Want to know what pure happiness is? Singing Oj Marijana! along with Ron Cvetican! But also, great history in that song! Nick Vudrag and gang, this is for you: It was first sung by the Maksimovich Brothers from Belgrade at the very first Serbian Singing Federation Festival in Akron, OH on Memorial Day, 1936. They and their song of Oj Marijana! were such a hit, every choir invited the Maksimovich Brothers to come to their colony. They stayed everywhere, spreading their love and song, and when in Aliquippa, stayed with Proto and Protonica Marijanovich, the priest and his wife, and their children Bobby and Dara. Proto Marijanovich died a few years later, and the other priests in the area sent Bobby to Belgrade on a scholarship to study the priesthood. He was there for a short time, but on April 6, 1941, the Germans bomb Belgrade, killing 17,000 in one day, hundreds of thousands injured, buildings destroyed, including the National Library. Bobby ran dazed out into the street with destruction all around him, people dying everywhere. He just didnt know what to do, or where to turn as he really didnt know that many people. People still uninjured were running past him, but death and destruction were everywhere. And he stood frozen on the spot. One of those people flying by was one of the famous Maksimovich brothers who ran past Bobby, but then turned around, recognizing him, and after a few brief words, encouraged Bobby to join him. They went first to his mothers, and then a short while later, joined General Draza Mihailovich and his Chetnik freedom fighters in the hills. Bobby proved invaluable as a translator for the General, helping the OSS forces of Nick Lalich and Jibby Jibilian get the 500 downed U.S. airmen home! So when I hear Oj Marijana! I always think of that story of when American Serbs first heard the song, and how FATE works in mysterious ways. Too, I loved to listen to my mother always singing it as we washed and dried the dishes together..... so, heres Oj Marijana!
Posted on: Fri, 08 Aug 2014 03:09:08 +0000
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