Emina Zečaj
Emina Zečaj | |
|---|---|
| Born | Emina Ahmedhodžić 17 March 1929 |
| Died | 19 April 2020 (aged 91) Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| Resting place | Bare Cemetery, Sarajevo |
| Occupation |
|
| Years active | 1962–2020 |
| Children | 2 |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instrument(s) |
|
| Labels | |
Emina Zečaj (née Ahmedhodžić; 17 March 1929 – 19 April 2020)[1] was a Bosnian interpreter of the traditional folk music, sevdalinka.[2]
Zečaj was called an "icon of traditional Bosnian music" by American Billboard magazine in 2004.[3]
Early life[edit]
Emina was born in Sarajevo's Old Town, in what is today Bosnia and Herzegovina on 17 March 1929. She was the daughter of Avdija Ahmedhodžić and his wife Melća.[4]
Career[edit]
Professor Cvjetko Rihtman, an ethnomusicologist, discovered her in the early 1960s. Following persuasion from her friends, Emina auditioned before two well-known professors, Zvonimir Nevžela and Beluš Jungić, with the folk songs Kad se jangin iz sokaka pomoli and Poranila na vodicu Zlata. Ten days later she received a phone call from Ismet Alajbegović Šerbo informing her that she had been accepted into Radio Sarajevo, beating out 30 other contestants.[5][6]
Zečaj recorded music for the 2003 drama-comedy film Fuse. She also collaborated with Adi Lukovac on the soundtrack for the 2003 war film Remake (Remake - soundtrack).[7] It was Lukovac's final project before dying in a car accident three years later.
Death[edit]
Zečaj was in good health until shortly before her death at age 91. She died on the night of 19 April 2020 in her home.[1] She had attended the funeral of Beba Selimović the previous month at Sarajevo's Bare Cemetery where she was also buried in a Muslim cemetery on 22 April 2020.[8][9]
Discography[edit]
 | This list of songs or music-related items is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (October 2021) |
- Pijana sam i bez pića (1974)[10]
- Narodne pjesme iz Bosne (1975)[11]
- Traditional Bosnian Songs (2003)
- Zečaj Emina (2005)
- Emina Zečaj (2008)
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Preminula Emina Zečaj, jedna od najvećih interpretatorki sevdalinke". Radio Sarajevo.
- ^ Who is who among Bosniacs; page 529. 2001. ISBN 9789958470806. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
- ^ "Billboard magazine; page 53". 14 February 2004. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
- ^ "Emina Zečaj, interpretatorka sevdalinke - Ikona bh. sevdaha". Ekapija. 5 September 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
- ^ "Emina Zečaj: Ne može sevdalinka biti ničija nego naša, bosanska". Radio Sarajevo. 13 March 2016. Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ "Čitav život se borim za sevdah". Nezavisne. 8 September 2008. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
- ^ "Priča i pjeva u emisiji Četvrtkom o kulturi". Radio Sarajevo. 10 March 2016. Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ "U 89. godini preminula Emina Zečaj". www.faktor.ba.
- ^ "Obavljena dženaza Emini Zečaj". Avaz.ba.
- ^ "Pijana sam i bez pića". Discogs. 1974. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
- ^ "Narodne pjesme iz Bosne". Discogs. January 1975. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
External links[edit]
- Emina Ahmedhodžić-Zečaj at Discogs
- Emina Zečaj discography at Discogs as Emina Zečaj
| International | |
|---|---|
| Artists | |
- 1929 births
- 2020 deaths
- Singers from Sarajevo
- Sevdalinka
- Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Bosnia and Herzegovina Muslims
- 21st-century Bosnia and Herzegovina women singers
- Bosnia and Herzegovina folk singers
- 20th-century Bosnia and Herzegovina women singers
- Yugoslav women singers
- Burials at Bare Cemetery, Sarajevo