Mit - Index

Mit - UVK_Sinfo_2008_10_št.14 - Index

P E o P L E
behind the piano from time to time and surprisingly, melodies do
appear. I also play ‘Strangers in the Night’ to my wife - it's her
favourite song (smiles). My older granddaughter Tejka is learning
to play the flute, and my younger granddaughter Kristina, the
piano. They are always asking when my next concert will be
(smiles)…
yOu aND yOuR WIFe lIke tO tRaVel,
aND OFteN DO, aND DeSPIte the FaCt
that yOu SPeND yOuR lIFe IN aRt, yOu
aRe ONe OF the FeW COuPleS WIth
a haPPy aND SuCCeSSFul MaRRIage.
What IS yOuR ReCIPe?
Probably some tolerance (smiles) and good humour. But I protest
against saying ours is one of the few happy marriages: we do
alright in our circle of friends and family. We have been married…
well, about forty-five years - we were classmates at university.
She doesn't talk much about music, but she can hear very well
if a piece is good or not. Sometimes, in previous years, I often
asked her advice on songs and lyrics; she has a good musical ear
− but she doesn't praise me (laughter); no, we don't talk about
that much.
WhICh OF the SONgS yOu WROte IS
yOuR FaVOuRIte?
My opinion on that was changing. I never really stuck to one
style; they have been changing: there was 'Orion', which was my
beginning; then 'Lastovke', a very untypical song for me. I tried
sinfo 14 34
to write in a more modern style, but one of my typical songs, one
that I consider well done in all aspects, would be '»e bi teden štel
osem dni'. But that was written later.
yOu aRe VeRy MODeSt. ONe haS
tO StRuggle tO get yOu tO talk
abOut the thINgS yOu COulD PRaISe
yOuRSelF WIth. Why?
(Laughter) I don't know - it's probably my nature. Deep within
me I'm probably not that modest (laughter); one gets used to
being praised.
hOW DO yOu SPeND yOuR tIMe −
beSIDeS helPINg the yOuNgeR
geNeRatIONS?
Very actively. For the past nine, ten years, I have been going to
fitness four to five times a week. One of the things I can be very
grateful for is that I always had many friends. And although many of
these wonderful people have already gone (pauses) I still find new
company. I'm a sociable person. I spend a lot of time, a lot of days
in kind company − mostly male company (laughter). And it's not just
musical company: for twenty-five years we had a table tennis club,
only Mojmir Sepe and I were musicians, the others were doctors,
painters, writers,… We used to compete and spend time together
with our families. It is very pleasant to step out of the narrow circle
of your profession; one can get limited by the same conversations all
the time. You have to step out, it makes you less stressed.
yOu haVe beeN RetIReD FOR the laSt
eIghteeN yeaRS - NOW yOu haVe tIMe
FOR lIFe, FOR tRaVel.
This has been my passion since I was young. As a freshman at
university I hitch-hiked to Stockholm with my friends, the actor from
the movie ‘Vesna’ Janez »uk, who was a close friend of mine, and
the musician Janez Gregorc. It was far from easy in those days −
even passports were difficult to obtain. These days I travel with my
wife, sometimes with other people. I travel by myself, too, because
there are places my wife doesn’t want to go to. Travelling broadens
a man’s horizons. I like to visit Paris for a few days to see the galleries
− as an art collector I have always been interested in the fine arts.
Exotic countries are opening their boundaries, those we couldn’t
even dream of in the old days (smiles). And, of course, I am interested
in art and the history of civilizations we never knew of, that is why I
travel. Besides, as I get older, it is getting harder and harder for me
to cope with winters in Ljubljana (smiles)…
aS yOu get OlDeR? WIth yOuR
INVeStIgatIVe SPIRIt?
True: whether you are young or old depends on the way you
are inside. On the outside though, the picture is a bit more sad
(laughs)…But one has to look at oneself and at the world around
as positively as possible. Think positive, they say! It's also good
for your health. And good humour is a part of your health. One
always desires more than one achieves, and many things in life
fail, but you have to go on − with a smile on your face and in your
heart…