Rock music in Bosnia and Herzegovina mostly developed during the time when the country was part of socialist Yugoslavia. [1]
The city of Sarajevo was, prior to the war, a center for Yugoslav rock music. Bands from this period included Plavi Orkestar, Bijelo Dugme, Indexi, Zabranjeno Pušenje, Crvena Jabuka, and Divlje Jagode. Most of the bands in Sarajevo at the time were influenced by heavy metal pioneers such as Led Zeppelin, Queen, and Deep Purple. Punk music in Sarajevo was also influenced by major punk bands of the time, such as the Sex Pistols. Influenced by Bob Dylan, Kemal Monteno helped popularize folk rock. Goran Bregović was a renowned songwriter and brought his band, Bijelo Dugme, to popular acclaim across Central Europe. Psychedelic rock was taken control of by the pioneers of Bosnian rock Indexi.
Punk rock entered Bosnia from Slovenia, and it set roots in Sarajevo, Tuzla, and Mostar. Rock music was most dominant in Bosnia and Herzegovina out of all the states in Yugoslavia. Bijelo Dugme was probably the most legendary and influential band of the Balkans.
During the late 1990s and the early 2000s many new bands have formed. Mainly heavy metal and alternative bands like Sikter, Letu Štuke, Skroz, Zoster, Dubioza kolektiv, and famous alternative singer Elvir Laković Laka who represented Bosnia and Herzegovina at Eurovision.
A prevailing theme in 21st century rock music culture of Bosnia and Herzegovina is that the rural-oriented, nationalistic elites have conquered and colonists the urban cultural space. [1] Rock bands, by and large, have positioned themselves against the nationalists. [1]
Goran Bregović is a recording artist from Bosnia and Herzegovina. He is one of the most internationally known modern musicians and composers of the Slavic-speaking countries in the Balkans, and is one of the few former Yugoslav musicians who has performed at major international venues such as Carnegie Hall, Royal Albert Hall and L'Olympia.
Like the surrounding Balkan countries, Bosnia and Herzegovina has had a turbulent past marked by frequent foreign invasions and occupation. As a result, Bosnian music is now a mixture of Slavic, Turkish, Central European, Mediterranean, and other influences.
The culture of Bosnia and Herzegovina encompasses the country's ancient heritage, architecture, science, literature, visual arts, music, cinema, sports and cuisine.
The Culture of Sarajevo is represented in various ways.
Goran "Ipe" Ivandić was a Bosnian rock drummer, famous for his work with the band Bijelo Dugme.
Jutro was a Sarajevo-based rock band most notable as the immediate predecessor to Bijelo Dugme. It existed from late 1971 until the very end of 1973 when it transformed into one of the most successful rock bands ever to come out of SFR Yugoslavia — Bijelo Dugme.
Želimir "Željko" Bebek is a Bosnian-Herzegovian and Croatian vocalist and musician most notable for being the lead singer of the Yugoslav rock band Bijelo Dugme from 1974 until 1984. He also maintains a folk-pop solo career.
New wave in Yugoslavia was the new wave music scene of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. As its counterparts, the British and the American new wave, from which the main influences came, the Yugoslav scene was also closely related to punk rock, ska, reggae, 2 tone, power pop and mod revival. Some of its acts are also counted as belonging to the Yugoslav punk scene which already existed prior to new wave. Such artists were labeled as both punk rock and new wave.
Mladen Vojičić, known professionally by his nickname/stagename Tifa, is a Bosnian rock vocalist. He gained acclaim throughout former Yugoslavia for his brief stint as the lead singer of Bijelo Dugme in the mid-1980s.
Bijelo Dugme was a Yugoslav rock band, formed in Sarajevo, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1974. Bijelo Dugme is widely considered to have been the most popular band ever to exist in the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and one of the most notable acts of the Yugoslav rock scene and Yugoslav popular music in general.
Vlado Dijak was a well-known Yugoslav Bosnian poet and songwriter.
Davorin Popović was a Croatian-Bosnian singer and songwriter. He was born in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, then part of socialist federal Yugoslavia, which was disestablished in 1992. Popović was well known throughout the former Yugoslavia, and still is considered to be one of the greatest rock singers in his native country. He was the lead singer and frontman of the progressive and pop rock band Indexi throughout most of their career. He and his band Indexi became founders of specific music style in former Yugoslavia known as "Sarajevo pop-rock school" who later influenced other bands and singers in Sarajevo and other parts of Yugoslavia.
Zoran Redžić is a Bosnian musician, best known for playing the bass guitar in the popular Yugoslav rock band Bijelo Dugme.
Milić Vukašinović is a Yugoslav musician, the founder of the hard rock band Vatreni Poljubac as well as one-time drummer of the famous Yugoslav rock bands Bijelo Dugme and Indexi.
Vladimir "Vlado" Pravdić was a Bosnian musician who was the organist of the Yugoslav rock group Bijelo Dugme from 1974 to 1976 and again from 1978 to 1987.
Popular music in Yugoslavia includes the pop and rock music of the former SFR Yugoslavia, including all their genres and subgenres. The scene included the constituent republics: SR Slovenia, SR Croatia, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SR Montenegro, SR Macedonia and SR Serbia and its subunits: SAP Vojvodina and SAP Kosovo. The pop and rock scene was a part of the general Music of Yugoslavia, which also included folk, classical music, jazz etc. Within Yugoslavia and internationally, the phrases ex-YU or ex-Yugoslav Pop and Rock both formally and informally generally to the SFRY period, though in some cases also to its successor the FR Yugoslavia including Serbia and Montenegro which existed until 2006.
Diskoton was a major record label in SFR Yugoslavia, based in Sarajevo, Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The company ceased to exist in 1992, with the outbreak of the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The studio was destroyed along with all master recordings.
Zumreta Midžić, known by her stage name Zuzi Zu, is a popular Bosnian singer, musician and songwriter. She performs various music genres from pop-rock to Bosnian folk - sevdalinka and Gypsy music. She was born in Velika Kladuša, Bosnia and Herzegovina and for many years she was living and working in Sarajevo.
Sinan Alimanović is a Bosnian jazz pianist, organist, composer, conductor, arranger and educator.
Vatreni Poljubac is a Bosnian and Yugoslav hard rock/heavy metal band, formed in 1977 by composer, lyricist, vocalist, guitarist and drummer Milić Vukašinović. The band is widely considered to be regional pioneers of the heavy metal genre and one of the most important rock bands of Sarajevo and the former Yugoslavia pop-rock scene. In almost 40 years since its founding, the band has released 9 studio albums, the latest being 2011 reunion release Kad svira rock 'n' roll, two singles and several compilation albums.