Biography of Gabi Novak

Gabi Novak, born Gabrijela Novak, (born 8 July 1936 in Berlin; died 11 August 2025 in Zagreb) was a Croatian singer. She moved between pop, chanson and jazz and for decades was one of the defining voices of Croatian and Yugoslav popular music.

Berlin, Hvar and Zagreb

Novak was born in Berlin. Her father came from the Dalmatian island of Hvar and her mother was German. After her childhood in Germany, she moved with her family to Hvar and later to Zagreb. There she attended the School of Applied Arts with a focus on graphic design and worked briefly as an illustrator at the Zagreb Film animation studio. That proximity to film, graphics and stage remained part of her artistic world before music became central.

A voice between pop and jazz

Her singing career began in the late 1950s. Novak appeared on radio, at festivals and on stage at a time when Yugoslav popular music was being reshaped between schlager, jazz, film music and modern pop culture. Her repertoire joined clear melodic line with controlled restraint; many recordings therefore feel intimate without becoming theatrical.

Arsen Dedić, Matija Dedić and a musical family

After her first marriage to composer Stipica Kalogjera, Gabi Novak married singer, poet and composer Arsen Dedić in 1973. The marriage also became an artistic partnership: Dedić wrote and composed for her, the two performed together and in Croatia were perceived as independent but closely connected voices. Their son Matija Dedić became a jazz pianist and also worked with her. His death in June 2025 came only weeks before her death.

Recordings, awards and later recognition

Over decades Novak released singles, albums and compilations. Her best-known songs include Pamtim samo sretne dane, On me voli na svoj način and Sve što znaš o meni. The Porin music awards honoured her several times, including in 2002 for a jazz performance and in 2003 for the album Pjesma je moj život. In 2006 she received the Porin Lifetime Achievement Award; the same year Croatia Records released the double compilation Zlatna kolekcija.

Death and burial

Gabi Novak died in Zagreb on 11 August 2025 at the age of 89. The Croatian Musicians' Union confirmed her death the same day. The funeral took place within the family; her urn was later placed in the family tomb at Zagreb's Mirogoj Cemetery. On 10 September 2025 a public commemoration followed in the small hall of Vatroslav Lisinski in Zagreb.