TRAKT member Ondrej Druga with his project Ondro a kamaráti (Ondro and friends), which impressed the jury of the last round of the show Zem spieva, has recorded his debut CD. The project plans to release two songs from the forthcoming CD on the anniversaries of two August events: on 21 August, the anniversary of the occupation of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact troops in 1968, the song Jednej krásnej noci (One Beautiful Night) will be released. The song was originally invented by the shepherd and fujarist Martin Ľupták – Sanitrár from Kováčová near Zvolen, and his voice will also be heard in the opening part of a more modern arrangement of the song.

On 29 August 2022, on the anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising, the project plans to publish the song In a wide field the linden tree stands. It is a song with an anti-fascist context: the original song by the world-famous Alexanders in Horehronie has been rejuvenated – local people have taken over the melody and changed the words.

Both singles will be part of an upcoming CD, which plans to complete this project during the autumn of 2022.

We invite you to the Baptism of the album UNDER THE CLOUD, which will take place on Friday, February 24, 2023 in the Workers’ House at 7:00 pm.

Ondro and friends is a group of musician-friends who like to experiment and dream. In 2020 they took part in the TV competition Zem sìva, where they impressed the jury and made it to the finals. In most of their arrangements, they emphasize the recognition of selected stylistic elements of the processed songs according to the specific localities of their origin, but in several cases also according to specific singers – bearers of the traditions. This is the culmination of a project that has been creating and publishing its arrangements for several years. In addition to musicians, the programme will also feature prominent singers from various parts of Slovakia.

The project has been supported by the Fund for the Support of the Arts from public funds. The recording and release of the CD Pod obločkom was made in close cooperation with TRAKT and Môlča records. The musicians who participated in the CD were:

Ondrej Druga

Marek Kľúčik

Michal Latinák

Marek Pisarcik

Michaela Mária Dobáková

Ivana Ivanić

Juraj Súdi

Šimon Škoda

and singers:

Barbora Krištofíková a.h.

Michal Dudáš a.h.

Sabina Ladecká a.h.

Vladimír Latinák a.h.

Bohumil Novák a.h.

Jozef Varga a.h.

Vladimír Rekšák a.h.

Katarína Mosnáková-Bagľašová a.h.

Leonóra Súdiová a.h.

Michaela Neupauerová a.h.

The main author of the musical arrangements of the project is Ondrej Druga (TRAKT).

From public funds supported by the Fund for the Support of Arts.

Ondrej and friends won the Radio_Head Awards in the World Music 2023 category. Congratulations!