Bosnian sevdah band Divanhana is from an area, in the center of the former Yugoslavia, where there is a strong lingering Turkish influence. Formed in 2009 by a group of students at the Sarajevo Music Academy, Divanhana has released several albums of their urban Bosnian folk woven from Balkan, Turkish and Sephardic strands. Their sevdalinka (love songs) are arranged with the strong, haunting female vocals of Šejla Grgić. Only 28 years old, her talent belies her age, and she is the latest lead singer in a band that has featured some great ones over the years. The band met her in 2018 when they worked with the American Embassy in Bosnia & Herzegovina to present the Broadway musical “Spelling Bee,” in collaboration with Šejla Grgić, at seven cities.  She joined the band shortly thereafter.

Pianist Neven Tunjić had a hand in composing and arranging several of the songs including “Na Kušlatu Se Mahrama Vihori,” “Lola,” “Voće Rodilo” (Fruit Born) and “Zova” (She’s Calling). At track two, “Ćilim” (Rug) demonstrates how the band works cohesively and collaboratively towards a joyous feeling and Grgić exclaims (in Croatian), “When I finally wash my hair, I sigh over every measure, and I drink poor coffee, and I hide my eyes from my wife!”

Most of their contemporary numbers are quite upbeat and snappy, but they also give a nod to tradition with splendid renditions of “Stade Se Cvijeće Rosom Kititi” (Flowers Began to Adorn with Dew) and “Oj, Curice” (Oh, Girl!).  They appear to tell stories of regret and resignation or perhaps of love yearning, hopeless, painful.

Tasty, tight accompaniment is kept mostly acoustic, and my special compliments to Nedžad Mušović for his accordion work, Klemen Bračko for his fiddling,  Carlos Yoder for his propulsive tabla,  Ivan Bobinac and Iwan Josipović for plucking tamburitza, and even colorings of Goran Bojčevski’s fife and Rok Nemo Nemanič ‘s trumpet on a few tracks.  The confident rhythm section of Azur Imamović (bass), Adin Taletović (guitar), Milutin Mića Stojanović (drums) and Irfan Tahirović (percussion) also does a fine job. I wonder if they considered incorporating some quiet, contemplative saz into any of the tracks to feature that traditional Turkish stringed instrument with its pear-shaped body and long neck.

All in all, the enchanting and exuberant music on Divanhana’s Zavrzlama is a consistently satisfying presentation by some talented, inventive musicians who keep one foot in tradition and one in the future. They may be a folk orchestra but also display considerable jazz sensibilities. (Joe Ross, Roots Music Report)