreno Učilište Samobor 

Trg Matice hrvatske 3

10430 Samobor

Contact ADdRESS

program