Summer at Gradina enters a strong August rhythm: Vanna, Rišpet and Milde Sorte Party are coming to Trsat Castle
Rijeka's August program of Summer at Gradina will bring together three different musical worlds: pop, contemporary klapa music and the disco of the seventies and eighties. Vanna will perform at Trsat Castle on Saturday, August 8, 2026, Rišpet will arrive on August 14, and Milde Sorte Party will take place on August 15. These events are part of the 21st edition of the event organized by the Rijeka Tourist Board and held in the spaces of Trsat Castle and Nugent Park. According to the official program of the City of Rijeka and the Tourist Board, the season began on June 12 and runs until September 12, with concerts, theatre, children's content and themed music evenings. Three upcoming events in just one week summarize the breadth of the program on the historic stage above Rijeka.
Trsat Castle is not merely a backdrop, but an important part of the program's identity. Rijeka's official tourism pages describe Summer at Gradina as a recognizable city summer event, while the City of Rijeka, in its announcement of the 21st edition, highlights performances by well-known names from the Croatian and regional scene as well as themed evenings of different genres. In 2026, the program includes, among others, Tony Cetinski, Josipa Lisac, Dalmatino, Damir Kedžo, Let 3, Neno Belan, Vesna Pisarović, Buč Kesidi and Električni orgazam. The schedule shows that the event is not a series of mutually similar concerts, but a cultural and entertainment cycle for audiences of different generations and interests. The August sequence Vanna – Rišpet – Milde Sorte Party demonstrates that concept particularly clearly.
Vanna on August 8 brings an overview of a career spanning more than three decades
The first to perform in this series at Trsat Castle is Vanna, on Saturday, August 8, starting at 9 p.m., as confirmed by the current event sales page. The organizers announce a performance with a backing band and a repertoire composed of her greatest songs. That repertoire spans the dance period of the nineties, later pop and ballads, as well as newer original songs. More than three decades of recording history allow her to connect, at the same concert, the audience that followed her first major successes with younger listeners. The Trsat performance is therefore conceived as an overview of several phases of her career, rather than merely a return to one period of Croatian pop.
According to the Croatia Records biography, Vanna's professional career began in the early nineties, following her collaboration with Ilan Kabiljo, and she soon became a full member of the group Electro Team, better known as ET. The group's major breakthrough came with the song "Tek je 12 sati", after which ET became one of the key names of Croatian dance music during the nineties. Vanna then built a solo career in which she gradually moved away from an exclusively dance-oriented expression and expanded her repertoire toward pop and more demanding vocal interpretations. In 2001, she represented Croatia at the Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen with the song "Strings of My Heart" and finished in tenth place, according to HRT. More than two decades later, she has remained present in television music formats as well: HRT lists her as a mentor in the second season of The Voice Kids Hrvatska, following her previous mentoring work in the adult edition of the show.
Vanna's current work, however, does not rely only on older hits. In July 2026, Croatia Records presented the music video for the ballad "Toliko toga", a song written by Vanna, with an arrangement by Goran Kovačić. This also gives the Trsat concert a current recording context: alongside recognizable hits, there is room for newer material that shows the present direction of her songwriting. The official announcement states that she will perform with a band and present a program for a broad audience. Tickets are on sale, and the organizer also plans ticket sales at the entrance on the day of the concert, if any remain available.
Rišpet on August 14 brings contemporary klapa sound and Mediterranean pop
Six days after Vanna, on Friday, August 14 at 9 p.m., Rišpet will perform at Trsat Castle. The current event sales page confirms the date, time and location of the concert, while the group is included in the official Summer at Gradina program among the main musical names of the August part of the season. Over the past fifteen years or so, Rišpet has built a recognizable sound at the intersection of klapa polyphony, Dalmatian melodies and more contemporary popular music, which is why their concerts attract audiences who follow both the traditional klapa scene and broader Mediterranean pop. The Rijeka program is expected to offer exactly such an overview of their repertoire, with an emphasis on songs that marked the group's development. Among their best-known titles are "Mislin samo na te", "Šta mi ljube oćeš kazat" and "Prsti zapleteni", a duet with Jelena Rozga, along with a series of other songs that in recent years have become a regular part of their concert repertoire.
