By Josip LONCARIC

MELBOURNE - After many months of preparation, the Victorian 'Cro Idol' song festival finally took centre stage last Saturday night at the Croatian House (Dom) in Footscray. Hosted by Mladez HDZ, the now annual event enjoyed its most successful evening so far, with a full house packed into the luxurious main function room at the Dom.

A pleasant Saturday evening began with a brief introduction before popular local Croatian band 'Major Minor' belted out the first of several variety-filled sets. A fabulous rendition of the Goran Karan classic 'Lipa si lipa' was just one of several highlights by the experienced band, who looked to be enjoying the evening as much as everyone else.

The exceptional service by the cheerful young Croatian waiters and waitresses ensured that drinks were readily available for all patrons, before (and after) the top-notch Dom food was served.

Formal proceedings began just before nine o'clock, by which time the feverish crowd was waiting to hear the new (and returning) performers, who had patiently waited for their chance to shine.

Effervescent hosts, Marica Vugdelija and Marko Bajer, introduced the four judges (Stan Panic, MaryAnn Dobran, Tonci Prusac and Josip Loncaric) before introducing the first contestant, 14 year old Kristina Krajina. The talented young vocalist had the unenviable task of opening proceedings but managed to do a fantastic job with her rendition of the Divlje Jagode classic 'Kap po kap', setting the standard for a marvelous junior Under 16 field.

Ten year old Michelle Musa followed up from the great opening with the little known Severina track 'Esmeralda'. Utilising both the Spanish and Croatian language, the cute and energetic young singer certainly showed that she has the potential to be a top notch performer in the future.

Another Severina track was reserved for Cassandra Markus, who was a contestant at last year's Cro Idol. Cassandra's version of the popular late 90's hit 'Djevojka sa sela' kept the crowd clapping and impressed the judges with her much-improved vocal skills.

Last year's Under 16 winner, Stefani Musa, changed the pace with her powerful rendition of Vanna's big hit from 2000, 'Kao rijeka'. The 14-year old used every inch of her vocal range to pull off the big ballad, putting herself in strong contention for another podium finish.

Twelve year old Ana Rasic gave her best effort during her performance of the well-known Minea hit, 'Rano'. Encouraging advice from judges Panic and Dobran ensured that Rasic would take much from the experience and hopefully return the following year.

A truly spectacular performance by Antonija Vinic really raised the bar in terms of having the entire package. Ten year old Vinic was in full 'narodna nosnja' for the widely unheard of song 'Kad me lupi tambura' by Ella. Such was the high standard of Vinic's song and (traditional) dance, that the crowd quickly learnt the words and joined in with the youngster.

Finally to the final junior contestant and the only male of this year's competition, the ever-cool Johnny Vugdelija, who stole the show with his soulful performance of the Mladen Grdovic classic 'Dalmatinac sam'. A veteran of the Cro Idol competition (after appearing in the first two editions), 15-year old Vugdelija's interaction with the crowd and classy dress sense was eclipsed by his much-improved vocal skills.

The charismatic youngster also set a precedent for the senior contestants as he descended down the stairs and onto the dance floor to be with his audience, in true Grdovic style. It was a fitting end to the first half of the competition.

As the judges disappeared backstage to compile their votes, a bountiful raffle saw several guests win some fabulous presents. 'Major Minor' returned to perform some rock and folk tracks, before finishing with an always energy-sapping kolo.

Last year's Cro Idol winner, Larissa Mamuza, opened the senior category with an air of sophistication. Dressed in an elegant black dinner dress, the 17-year old hit all the right notes in her rendition of the classic Severina track 'Dalmatinka. Mamuza's performance experience clearly helped her mask any nerves as she produced a pitch-perfect performance that would be hard to topple.

Another veteran of the Cro Idol song contest followed Mamuza and managed to capture the audience in much the same way as her fellow contestant. Singing the lesser known Danijela ballad 'Zivot stati nece', 17-year old Ivana Govic drew both crowd and judge applause with her emotive performance and wonderful appearance.

Elizabeta Krastek was next to show her stuff with her version of the Miroslav Skoro classic 'Ne dirajte mi ravnicu'. The 18-year old was performing for the first time and her nerves got the better of her as she performed the somber ballad. Encouragement by both the crowd and judge's gave the rookie much to look forward to in next year's edition of Cro Idol.

Next came 17-year old Lara Porobija, who had a late change of song from the Dino Merlin track 'Kad zamirisu jorgovani' to the ET dance classic 'Tek je 12 sati'. Clearly the late switch worked against Porobija, who despite her best efforts couldn't add the polish to her performance that some other contestants had shown previously. Nevertheless, Porobija engaged the audience with her cheerful personality and unbridled enthusiasm.

If Porobija's song change was not ideal, Silvija Andrijasevic's preparation was almost non existent. The 17-year old literally chose her song only an hour before the performance, but still managed to give a strong showing, especially after a lengthy delay due to technical difficulties.

Andrijasevic performed the boppy Magazin track 'Kad bi bio blizu' and received much encouragement from the crowd and judging panel.

A quick backstage count of both the judges and public vote saw a consensus reached shortly after the final song. Johnny Vudelija comfortably took out the junior category, with Antonija Vinic finishing second. Debutant Kristina Krajina was the recipient of the public vote.

A much tighter senior category saw Ivana Govic just edge out last year's winner Larissa Mamuza for the top award. Silvija Andrijasevic was awarded the public award for her efforts.

The two winners performed their respective songs once more for their adoring public, before 'Major Minor' concluded the evening with another short set, ending the evening in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Credit must go out for the tireless work of the organizers and volunteers who helped make the night a resounding success.

Bring on Cro Idol 2008!

Source: http://www.croatianherald.com