12.4.13

Mojmir & Majda Sepe


Very cute photo of famous music couple from Slovenia - Mojmir Sepe and Majda Sepe.

In my own Croatia we had some celebrated couples (Arsen Dedić & Gabi Novak, Hrvoje Hegedušić & Ksenija Erker, Karlo Metikoš & Josipa Lisac) where husbands groomed and supported their wives in music careers, but generally speaking most of other marriages have only one partner exposed as a celebrity. To have both husband and wife working in profession where everyday mundane financial problems are overshadowed by creativity and love must be a blessing in a disguise. To a ordinary anonymous people this probably looks like very glamourous life "oh they have it easy, they only sing, open the mouth and collect huge wealth" but as I heard many times in interviews (during my days as journalist) it also means constant touring, nomadic lifestyle and long absence from home and family. Ksenija Erker told me she really suffered knowing her children got first tooth or started to talk & walk without her being present. At the end, Erker and Novak decided to cut public performances and self-knowingly killed career in order to enjoy home life. Lisac decided not to have children at all. Many other celebrities divorced several times, others stayed alone.

Beautiful couple Mojmir and Majda Sepe were slovenian mirror image of Arsen & Gabi - she sang his songs and he supported her every step of the way. The only difference was that in croatian version wife got famous first, here husband was Pygmalion who nurtured young singer from capable into actually excellent. From what I know, there are few other female singers from Slovenia with perhaps more spark (Marjana Deržaj) or bigger voices (Elda Viler, Ditka Haberl, Alenka Pinterič) but no matter how much I love them and I do enjoy their voices, nobody moves me as soulful Majda who was singing straight from the heart and I believe her every word. Her early 1960s work is by far overshadowed by beautiful 1970s recordings where she finally found her voice in "chanson" repertoire, poetic and moving. I have never heard anything banal or superficial from her. As for husband, I know he is celebrated as composer/arranger but I have a little music gem in shape of his early Jazz album from early 1960s where he played mostly covers of Jazz standards - talented and intelligent man. I cant imagine how he felt when she passed away.

P.S.
Once I mentioned the title of Majda's song to my friend who said "Look,I got goosebumps,just when I remember that song".

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