In its announcement of a recording of their concert from Lisinski, Croatian Radiotelevision states that Split composer Pero Kozomara founded Rišpet in 2011 and that the group's first recorded song was "Sunce mi od tebe dolazi", a duet with Mate Mišo Kovač. Singer Ivo Amulić played an important role in the group's later development, while the ensemble gradually built a concert audience beyond the traditional boundaries of klapa music. It is precisely this combination of polyphony, a powerful lead vocal and pop arrangements that explains why Rišpet appears in programs such as Summer at Gradina alongside performers belonging to a much broader spectrum of popular music. Their songs often retain a Dalmatian linguistic and emotional code, but are produced for large concert stages, radio airplay and collective audience singing. On the open-air stage of Trsat Castle, this format should come to the fore through a combination of more intimate songs and choruses that rely on a strong audience response.
The concert in Rijeka comes after a series of major indoor performances by Rišpet. In 2025, HRT recorded their concert at the Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall in Zagreb and stated that they had sold out that hall several times over the previous six years. This demonstrates the group's popularity beyond its Dalmatian origins and explains Rišpet's place in the central part of Rijeka's summer program. For audiences less familiar with the contemporary Croatian klapa scene, the concert is an opportunity to hear how traditional polyphony has entered the format of modern popular music. Rišpet does not limit itself to a traditional repertoire, but uses klapa expression as the foundation for original pop songs.
Milde Sorte Party brings back the sound of Rijeka's disco history
The day after Rišpet, on Saturday, August 15, Trsat Castle moves into a retro dance rhythm. Milde Sorte Party is conceived as a tribute to the former disco club of the same name at Preluk, an important place in the urban culture of the Rijeka area. The city portal MojaRijeka states that the club opened on September 6, 1970, and at the time could accommodate between 800 and 900 visitors. During the seventies and eighties, it became one of the recognizable nightlife venues in Kvarner, and its name now lives on through themed parties. DJ Zdrave is responsible for the musical selection at Milde Sorte Party, with a repertoire based on the disco music of that period.
For the August 15 edition, the current sales page confirms Trsat Castle as the location and currently lists the starting time as 8 p.m. This is an important practical note because some earlier media announcements, including the announcement from which this August overview originates, mentioned a starting time of 9 p.m. Since there is a difference between the previously published schedule and the time currently listed on the event page, visitors are advised to check the final starting time immediately before arrival. The sales page currently also states that children under the age of 12 accompanied by a parent have free admission, as do persons with disabilities, while accompanying persons pay the full ticket price. These details, like all organizational information, may change, so the organizer's latest announcement is the most important source before the event itself.
In terms of content, Milde Sorte Party differs from the two concerts that precede it. Instead of the repertoire of a single performer, the emphasis is on a dance evening and a collective experience of music from the period when disco culture strongly shaped the nightlife of European cities. In the Rijeka context, the local memory of the original Milde Sorte adds further value, meaning the event is not merely a generic retro party but also a reminder of a part of Kvarner's history. In its official announcement of Summer at Gradina, the City of Rijeka highlights Milde Sorte Party among themed programs alongside Sunset Castle, Disco Revival and LP Rock, placing it within a broader concept of evenings that are not classic concerts but are dedicated to particular genres and periods. For younger audiences, it is an opportunity to discover the musical codes of a time before digital playlists, while for part of the older audience it represents a return to music associated with former nights out, clubs and dance floors.
