SEVEN-YEAR-OLD LUKA WINS HEARTS WITH GUSLE ACROSS THE SERB WORLD

BELGRADE, JANUARY 7 /SRNA/ – At just seven years old, young gusle player Luka Ivanović from Melbourne has won over audiences across Australia and touched the hearts of Serbs around the world by singing to this ancient instrument about the land of Herzegovina, particularly in Republika Srpska, where his roots lie.

When Luka brought everyone to their feet during the celebration of St. Nicholas at the Church of St. Nicholas in Geelong, neither he nor his parents, Dobrila and Dejan, could have imagined the emotions his performance would spark among viewers who later watched the recording on social media, thanks to coverage by TV Australia. Following the performance, Luka received a blessing from His High Eminence Metropolitan Siluan of Australia and New Zealand, himself originally from Herzegovina, who also presented him with an icon of St. Basil. Speaking to SRNA, the young gusle player he does not feel stage fright and looks forward to every performance, adding that he spends time with the gusle every day. The instrument bears the Ivanović family’s patron saint, St. Nicholas, on its front, and the Ostrog Monastery on the back, where Luka was baptized, as were his sister and brother, Angelina and Nemanja. "When I come home from school, I sing one song I know for an hour or two. I started teaching my brother Nemanja to play the gusle last summer when we were in Nevesinje and Trebinje, and then he forgot a little. Now I sit with him every day so he can learn to play again," Luka said. LUKA TEACHES GUSLE TO HIS FIVE-YEAR-OLD BROTHER NEMANJA Luka learned the song "Herceg Zemlja" in four months, and alongside him, his five-year-old brother Nemanja has also mastered the demanding lyrics-challenging even for much older performers-on his own children’s gusle. Luka not only sings the song, which speaks of the difficult history of Herzegovina, reborn through uprisings and wars that led to the creation of Republika Srpska, but also understands it, as his parents teach him about the tradition and history of their ancestral homeland. MAKSIM VOJVODIĆ - ROLE MODEL AND SUPPORT During visits to Republika Srpska, Luka’s greatest wish came true when he met gusle player Maksim Vojvodić, who performs Luka’s favorite song, “Srpska Sparta.” "At first I was a little scared, then a little shy, and then I went up to Maksim. He hugged me, and that’s how we met in Trebinje. Maksim told me to keep playing the gusle," Luka said, adding that he now meets Vojvodić every time he visits Republika Srpska. Vojvodić also provides valuable support to Luka’s parents, helping clarify certain lyrics and song texts. Luka’s mother, Dobrila Ivanović, said that Luka learns most of his songs from Maksim’s recordings. "Maksim always helps us by correcting certain words or writing out the lyrics so I can pass them on correctly for Luka to learn," she said. She added that Luka, thanks to his love for the gusle, has become friends with young guslars Đorđe Stevović and Sveto Vujević, and that during his stays in Trebinje he gains additional knowledge through the Gusle Society “Duke Luka Vukalović.” He has also met Željko Vukčević and Momir Avdalović, one of his favorites. "This year, Luka played the gusle at the monastery in the village of Luka near Nevesinje for the Feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God, with the blessing of Abbot Vasilije of the Duži Monastery. He also carried the icon of St. Nicholas in the procession for the Feast of the Transfiguration, the patron saint day of the city of Trebinje," Ivanović said, adding that Luka often plays the gusle at family gatherings and social events. GRANDFATHER MILORAD PUT THE BOW IN LUKA’S HANDS AT AGE TWO She revealed that Luka inherited his love for the ancient instrument from her late father, Milorad Đerić, who placed the bow in Luka’s hands when he was just two years old, as well as from his paternal grandfather Milenko, who also played the gusle, though Luka sadly never met him. Ivanović, who was brought to Australia by her parents in 1988 as a five-month-old baby, said that for her and her husband, who moved to Australia ten years ago, the most important thing is preserving their Orthodox faith, language, and tradition. "We truly make an effort. Many of our people came after the war and speak perfect Serbian, but at home they switch to English with their children. I insist that Serbian must be spoken at home. At school and outside, English is fine, but not at home, because they forget quickly," she said. She added that their children are also taught to write in Cyrillic, and that all three attend folklore classes and perform, further strengthening their ties with their ancestral homeland. Luka made his first gusle debut in Australia last November at a "Trophy Evening" at the "Banjo Academy," hosted by Slobodan Bendžo from Konjic. On January 25, Luka will perform at the celebration of the patron saint day of the Monastery of St. Sava in Elaine, which gathers around 10,000 people each year. Already on February 15, Statehood Day /Sretenje/, Luka will appear at the Serbian Festival in Sydney, where, with his magical bow, he will continue to connect people and continents, weaving a remarkable gusle story about the land of Herzegovina: "Where the most beautiful crimson dawn breaks, Where Serbian women give birth to Obilić heroes," a story he carries deep in his genes and loves with his entire being.