“Sunday’s concert will leave the audience breathless!”

Tonci PRUSAC

GEELONG - If you are one of the 300 odd people fortunate enough to have obtained a ticket for this Sunday's sold-out performance by Geelong folkloric group LADO, then you're in for ''one helluva show'', says the man most responsible for teaching an entire new generation of Australian Croats the beauty and richness of Croatian folklore.

According to visiting instructor and veteran musician/performer, Tihomir Zlatic, Sunday's show at the Geelong Performing Arts Centre's intimate 325 seat Blakiston Theatre is going to be awesome.

''We have virtually finalised 99.95 percent of the evening's programme and, apart from some major surprises we have in store on the night, we can reveal that close to 90 percent of the choreography and material is totally original,'' a clearly excited Zlatic explained earlier in the week.

The veteran Zagreb based performer has been a member of the world renowned Croatian Radio and Television (HRT) Tamburitza Orchestra for the past 24 years. He is also one of the main instructors with the Tresnjevka Folkloric Group in Zagreb.

He has been in Australia for the past six weeks, teaching young members of Geelong's LADO group the finer points of traditional Croatian instruments, song and dance. The end result, LADO's new junior tamburitza orchestra and junior choir will perform at the special concert on Sunday at the GPAC.

''I can reveal that several of the performances will have a strong coastal flavour, with choreography and compositions having already been prepared by my colleague in Zagreb, Bozo Potocnik. The new songs originate from the island of Lastovo, but there will be performances encompassing other parts of Croatia.''

Zlatic is a regular visitor to Australia, having frequently toured here in his role as a folkloric teacher since his very first trip in the late 1980s.

''I was invited by Sydney's Koleda ensemble to visit in 1989 and that's where I first commenced my longtime relationship with Croatian folkloric groups in Australia. Back then we started working on the formation of a tamburitza band, as well as a vocal ensemble.

''After that, I was invited by other groups in Sydney (Jadran Hajduk), Wollongong (Zrinjski) and other places, where I was able to share my knowledge of Croatian folklore. It was only for a short time however.''

His relationship with Geelong's LADO, however, has extended for well over a decade with his Tresnjevka group having already visited Australia on one occassion and LADO having made two trips to Croatia in the last ten years.

''The various visits were very important as not only did they provide an ideal opportunity for quality social interaction between the respective young members but they helped strengthen ties between young Croats in Croatia and their counterparts in the diaspora, in this case, young Croats from Australia.''

That fruitful relationship will be further consolidated on Sunday, when a new generation of Australian Croatian folkloric singers and musicians perform in front of a sell-out audience.

''LADO is a young and very ambitious folkloric group. The members of the troupe are well prepared and looking forward to Sunday. This week we will be putting the final touches with some last minute rehearsals.

''The program itself is expected to last approximately two hours and twenty minutes, with an intermission included. It will be extremely interesting and will, I am certain, leave the audience breathless,'' concluded Tihomir Zlatic ahead of Sunday's highly anticipated concert in Geelong.