Vedran Smailović, known as the "Cellist of Sarajevo", is a musician from Bosnia and Herzegovina. During the siege of Sarajevo, he played Albinoni's Adagio in G Minor in ruined buildings, and, often under the threat of snipers, he played during funerals. His bravery inspired musical numbers and a novel. He moved to Northern Ireland and is a composer, conductor, and performer. His G minor masterpiece was introduced in a book called "a story like the wind".
Smailović caught the imagination of people around the world by playing his cello, most notably performing Albinoni's Adagio in G Minor for twenty two days, in the ruined square of a downtown Sarajevo marketplace after a mortar round had killed twenty-two people waiting for food there. He managed to leave Sarajevo 1993, in the second year of the siege that lasted from 5 April 1992 to 29 February 1996 and is often mistakenly identified as a member of the Sarajevo String Quartet, which played on throughout the siege. In his honour, composer David Wilde wrote a piece for solo cello, The Cellist of Sarajevo, which was recorded by Yo Yo Ma. Paul O'Neill described Smailović's performances as the inspiration for Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24 by Savatage and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Folk singerJohn McCutcheon also penned a song in his honour, In the Streets of Sarajevo.The South Africansinger and songwriterCoenie de Villiers wrote a song in Afrikaans, called Die tjeiis van Sarajevo , which was included in his 2011 album Hart van glas. Canadian authorElizabeth Wellburn worked with Smailović to create the children's bookEchoes from the Square. Another Canadian author, Steven Galloway, based a character on Smailović in his bestselling 2008 novel, The Cellist of Sarajevo. In the book, an unnamed cellist plays every day at 4:00 pm for 22 days, always at the same time and location, to honour the 22 people killed by a mortar bomb while they queued for bread on May 26, 1992. The account, including the time of the mortar attack, is fictional. Smailović publicly expressed outrage over the book's publication. He said, "They steal my name and identity," and added that he expected damages, an apology and compensation. In 2012, a meeting between Smailović and Galloway took place during which the latter assured he meant no harm in telling a fictional representation of the events.
Continued career
He escaped the city in late 1993 and has since been involved in numerous music projects as a performer, composer and conductor. He now lives in Warrenpoint, Northern Ireland. He was named a Hero's hero by The My Hero Project.
