Her voice floats through the concert hall, casting a spell over the audience. The song she is singing is called Haiku. And it is a haiku, a short Japanese poem she brings to life through the melody. Thanks to her, the audience is appreciating the simple beauty of haiku, something many Japanese no longer do.

Jadranka Stojakovic was born in Sarajevo 54 years ago, in what is now Bosnia-Herzegovina. She joined her uncle's jazz group when she was 16, and performed with the group in many parts of Europe. When the Winter Olympics were held in Sarajevo in 1984, she sang the official theme song of the Games. Around that time, she was awarded the prize given to Yugoslavia's best artist. She was among the country's most talented and admired singer-songwriters.

"The first time I read a haiku poem, I was in high school. My mother gave me a book of ukiyo-e woodblock prints by Ando Hiroshige. The prints came with haiku poems, and when I read them the rhythm conjured up images in my mind—the kind of images you'd expect to see in a movie. The poems were simple, yet powerful. That's when Japan began pulling at my heartstrings. And it still does...."

The first time she came to Japan was in 1984, for a music festival she was invited to. She returned to Yugoslavia, and then came back to Japan four years later to fulfill contract obligations for concerts and recordings. While she was in Japan the civil war in her native land became more violent, making it impossible for her to return home. She has been living in Japan since then, for the last 15 years. She says one good thing that came out of those dark days was that she was able to make a new life in Japan.

She smiles, "The Japanese are very gentle-mannered. When commuting, they wait patiently for the train to come. And they are careful not to quarrel. Modern technology has created all kinds of conveniences, but the people still keep folk songs and other traditions alive. It's that balance between modern lifestyles and traditional culture that I find fascinating."

She says the hardest part about living in Japan was the language, especially the kanji characters used in writing. She would learn some kanji, and then forget them the next day. But her neighbors kept her spirits up.

"People often say 'sumimasen'. At first I thought it meant only 'I'm sorry'. But often that's not the case. The word usually indicates that the speaker is considering the feelings of the other person. The Japanese way of communicating—showing consideration to the person one is talking to—made it possible for me to feel at ease in Japan."

In her concerts, in addition to Haiku, Jadranka sings pop songs the Japanese remember fondly, like Ue wo Muite Aruko (English title, Sukiyaki).

"When I sing a Japanese song, the ocean seems to float before my eyes, and I feel like I'm walking along the seashore. I grew up in Dubrovnik, a city on the Adriatic Sea, in present-day Croatia. Japan is surrounded by the sea, so the two places have quite a bit in common, I think."

Jadranka lives on her own in a condominium in Tokyo. Her work has taken her in new directions lately, including musical composition for TV commercials. She jogs quite strenuously on her days off, to keep fit.

"I want to keep singing as long as my voice holds out. Songs are my life. That's what I try to convey when I'm on stage, and the audience gives me extra energy. What could be better than that?"

The emotions behind a song are universal—this is the message Jadranka conveys, a message that hits home among Japanese people when they hear her clear, golden voice.