My name is Dušan Deme, I come from Lučenec.
I´ve been involved in music since childhood.
I come from a musical family.
They were all musicians, both on my mother's side and on my father's side.
It was my grandfather on my mother's side who led me to music the most.
I have been practicing the piano since I was six years old.
I also studied the piano at the elementary art school.
And then, from the age of 14, I started to play in cafes, wine bars,
at the social events and at all kinds of performances.
I play the piano.
I also finished elementary art school in playing the piano.
But then, around the age of 14, I tried singing.
I also signed up for singing, also as an obligation.
And then singing came into it.
So then, from the age of 18, I devoted myself intensively to music.
HI also played on all kinds of ocean liners,
on the piano, and as a singer until now.
Gypsy music, folk songs are closest to my heart.
And then it's a jazz.
That´s all.
Then, of course, some old Slovak dance music.
Like Gabriela Hermélyová and other singers from that era.
I'm still very interested in those.
At the moment, what is current in Romani music
is not so close to my heart.
I tend towards those old songs that were sometime in the past.
In the folk band, I only sing when we play some dance music.
When I'm in a jazz band, I play the piano.
But I already knew these guys.
For example, I have known the clarinetist for many years, more than ten.
And they use to call me, when there are events, and I'm so happy to come.
And with the other boys too.
Two of them are from Hungary.
So I like to work with them.
More people are interested in modern music
than the classical Roma music.
It also involves a financial aspect.
Because when five or six of us with a cimbalom band come, it is more expensive for them
than two people with a synthesizer.
That's how many people look at it, that's the truth.
Sometimes in the past there were a lot of gypsy musicians in Lučenec.
From violinists to cimbalom players, there were an awful lot of violists.
There is no one at the moment, no one.
They all died out and young people don't want to learn such instruments anymore.
I feel like it's ending.
I feel like it's ending and it's dying out, this music.
And that's probably how it will be, as I think.
We were talking with lads just today, that there is no one behind us.
Some young guys, no.
Roly is a clarinet player and we don't know anyone younger than him who is learning to play the clarinet.
Therefore, if we need a violist, we have to call one from Hungary, because there is no one here.
There is one guy in Rimavská Sobota who is very good, but he is in high demand.
They call him everywhere.
That's how it is now.
There are songs from around Lučenec.
But there are, for example, our old family songs that my grandfather taught me.
My grandmother taught me the words because she used to sing with him.
So this is how I remember my grandparents
and I want to bring it back a little bit, if possible.
Let these young people hear the music of the past.
Our region is so mixed, where Hungarian, Slovak, and Romani are also spoken.
In our family, everyone used to speak Romani.
So I also learned and I also speak Romani.
So, in our home, only Romani was spoken.
Roma culture will always exist.
In my opinion, it will never die, as long as the Roma are on this Earth.
It will always be here.
Whether in this form or in another form, but in some form it will always be.