ANA ČOP –»NESKONČNOSTI« | Villa For Forest
Ana Čop – vocal
Jaka Arh – ten sax, sop sax
Marko Črnčec – piano
Robert Jukič – double bass
Žiga Smrdel - drums
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Supported by FOR FOREST - the voice for trees
In recent years, Ana Čop has presented quite a few of her projects, mostly in the role of performer and arranger. This time we will listen to her original music, which was created in the last year. Ana tries to follows lyricism and poetics in her writing, and derives mainly from the influences of classical and folk music and more modern forms of jazz.
Ana Čop began her musical career as a classical pianist, and after graduating from high school she studied musicology and at the same time enrolled at the Conservatory of Music and Ballet in Ljubljana, where she began learning jazz singing with Professor Nada Žgur. After successfully completing two years, she enrolled at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, where in 2020 she completed her undergraduate studies in jazz singing with renowned professor Dena DeRose. She currently lives in Switzerland, where she is pursuing a master’s degree at the prestigious Jazzcampus Basel school. She collaborates with many Slovenian and foreign musicians. She is most active with her duo project ACTS ! and the Croatian-Slovenian band Trokut. She presented both projects at this year’s jazz festival Zvončki in Trobentice in Cankarjev dom. Ana is the winner of the MM Jazz Festival (2018) and the mentor of the new category for beginners at the international Jazzinty workshop (2019).
Jaka Arh is a Slovenian saxophonist who, after completing his undergraduate studies in Graz, Austria, moved to Basel, Switzerland last September, where he is continuing his postgraduate studies. He was educated by world-renowned musicians such as Julian Argüelles, Mark Turner, Ben Wendel, Domenic Landolf, etc., and so far he has had the opportunity to perform and record with various well-established jazz names in Slovenia and the surrounding area (Matija Dedić, Ratko Divjak ,Heinrich von Kalnein, Uli Rennert and others). He is a member of the Croatian-Slovenian electro jazz band Trokut, which with its debut Shapeless was nominated for the prestigious Croatian Porin Music Award in the category „Best Electronic Music Album“ this year.
Pianist Marko Črnčec is one of the most recognizable contemporary Slovenian musicians and renowned artists abroad. He has collaborated with big names of the world jazz scene such as Bob Mintzer, Seamus Blake, Eric Alexander, Michael Phillip Mossman, Ron McClure, Marcus Gilmore and many others. His albums have received excellent international reviews, and the album Devotion (Whirlwind Recordings, 2014) was ranked among the top twenty jazz records of 2014 by jazz magazine All About Jazz in 2014. Marko lived and worked in New York for several years. His latest album Place to live was also created there, in collaboration with world-class musicians Harish Raghavan, Justin Brown and Jonathan Hoard.
Bassist, arranger, composer, lyricist and producer Robert Jukič is one of the most versatile and prolific Slovenian artists. Music has taken him to various stages around the world, he has collaborated with a number of domestic and foreign artists. So far, over 60 records have been released on which he has participated as a bassist, composer or arranger. He is a versatile musician, skilled in many genres – from jazz to classical, folk, blues, country, alternative pop, chanson and other world music. He is composing for small and large groups, short films, multimedia performances, dance performances. He also collaborates with theaters and teaches at the Ljubljana Conservatory of Music and Ballet.
Žiga Smrdel is a young drummer from Ilirska Bistrica. His musical path began in his early teens with performances in various rock, funk and jazz ensembles, such as Kage, Postojna Jazz Ensemble and Big Band ŠCPO. In 2020, he graduated from the Regional Conservatory of Music in Klagenfurt, in the class of drummer Klemens Marktl. In addition, he is also a student of renowned New York drummer Gregory Hutchinson. He has collaborated with prominent names of the Slovenian popular music scene such as Mia Žnidarič, Alenka Godec, Oto Pestner and renowned jazz musicians such as Tonč Feinig, Robert Jukič, Matjaž Mikuletič, Marko Črnčec etc. He has also performed abroad, especially in Italy and Austria, as a member of a trio of guitarist Nazzaren Zacconi and in the trio of saxophonist Michael Erian. He and his brother Peter also run their own projects such as Wicked Nation and the Jazz Quartet. In 2017, Žiga won a gold plaque in the TEMSIG competition for young musicians in the jazz solo category, and in 2019 in the jazz ensemble category.
