Her ethnically inspired Mediterranean jazz is influenced by the particular musical and dialectal traditions of her homeland, the Croatian coastal region of Istria. Her unique music reflects the historical and cultural background of her homeland, at the crossroads between the East and the West, the Mediterranean and the Balkans.
With her specific and original compositions, excellent bands and expressive voice, Tamara creates a unique artistic form in which she effortlessly and logically unites melody and improvisation, sensitivity and passion, formal demands and freedom, ethnic music and jazz, tradition and modernity, serious approach and humor.
She writes lyrics in her local dialect and sings in other ancient and endangered Istrian dialects. She published 10 CD's in which she wrote all of the music and she held many international concerts, highly praised by the audience and press.
She composes for theatre and film and has received many awards for her work, including 8 Croatian national discographic awards Porin.
International recognition came also through the nomination for the BBC Radio 3 World music Awards 2004 (European Music and Audience Award).
TAMARA OBROVAC TRANSHISTRIA ENSEMBLE
Tamara’s exceptionally musical and creative main band "Transhistria ensemble", remarkable for the obvious alchemy between all their members, show their best side at live performances.
These top-ranking musicians do not rely on existing jazz clichés but on their acute sense of intuition for each particular composition, so their interpretations of Tamara’s filigree music are suffused with spontaneity, inventive improvisation, freedom, humour and the ability to communicate with the audience, while her voice is equally impressive both when she sings lyrics and when she improvises, turning it into an additional instrument.
PRESS
“She tornadoes through the stage leaving in her wake an ever increasing number of fans.”
- B. Gabler - Concerto magazine
“With her brilliant performance she has presented the best of the Mediterranean; the melancholy of fado, the lightness of tarantella and the lyrics in Croatian have melted with the fury of the accordion player Fausto Beccalossi so organically that the following concert of Richard Galliano Piazzolla Forever Septet seemed nothing but perfectly boring.”
- J. Engels – Jazzthing
“Tamara Obrovac has quietly and secretly grown into one of Europe's greatest ethnic jazz singers… Basically melancholic, her music simultaneously impresses with inner strength and passion that brings with it the story of the mentality of an entire region.”
- V. Doberstein - Jazz Podium
"She is an audience-captivating phenomenon.”
- S. Scotney - London Jazz News
“Cansoneita” performed by Obrovac with the Transhistria Ensemble, is a floating, beguiling track, with spacious drumming, tuneful accordion and a delicious lead vocal by Obrovac."
- John L. Walters - The Guardian, review of the BBC Radio 3 World music Awards nominees CD
SOME OF THE PERFORMANCES:
Germany (Düsseldorf Jazz Rally, Jazzahead’13, Lüneburger Jazz-Night, Le gipfel du jazz Freiburg, Bayerisher Hof Munchen, Laboratorium Stuttgart, Eisenach Jazzclub, etc.), Belgium (Bozar Brussels, The Music Village Brussels), Austria (Porgy & Bess Vienna, Akkordeon Fest Vienna, Glatt & Verkehrt Musikfestival, Jazz club Klagenfurt, Kunsthaus Weiz, etc.), Switzerland (Bird's Eye Basel, Moods Zurich), Italy (Alpsklang Festival Merano, Talos Jazz Fest, AnteprimaMundus Fest, etc.), United States (Joe's Pub NYC, Hot House Chicago), France (Strictly mundial Festival Marseille, L’Entrepot Paris, Maritime Festival Brest), Spain (Circulo Jazz club Madrid, Festival Ribermusica Barcelona, La Fira Mediterrania de Manresa), Morroco (Jazz au Chellah Festival), Greece (Dimithriathess Festival Thessaloníki), Poland (Crossroads Festival Krakow), Latvia (Saulkrasti Jazz Fest, Riga Jazz Club), Finland (EBU Festival Kaustinen), BiH (Sarajevo Jazz Fest), Slovenia (Cankarjev dom club, Druga godba Festival, etc.), Israel (Rishon le Zion Tel Aviv), Japan (Expo), Croatia (everywhere ☺), Russia, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Ireland, and many more.
