In the early days of the Croatian Spring, in March 1971, in the midst of student protests and social turmoil and another attempt to nurture the young sprout of Croatian sovereignty, the song "Tvoja zemlja" ("Your Land") stirred hearts at the Zagreb Festival. The lyrics of the song, which is rightly regarded as an anthem of sorts for the Croatian Spring, and one of the most touching Croatian patriotic songs in general, were created by Drago Britvić (1935–2005), and the music gushed out of the composer Alfi Kabiljo (1935–2025). The perfect harmony of the lyrics and music was providentially entrusted to the performer/interpreter Vice Vukov (1936–2008) and his characterful warm and noble baritone, to an undisguised patriot in the challenging circumstances of those times.
"Your Land", the song that for a reason became Vice's trademark and badge of identity, carried, alongside the man himself, the all-Croatian destiny for the entire next two decades, a period in which, although silenced, they always remained secretly present in Croatia and, somewhat louder, among the emigration with the inevitable lump in throat and very teary eyes.
It was not until the early 1990s that "Your Land" fully blossomed again in the everyday life of the Homeland War and the long-awaited birth of Croatian freedom and independence. Even to these days, those generations, but new ones as well, cannot but be moved by the song's strong message, imbued by special and lasting value through its timelessness: it speaks to the individual and the humanity as a whole, to families and nations, especially those who have suffered and still stand despite their burdensome history. The simple, yet deeply meaningful, gentle and warm words contain the essence and truth of human origin, existence and duration, in one’s family, birthplace, homeland; the features that make us who we are.
Foreigners and storms tore upon her,
and yet it is here – as long as we are!
mr. art. Eva Kirchmayer Bilić
