Perpetuum Jazzile is a Slovenian musical group best known for an

a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...

version of Toto rock band's song

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. The May 2009 video showing a live performance of this version has received close to 22 million views on YouTube. The group was founded in as Gaudeamus Chamber Choir and has always featured male and female singers. In 2013, there were 41 performers of whom 24 are female and 17 male. The group occasionally performs with the Slovenian Radio and Television Big Band though most performances are a cappella.

Leadership

The group was founded by Marko Tiran who led the Gaudeamus Choir for over 17 years. In 2001, the choir's art leadership was passed to Tomaž Kozlevčar. During his 10-year tenure, the group started performing under the new name and achieved international acclaim. Most recently, the group's art leader was Peder Karlsson, from 2011 to 2014.

History

Perpetuum Jazzile - Vokal Xtravaganzza 2015 - 21

In 2006, the group recorded the album ''Čudna noč'' (''Strange Night'') which was released by

Dallas Records Dallas Records is a Croatian record label. It was established in 1987 (in Slovenia), and is owned and run by Goran Lisica - Fox, a music producer and manager who started his career in the 1970s as a music journalist. Signed artists include Gibo ...

. Group's performance of song

earned them high praise from song's original co-writer,

David Paich David Frank Paich (born June 25, 1954) is an American musician, best known as the co-founder, principal songwriter, keyboardist and singer of the rock band Toto since 1977. He wrote or co-wrote much of Toto's original material, including the ba ...

and Toto invited the group for a joint performance at a 2011 concert held near

Udine Udine ( , ; fur, Udin; la, Utinum) is a city and ''comune'' in north-eastern Italy, in the middle of the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic Sea and the Alps (''Alpi Carniche''). Its population was 100,514 in 2012, 176,000 with t ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. In 2011, the choir embarked on a world tour which took them to Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Canada, and USA, where they performed to sold-out venues. Every year in autumn, the group performs ''Vokal Xtravaganzza'' evening concerts at the

Cankar Hall The Cankar Centre or Cankar Hall ( sl, Cankarjev dom) is the largest Slovenian convention, congress and culture center. The building was designed by the architect Edvard Ravnikar and was built at the southern edge of Republic Square in Ljubljana b ...

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

, with guests from Slovenia and abroad. In the past, they have performed with local artists

Alenka Godec Alenka Godec (born 5 November 1964, in Ljubljana) is a Slovenian jazz and pop singer.(1 January 2007)Alenka Godec ''Cosmopolitan (magazine)'' (Slovenian edition, in Slovenian) Albums Trova Festivals Pop workshop * 1988: ''Tvoja'' - membe ...

, Alya,

Oto Pestner Oto Pestner (born January 4, 1956 in Celje) is a politician and one of the most prominent singers and composers of popular music from Slovenia. Until 2008, he was the leader of the Slovene vocal group New Swing Quartet. From 1986 to 1991 and in 1 ...

, Jan Plestenjak, and

Nuša Derenda Nuša Derenda (, born Anuška Žnideršič on March 30, 1969 in Brežice, SR Slovenia, SFR Yugoslavia) is a Slovenian singer who represented Slovenia at the 2001 Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, Denmark where she achieved 7th place. Biog ...

, as well as with international groups Vocalica (Italy), The Real Group (Sweden), ManSound (Ukraine), BR6 (Brazil), and The Real Six Pack (Germany). In May 2015, Slovenian duo

Maraaya Maraaya are a Slovenian duo founded by Marjetka Vovk and Aleš Vovk (Raay) in 2014. The group's name is a combination of its members' names, while its pronunciation means "She has Raay" in Slovene. Raay is credited as co-writer and producer for ...

who represented Slovenia at the

Eurovision Song Contest 2015 The Eurovision Song Contest 2015 was the 60th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Vienna, Austria, following the country's victory at the with the song "Rise Like a Phoenix" by Conchita Wurst. Organised by the European Broa ...

with the song Here for You released a video of this song featuring Perpetuum Jazzile. In June 2015, the group performed at the

Expo 2015 Expo 2015 was a World Expo hosted by Milan, Italy. It opened on May 1 at 10:00 CEST and closed on October 31. Milan hosted an exposition for the second time; the first was the 1906 Milan International. The Bureau International des Expositi ...

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, Italy, and at the

Guangzhou Opera House Guangzhou Opera House () is a Chinese opera house in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, People's Republic of China. Designed by Zaha Hadid, it opened on 9 May in 2010. History In April 2002 an international architectural competition attracted Co ...

in November that year.

Awards

Perpetuum Jazzile - Vokal Xtravaganzza 2015 - 04

In 2008, the group was awarded the ''Vokal Total Award'' at the International Choir Festival and International A Cappella CompetitionVokal Total 2008
June 3, 2008. and it also won awards at the international jazz vocal music competition in

Tilburg Tilburg () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, in the southern province of North Brabant. With a population of 222,601 (1 July 2021), it is the second-largest city or municipality in North Brabant after Eindhoven and the seventh-larg ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, and the World Choir Games in

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

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. In 2010, the group was awarded the "Viktor Award", a top level music award in Slovenia.

Discography

* ''Ko boš prišla na Bled'' (''When You Come to Bled'') (2000) * ''Pozabi, da se ti mudi'' (''Forget You're In a Hurry'') (2003) * ''As'' (2004) * '' Čudna noč (Strange night)'' (2006) * ''

'' (2009) * ''Perpetuum Jazzile Live'' okal Xtravaganzza 2008 - DVD(2009) * ''Vocal Ecstasy'' (German Tour Edition - CD) (2012) * ''Vocal Ecstasy'' (German Tour Edition Superbox - CD+DVD) (2012) * ''Thank You For The Music'' (30th Anniversary Jubilee Edition - CD') (2013) * ''Both Sides'' (Double Album - CD) (2016)

References

Bibliography

Eddy Kester, “Perpetuum Jazzile hits all the right notes to become Slovenia's best-known brand”, bne IntelliNews, 30 July 2015.

External links

Perpetuum Jazzile Website
{{Authority control A cappella musical groups Slovenian jazz ensembles Slovenian choirs Musical groups established in 1983 Musical groups from Ljubljana