Agim Krajka, a composer and accordionist, was born in Kavajë. He became well-known in Kavaje for playing the accordion from a young age. From 1963 to 1968, he pursued higher education in composition at the State Conservatory of Tirana, while simultaneously serving as an accordionist in the State Ensemble of Folk Songs and Dances, where he worked until 1991. As the leader of the instrumental formation of that institution, he arranged many folk songs and dances, composed music in folk style, as well as film music and various pieces for the accordion. With songs like “Lemza” (The Hiccup), “Djaloshi dhe Shiu” (The boy and the rain), “We are Three”, etc., he represented the more progressive tendencies for the emancipation of Albanian light music in the years 1960–1980. Being a virtuoso instrumentalist, he performed numerous concerts in Albania, Kosovo, and on tours organized by the State Ensemble of Folk Songs and Dances outside the country (China, Greece, Italy, Turkey, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, USA, Australia, Canada, etc.). He was several times a winner at the annual song festivals on Albanian Radio and Television. From 1991 to 2006, he resided in the United States. (In the photo: Agim Krajka)
Text: Albanian encyclopedic dictionary – Vol. 2, Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2008, page 1335.
Photo: © Albanian Telegraphic Agency
Graphic processing: AHCF