Assumption Day also means additional attention to traffic toward Trsat
The date of Milde Sorte Party coincides with the Feast of the Assumption, August 15, when Trsat traditionally attracts a large number of pilgrims to the Shrine of Our Lady of Trsat. Because of this, the traffic situation on that day is also important for audiences coming to Trsat exclusively for the evening music program. In previous years, the City of Rijeka introduced special traffic regulations on Trsat and in the eastern part of the city for the Assumption; for example, on August 15, 2025, traffic bans were in effect from 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on several streets in the Trsat area, together with additional adjustments to public transport and parking. However, as of August 7, 2026, no detailed traffic decision for this year's celebration had been found in the official city announcements available for verification. Therefore, last year's regime should not automatically be regarded as the final schedule for 2026, although it is reasonable to expect special measures because of the large number of visitors and pilgrims.
For arrival on August 15, it is most important to follow official announcements from the City of Rijeka, the city transport operator and the organizer in the days before the holiday. Road closures, changes to bus routes or special parking rules may significantly affect access to Trsat. The music program takes place in the same area where a large number of pilgrims gather during the day, so it is useful to allow additional time for arrival. Drivers should check available parking areas, while public transport passengers should check any temporary timetables. Final instructions should be based on official information for 2026, rather than on arrangements from previous years.
Three evenings, three different reasons to come to Trsat
In just eight days, Summer at Gradina offers three clearly different events. Vanna on August 8 brings a pop repertoire connecting several generations, Rišpet on August 14 brings a contemporary klapa and Mediterranean sound, while Milde Sorte Party on August 15 brings the disco aesthetics of the seventies and eighties and a reminder of Rijeka's urban history. All three evenings take place at Trsat Castle, Partizanski put 9A in Rijeka, but they offer significantly different atmospheres. It is precisely this diversity that is an important reason why Summer at Gradina functions as a multi-month program rather than as a festival concentrated into a few days.
Official announcements show that the same programming logic continues after mid-August, with music, theatre and children's content running all the way into September. Rijeka is a city on the northern Adriatic, so the evening program at Trsat also fits into the broader summer offer of Kvarner, but the event primarily retains a cultural and entertainment character. The historic setting is connected with popular music, theatre, children's programs and themed parties. The Vanna – Rišpet – Milde Sorte Party sequence therefore summarizes the idea of Summer at Gradina well: the same location, but different musical languages and audiences.
- Vanna: Saturday, August 8, 2026 at 9 p.m., Trsat Castle.
- Rišpet: Friday, August 14, 2026 at 9 p.m., Trsat Castle.
- Milde Sorte Party: Saturday, August 15, 2026; the current sales page lists the start at 8 p.m., while some earlier announcements listed 9 p.m., so it is advisable to check the final starting time before arrival.
Sources:
- City of Rijeka – official announcement of the 21st edition of Summer at Gradina and overview of the 2026 program (link)
- Rijeka Tourist Board / Visit Rijeka – official information about the event, season duration and performers in the 2026 program (link)
- Entrio – current page for Vanna's concert with the date, time and location of the performance on August 8, 2026 (link)
- Entrio – current page for Rišpet's concert with the date, time and location of the performance on August 14, 2026 (link)
- Entrio – current Milde Sorte Party page with the currently listed schedule and admission rules for August 15, 2026 (link)
- Croatia Records – official Vanna biography and information about the beginnings of her career and the ET period (link)
- Croatia Records – July 2026 announcement about Vanna's ballad "Toliko toga" and the song's authorship details (link)
- HRT – information about Vanna's appearance at Eurovision 2001 and her tenth-place finish (link)
- HRT / The Voice – current mentor biography of Vanna in The Voice Kids Hrvatska (link)
- HRT – overview of Rišpet's history, the group's founding in 2011 and the roles of Pero Kozomara and Ivo Amulić (link)
- MojaRijeka – historical overview of the Milde Sorte disco club and its place in Rijeka's urban culture (link)
- City of Rijeka – official notice on traffic regulations for the Assumption in 2025, used as historical context with a clear distinction from the details for 2026 that have not yet been published (link)