Lojze Slak (23 July 1932 – 29 September 2011) was a

Slovenian Slovene or Slovenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Slovenia, a country in Central Europe * Slovene language, a South Slavic language mainly spoken in Slovenia * Slovenes The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( sl, Sloven ...

musician. Slak was one of the pioneers of Slovene popular folk music, based on diatonic button accordion and author of several evergreen songs, performed by his Lojzeta Slaka Ansamble.

Early life and career

Slak was born in Jordankal near

Mirna Peč Mirna Peč (; german: Hönigstein) is a rural settlement in southeast Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Mirna Peč. Geography Mirna Peč is located about 10 km northwest of Novo Mesto, the cultural and administrative centre o ...

. He first learned how to play the diatonic button accordion from his uncle Ludvik and mastered several songs before he entered primary school. By the time he was 15, Slak was already playing at wedding parties. He continued playing for more than ten years, gaining proficiency. The turning point in his career came in 1957, when he competed in a radio talent show "Pokaži kaj znaš". Two years later Slak formed a quartet with his three brothers, playing a

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

, a

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

, a

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

and the accordion by Lojze.

Lojze Slak Ensemble

In 1964, Slak met the group Fantje s Praprotna and together they formed the Lojze Slak Ansamble (Ansambel Lojzeta Slaka). The group was active for almost 50 years, creating several evergreen songs, including ''Čez Gorjance'' (1965), ''V dolini tihi je vasica mala'' (1966), ''Po dekle'' (1967) and ''Mama, prihajam domov'' (1985). Overall, Slak created more than 500 songs and created a branch of music with several hundreds of followers in Slovenia and abroad. In 2005, Lojze Slak created an arrangement of a song by a rock group Big Foot Mama, creating a combination of popular folk and rock music, gaining praise from the audiences. Both groups performed the song together at several concerts, including at rock festivals. In addition to writing music, Slak, a virtuoso on diatonic button accordion, developed several improvements for the instrument, adding extra buttons. He was also a promoter of

cviček Cviček is a Slovenian wine from the Lower Carniola region of Slovenia. It is a unique wine, composed of different grape varieties including both white and red grape species. It has a relatively low alcoholic content of 8.5% to 10%. Despite its ...

wine, and had his own vineyard. Slak died in 2011 in

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

after fighting bone cancer. He was buried in Šentvid.

References

External links

* Official web page {{DEFAULTSORT:Slak, Lojze 1932 births 2011 deaths Slovenian musicians Deaths from bone cancer Slovenian accordionists Deaths from cancer in Slovenia Slovenian composers Male composers People from the Municipality of Mirna Peč Slovenian male musicians