Music is the most widespread art form among Slovenes. According to research by the Institute for Civilisation and Culture, the nation’s tastes vary greatly: 36.6% of Slovenes put the popular folk (‘Oberkrainer’) genre first; 18.21% opt for pop; 17.7% for classical music; 12.1% for rock; 2.4% for jazz; 1.8% for ethno, and 1.5% for techno music. I
n addition to musical institutions, Slovenia boasts many active musical and choral associations: the Musical Youth, the Slovenian Composers’ Society and the re-established Musical Society, as well as a number of choirs, whose common goal is to pursue the deep-rooted tradition of singing and playing music by all generations of Slovenes. It is has been historically proven that music was a very important aspect of life for our most ancient ancestors.
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The oldest secular songs date back to the 9th century CE; the Reformation period also has a special place in the history of Slovenian music, thanks to the songbooks published by the Protestant authors Primož Trubar and Adam Bohorič. The greatest Slovenian composers of the period were Jurij Slatkonja, who was also the first Bishop of Vienna, and Jacobus Gallus Carniolus.
In the second half of the 19th century, music – like the other arts – was strongly influenced by nationalism, as this period saw the emergence of Slovenian language choirs and reading societies, with the mass participation of amateurs. The number of composers increased considerably: Davorin Jenko, the Ipavec brothers, Anton Foerster, Stanko Premrl, Emil Adamič, Marij Kogoj, Slavko Osterc; and later on, the partisan composers Radovan Gobec, Karol Pahor, Rado Simoniti and Marjan Kozina are the most notable names from a great succession of composers spanning the years between the national awakening of 1868 and the present.
Twentieth century composers such as Pavel Merku, Uroš Krek, Primož Ramovš, and the next generation, Alojz Srebotnjak, Lojze Lebič, Marjan Gabrijelčič, Vinko Globokar, Aldo Kumar and Uroš Rojko, and the members of the youngest generation Ambrož Čop, Rok Golob, Borut Smrekar and Damijan Močnik, were and remain extremely prolific. Thanks to their works, Slovenian music is held in high esteem in international classical music circles.
In addition to the two opera orchestras which are part of the Slovenian National Theatre Companies in Ljubljana and Maribor, there are two other professional symphonic orchestras, the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra and the RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra. The concerts of the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra and its choir draw big crowds to the concert hall of the large Cankarjev dom cultural centre, and they often host famous names as performers.
