MATO DOŠEN

Born: June 25th, 1953, Zagreb, Croatia (Yugoslavia)

Died: April 2nd, 2010, Zagreb (Croatia)

Nationality: Croatian

In due course, the short impression below will be replaced with a more extensive career overview

BIOGRAPHY

In the late 1970s, Mato Došen was a member of pop groups Hobo and Izazov. He also released one solo album as a vocalist. In the 1980s, he became the single most sought-after arranger in former Yugoslavia, working on songs for virtually every important artist: Oliver, Magazin, Arsen Dedić, and Ljiljana Nikolovska, to name just a few. Between 1988 and 2008, Došen lived in Marbella, Spain, where he owned a recording studio and a nightclub.

EUROVISION SONG CONTEST

Mato Došen was involved in three Yugoslavian entries in the 1980s, of which he conducted one. In 1983, he arranged ‘Džuli’ for Daniel and played the accordion on stage; this Yugoslavian entry, conducted by Radovan Papović of RTV Titograd, finished fourth and became a major European hit. One year later, Došen both arranged and conducted another Montenegrin entry which won the Yugoslavian heats, ‘Ciao amore’ by Vlado & Isolda; in Luxembourg, this song finished second-last. In 1986, finally, Došen arranged ‘Željo moja’, sung by Doris Dragović. This entry, submitted by Croatian broadcaster RTV Zagreb, represented Yugoslavia in the 1986 contest in Bergen. Because Došen was on stage playing the keyboards, the orchestra was conducted by Nikica Kalogjera.

EUROVISION INVOLVEMENT YEAR BY YEAR

1983 Munich

Country – Yugoslavia

Song title – "Džuli"

Rendition – Daniel (Milan Popović)

Lyrics – Mario Mihaljević

Composition – Milan Popović

Studio arrangement – Mato Došen

Live orchestration – Mato Došen

Conductor – Radovan Papović

Score – 4th place (125 votes)

1984 Luxembourg

Country – Yugoslavia

Song title – "Ciao amore"

Rendition – Isolda Barudžija & Vlado Kalember

Lyrics – Milan Perić

Composition – Slobodan Bucevac

Studio arrangement – Mato Došen

Live orchestration – Mato Došen

Conductor – Mato Došen

Score – 18th place (26 votes)

1986 Bergen

Country – Yugoslavia

Song title – "Željo moja"

Rendition – Doris Dragović 

Lyrics – Zrinko Tutić

Composition – Zrinko Tutić

Studio arrangement – Mato Došen

Live orchestration – Mato Došen

Conductor – Nikica Kalogjera

Score – 11th place (49 votes)