We had the good fortune of connecting with Aleksandra Šuklar and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Aleksandra, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I have been surrounded by music since my childhood. Born into a family of musicians- a mom conductor, father composer and my older sisters violinist and pianist it was somehow inevitable to become a musician as well. The day I started to play percussion it was very clear to me that I want to become a percussionist for my life time and are simply the passion, love and creativity which keep connecting me to this wonderful world of groove, rhythm and great music. For me personally it is essential to do what i truly love and could not imagine my life doing anything else.
Please tell us more about your work. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
When one is an artist, there are (in my opinion) 3 main things that should be accompanying you along the way; you should love what you are doing, you should be passionate about it and you should definitely enjoy it. As long as these attributes are with you, no matter what challenges you are facing-you will keep going.
Starting with the music at the age of 5 and learning violin at first, later choosing percussion as my main instrument required a lot of practise, dedication and I really enjoyed the times during my studies when I was allowed to stay longer and practise after midnight, sometimes until 4 am.
Many times it was not easy, but easy is not challenging. Challenges are simply part of the career and they definitely bring us further and make us grow and improve. I am very much driven by the passion and love towards music and percussion and could not imagine my life without that.
I am extremely happy to have had a chance to premiere couple of works for percussion which are dedicated to me and would like use this occasion to point out “Marimba Concerto” by Tristan Schulze which I premiered in Viennese Konzerthaus last year, “The Corridors-Concertino for Marimba” by Slavko Šuklar which I performed with the String Orchestra of Slovenian Philharmonic and “Sanagi” by Pauchi Sasaki -a work for multi-percussion and string quartet which was premiered at “Rolex Arts Weekend” in Berlin.
Entering the world of film music has opened the whole new universe and musical spectrum for me. Collaborating with the world renowned Hollywood film music composer Hans Zimmer and being a band soloist in his two concert tours “The World of Hans Zimmer” and “Hans Zimmer Live” has been one of the most inspiring experiences so far. We will be back on tour in 2023 and play 32 shows across Europe and am looking very much forward to be reunited with all the extraordinary musicians of the band. Being part of this has driven me to make my own arrangement for percussion of Hans Zimmer’s “Mombasa” from “Inception” soundtrack which is available on all digital platforms.
In case you watch some of these movies: Sponge Bob 3-Sponge on the run, Baby Boss 2, Army of thieves, The Survivor and you listen carefully you might hear some of the percussion/marimba/vibraphone that I am playing 🙂
I still have couple of goals to accomplish by the end of this year. Setting goals motivates me to discover more of my creativity and they always push me forward. Over the years I did not pay much attention about celebrating my small and a bit bigger achievements- now I really try to celebrate them symbolically since it rounds up the whole process.
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Without my parents and my family I would not be where I am today and am extremely grateful to have such a support from their side. My teachers, professors and mentors who have accompanied, inspired and supported me along the way have had a magnificent impact on my artistic path. My friends, colleagues and all the incredible musicians I got the chance to share the stage with have been a true inspiration along the way.
Website: www.aleksandrasuklar.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleksandrasuklar/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aleksandrasuklar/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/aleksandrasuklar
Other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8PMXyG8rHI www.worldofhanszimmer.com www.worldofhanszimmer.com
Image Credits
Stefan Panfili Nenad Veljovic