Radoslav Lorković (born September 3, 1958) is a Croatian-born and classically trained folk and blues musician, known in particular for his flair on the piano and accordion.
He has six solo studio recordings, three live albums and has recorded and performed with numerous artists including Odetta, Asleep at the Wheel, Jimmy LaFave, Shawn Mullins, Greg Brown, Richard Shindell, Ellis Paul, Susan Werner, Ronny Cox, Dave Moore, Andy White, Bo Ramsey, and Ramsay Midwood.
His 50 year career as a touring musician has taken him around the world, where he has performed from castles in Italy to Carnegie Hall.
Antonija, his maternal grandmother, sang Croatian, Slovenian, and Czech folk songs to him from the time of his birth.
[3] He inherited his piano passion from his paternal grandmother, Melita Lorković, at one time the premier pianist of Yugoslavia.
His mother, Tatjana Lorković, remembers her son as a toddler who, when listening to Modest Mussorgky's Pictures at an Exhibition, would begin to sing.
He showed me the scale and the left-hand bass pattern and that led to six hours a day of gleeful, voluntary practicing.
Although Lorković has recorded several solo albums, according to No Depression he is best known for the "virtuoso musicianship and beauty he has put into many other artists’ music – both live and in the studio".
[7] Lorković's piano playing on LaFave's 2015 release The Night Tribe, is said to be "straight from the Garth Hudson School of Excellence; and his tinkling of the ivories turns a very good album into a great one.
[10] Sometimes referred to as the "Croatian Sensation," Lorković is known to be the busiest musician during the festival,[11] having first attended in 2005 as a member of Jimmy LaFave's band.
[12] Lorković's version of Woody Guthrie's "The Jolly Banker" – which he performs on accordion[9] – was described as being "dazzling".
The accordion case, covered in stickers representing Lorković's years of attending folk festivals around the world, was often a favorite subject of photographers.