Concert by Croatian Choirs in Saint-Bauzille-de-Montmel

If all the girls in the world…

If all the boys in the world would join hands…

That evening at the church of Saint Bauzille, it was the “Prince of Poets,” Paul Fort, who came to mind as we listened to the magnificent Croatian choirs that the “Les Garrigues” Choir had invited. And we found ourselves dreaming…

No fewer than eighty Croatian and Saint-Bauzillois choristers, singing together, performed “Se Canta” as the grand finale—arranged by Guy Bonnet—and then led the entire audience in singing this Occitan hymn, a moment that touched the very depths of the heart. It was a moment of intense emotion and shared joy.

The two Croatian choirs from Istria, who had been staying in the region for four days as part of an exchange following the Saint-Bauzillois choir’s visit this summer, gave a final concert on Monday at their host’s venue. In the first half, following the “Les Garrigues” choir, Ivona Jerbić, the young (18-year-old!) choir director, gracefully and authoritatively conducted the Gimpl Choir from Ravna Gora before handing the stage over to the “Rondo Histriae” choir from Pula for a brilliant second half.

During the farewell dinner, Vinka Burric, a professional pianist and choir director of the Pula choir, expressed her delight at being in France and thanked the initiators and organizers of this visit: the leaders of our choir, and in particular one of the singers from Les Garrigues, Vjekoslav Dulic, who has lived in our region for many years and is originally from Croatia. Pula, a city of 60,000 inhabitants on the shores of the Adriatic, was founded 3,000 years ago by the Romans, and one of its archaeological treasures is its ancient amphitheater. Vinka, touched by the warm welcome we received, remarked that our choir’s performances were of a very high standard and very consistent, noting that we did not sacrifice the poetry and lyrics to the music. Our choir directors, Guy and Thierry, in turn, emphasized the very high musical quality of the two visiting choirs.

The fifty Istrians took advantage of their stay to do some sightseeing. Our choir members showed them around Montpellier, St. Guilhem, Aigues-Mortes, the Pont du Gard… So, with memories in their minds and images still fresh in their eyes, the Croatians set off into the night for a 16-hour bus ride. Thank you to them. An event organized by the choir “Les Garrigues.”