Ekart

Ansambel Ekart is a Slovenian narodnozabavna ensemble, playing the polkas and waltzes of Slovenian folk-pop, based in Starše near Maribor. It is on Muzika-Balkan under Slovenia because it was founded and is based there. The band sings in Slovenian.

It began in 1974, when the group first played a New Year's Eve party as Ansambel Jožeta Ekarta, named after its founder and long-time leader Jože Ekart. For years they played at celebrations, until they wanted their own songs, recordings and festivals. In 1989 they passed the audition for the Ptuj festival and won a bronze Orfej there, and the same year the audience at the Cerkvenjak festival voted them the winners.

From then on they were regulars, and often prize-winners, at Ptuj, Cerkvenjak and Števerjan. At Ptuj they won the audience vote and a silver Orfej in 1991, another silver Orfej in 1993, and in 1995 the audience and expert votes, the golden Orfej and the Koren plaque for the best performance; in 2004 the expert jury picked them again. At Števerjan they won prizes for the best melody (1992), the best lyrics, by Jože Ekart (1993), the best quintet (1995) and the best ensemble of the festival (1999). They were finalists of the first three Slovenska polka in valček festivals, and won the waltz category in 1997 with "Ptičica".

Their many cassettes and CDs include Zvon Ptujske Gore, Zasanjana Slovenija, Veselo po štajersko, Ptičica, Dopustnik Joža, Glasba brez meja and Zapojmo, prijatelji. Jože Ekart, the founder and long-time leader, left the band in 2013. It is now led by clarinettist and saxophonist Damijan Kolarič, with singer Barbara Kolarič, Renato Kapun, Andrej Ekart, Viktor Malec and Simon Novak.

The playlist gathers the band's own videos, among them "Zorica", "Gasilska polka", "Hej, Simon" and "Še eno rundo daj točajka", also recorded with Edvin Fliser.