Katarina Malikova / Slovakia

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A brilliant and sophisticated return to the beautiful traditions of Slovak culture, whilst at the same time its subtle interweaving into the modern sound. Katarína Máliková with her band proposes a sophisticated creation in the attractive form.

Katarína Máliková composes, plays and sings music which combines the enchantment with authentic Slovak songs, art-pop, classical music and world music. She comes from Polomki in the Horehornie region, where she grew up surrounded by mountains and songs. The mystical environment of her native region is strongly imprinted on her music. Katarina’s debut album titled Pustvopol (the former name of the Pusté pole forest district and region) was released in 2016 by Slnko Records. It immediately attracted the attention of both the audience and the media and soon became one of the top titles in Slovakia. The record’s musical pieces form the mainstream of the artist’s repertoire in concert, but she also loves singing mood songs and jazz. The artist has won Slovak awards for the debut of the year, the best world music / folk record, and the critics’ award.

Jana Ambrózová, an ethnomusicologist from the University in Nitra says: ”Katarina Malikova’s music is a brilliant combination of excellent musical education, unusual sensitivity to the specificity of traditional Slovak music and a creative mind. (...) One can hardly see such a degree of balance between musical expression and consistency among young artists of the Slovak independent scene. Her aesthetic choices are very insightful and appeal to the listeners’ sensitivity and imagination”. Katarina admits that she has been influenced by various music genres and conventions: from pop music, through jazz to classical music. But folk music still remains her main and greatest inspiration.

 

Photo by Barbora Vaculova

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The concert took place in 2017.