The Radio Television of Serbia Folk Orchestra, with its work and quality achievements, left a deep trace in traditional culture and significantly contributed to the preservation of our musical heritage.

The Radio Television of Serbia Folk Orchestra is the oldest folk orchestra in our country, as well as in the surrounding countries. For ninghty years of existence and work, this ensemble has achieved countless performances, concerts and folk music shows. The documentation of permanent recordings of folk songs and folklore, stored in the RTS Sound Archive, is particularly important.

Everything started right after the establishment of Radio Belgrade. A significant part of the program was dedicated to folk music. Regardless of the fact that the beginning of folk music was characterized by a high level of improvisation in performance, and the shows almost entirely occured according to the written or telephone wishes of the listeners, this type of nurturing and performing music quickly won a wide range of listeners. At that time, the first radio ensembles were formed for the performance of folk music led by Jovan Stojanović and Anta Grujić, as well as the trio of guitarist Sima Begovic, founded in 1930.

At the end of 1929, the violinist Vlastimir Pavlović Carevac came to Radio Belgrade, very important person in the music history of Radio Belgrade, who marked one whole period. The corresponding orchestral accompaniment of folk songs in improvised performance changed over time, and the expansion and filling of existing folk ensembles towards forming the folk orchestra was inevitable. At the end of 1934, two small compositions were fused into one, under the dual management of Begović – Pavlović, and in the following year, the Folk Orchestra of Radio Belgrade, mainly composed of string instruments, began to work continuously. Shortly after its founding, Vlastimir Pavlović Carevac imposed himself as a prominent talent with great ability to lead the Folk Orchestra, which practically meant the ever-increasing and more direct collaboration between vocal and instrumental soloists.

During the years of work, the growing program needs conditioned the necessity of radical reorganisation and the new dimensioning of the Folk Orchestra. Carevac enriches the orchestra by introducing the wind instruments and accordion. As an excellent connoisseur of our musical folklore, outstanding soloist on the violin and impeccable authority, Carevac managed to achieve the inevitable unity within the orchestra itself, preveting the orchestral base, by no means, from becoming a tedious, monotonous supporting base.

On the contrary, lavishly designed orchestral sections, inventive arrangements, highly rhythmic chordal accompaniment, counterpoint with pizzicato on the violin, sound and harmonic colouration, contributed to the excellent dialogue between the vocal and instrumental soloists and the orchestra. Carevac has created a unique, recognisable style as the general ground on which the innovation and individuality of specific works can be measured. Musical, educated, with proven taste for music, this artist seemed to be destined to perform the primary stylisation of folk songs and folklore with the help of good musicians in his orchestra and in the Music Department. Thanks to the “golden voices” of Radio Belgrade, such as Danica Obrenić, Andjelija Milić, Radmila Dimić, Zora Drempetić, Ružica Protić, Vukašin Jevtić, Ljubivoje Vidosavljević, Dragoljub Lazarević, Miodrag Popović and many, many others with whom he worked, often revealing them the secrets, only known to him, about the beauty of melodic lines, ornaments, text symbolism and the importance of diction, Vlastimir Pavlović left an indelible trace in folk music by playing live in radio shows, and even more in numerous audio recordings storeded in the Phonoteca of Radio Television of Serbia.

In 1965, after the departure of the legend, the Folk Orchestra continues to work under the supervision of the violinist with the outstanding performance abilities Miodrag Rade Jašarević. Carevac’s associate and contemporary, Jasarević did not significantly influence the composition of the already established orchestra, as well as the manner of interpreting folk music.

In 1976, after the tragic death of this artist, clarinetist Božidar Boki Milošević became the leader of the Folk Orchestra. The fact that the orchestra was led by the clarinetist and not by the violinist, caused this orchestra to obtain a sound colour significantly differed from the colour of the Carevac’s Orchestra. It should also be emphasized that in those years the strong breakthrough was accomplished by the so-called newly composed music, often with foreign melodic and rhythmic patterns, and that music editors and program collegium found themselves facing great program challenges and questions – how and in what way the repertoire of the The Radio Television of Serbia Folk Orchestra should be formed. Fortunately, it was able to remain consistent and true to the traditional musical values and also it was possible that the repertoire of the orchestra primarily consisted of folk songs and folklore from all parts of Yugoslavia. Nevertheless, these music-related turbulences also reflected on the work of the orchestra. There was a change in composition by introducing drums, and accordion and clarinet were given a much larger role.

In the ’80s of the last century, the artistic leader of the Folk Orchestra of Radio Television of Belgrade, later Radio Television of Serbia, became Ljubiša Pavković, a soloist on the accordion, who successfully led this orchestra for almost three decades. The increased instrumentarium, the presence of two accordions, five violins, viola, cello, double bass, flute, clarinet, guitar and drum, made the Folk Orchestra realise a “more modern” sound in the performance of traditional music. Pavkovic’s lavish talent, a great knowledge of the stylistic characteristics of the Serbian and Balkan musical heritage, and a vision focused on high artistic achievements in the performance of folk music, significantly had influence on the repertoire of this orchestra to have a broad diapason and performance and arrangement to be well designed. Ljubisa Pavkovic, as a remarkable soloist on the accordion, pedagogue and dedicated director of the Folk Orchestra, has discovered and educated a whole generation of outstanding soloists and orchestral musicians who, today, properly nurture our traditional songs and folklore, urban poems and romances, selected compositions in the national spirit, as well as the melodies and rhythms of neighboring countries.

By Ljubiša Pavković’s retirement, the role of the artistic leader of The Radio Television of Serbia Folk Orchestra is taken over by the soloist on the accordion Vlada Panović. As Pavković’s successor, Vlada Panović successfully and safely continues to lead the orchestra, firmly relying on the traditional values embodied in the folk music of Serbia and the Balkans.