The Ministry of Culture refused to allocate 120.000 dinars to support the Nišvila program dedicated to Šaban Bajramović. Previously, Selaković's ministry also left the Nišvil Jazz Festival without dinars, even though it is among the 10 best jazz festivals in Europe. Is there a place in Serbia for "Serbian" music only?
After 15 years of continuous support, Ministry of Culture refused to financially support the program for the first time Nishville dedicated to one of the greatest Roma singers, Šaban Bajramović.
The director of the festival, Ivan Blagojević, strongly criticized the decision, stating that the leaders of the Ministry have so far allocated insufficient funds, but that they still showed a sign of respect for Bajramović, as well as for the festival in their efforts to preserve his image and work. the Southern News write.
The program, which traditionally brought together 16 bands and orchestras performing Šaban's music on the Summer Stage, was left without the "modest" 120.000 dinars that the Ministry allocated in previous years.
"The funds with which the Ministry of Culture helped this project in previous years amounted to a modest 120.000 dinars and were insufficient to pay for just one band or piece of equipment, but they were a sign of respect for the artist as he was Saban Bajramović, and were a kind of support for Nishville to persevere in efforts to preserve his image and work. I am afraid that the leaders of the Ministry of Culture, in the fight to preserve the Serbian cultural heritage, have forgotten about the contribution of one member of the same heritage. Roma community", said Blagojevic.
Saban in New Orleans alongside Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles and James Brown
He points out that the Ministry's decision is particularly contradictory considering that Saban Bajramović is the only one Serbian an artist who had his exhibition in the world's most famous jazz museum in New Orleans for ten months and that the Ministry of Culture organized a spectacular tribute in the Sava Center in 2008, after his death.
Blagojević reminds that in 2010, Nišvil organized the collection of funds for the creation and installation of a monument to Šaban Bajramović at the amphitheater on Nišava Quay in the city center.
In the Ministry's Decision, the Commission explained the rejection by stating that it is a good project and implementer, but that "the budget of the project is quite demanding".
"Unfortunately, taking into account that the budget of the project is quite demanding, as well as the current possibilities of the competition and the recommendations submitted by the National Council, this year the commission was in a situation to give priority to other projects of this minority, which had a significant impact on the cultural life of the Roma community," the explanation states.
Blagojević notes that the Contest was announced at the end of December 2024, and the results were announced only on December 16, which made planning even more difficult.
Blagojević recently told "Vreme" that the Nišville Jazz Festival, although it is among the top 10 jazz festivals in Europe this year did not receive a single dinar from the state, and the relevant Ministry of Culture directed the organizers of that renowned festival to contact the local self-government.
He said the Department of Culture's explanation for why Nishville was denied state funding was "very strange."
"They didn't say why they were rejecting us, but they gave us good-natured advice that we could organize the festival ourselves and with the help of the city of Niš. They probably thought that 55 million dinars was a very large amount of money, even though they know how much it costs to equip just one stage with public address and video production, and Nišville has 10 stages, and that only one band at the opening of the festival, Level 42, cost more than five million dinars, which was given by the Ministry last year," says Blagojević.
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