Whispers of Izola with Marina and Emilia Mårtensson

What happens when Swedish roots meet an Istrian family heritage? You get two remarkable artists, two very different musical paths and a shared connection to Izola.

One is an award-winning jazz vocalist. The other has toured the world with Slovenian group Laibach. From the same musical beginnings, Emilia and Marina have built two distinctive international careers. Izola is where their paths continue to meet – through family history, music and a shared sense of belonging.

Marina calls Emilia a generous mentor. Emilia calls Marina her rock-star sister. In the new episode of Whispers of Izola, they talk about music, family and the paths that brought them back to Izola – and try to settle who is the bigger dreamer, who is more stubborn and who knows more Izola gossip.

Jazz, storytelling and a space for other voices

Emilia Mårtensson is an award-winning vocalist, composer and mentor whose music brings together jazz, Scandinavian folk, art-pop and improvisation. She has performed on international stages and was part of the MOBO Award-winning Kairos 4tet. In 2016, she received the Parliamentary Jazz Award for Vocalist of the Year.

Family stories have an important place in her work. Her albums Ana and Loredana were inspired by two women who shaped her life: her Slovenian grandmother and her mother.

Emilia’s connection to Izola also gave rise to Beyond Vocals, the international jazz retreat she has been bringing to the town for twelve years. Singers and musicians from around the world spend a week developing their artistic identity, learning to trust their own voice and performing for local audiences.

The idea grew out of Emilia’s own experience of returning to Izola at the age of 23. Here, she found the space to write, sing, swim and reconnect with herself.

From intimate songs to the world’s biggest stages

Marina Mårtensson is a singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has lived and worked in Slovenia over a decade. Before moving here, she had already released two albums, including Fences, which was released in Japan in 2009. Her musical world now stretches from intimate singer-songwriter performances to powerful international productions.

Since 2018, Marina has collaborated with Laibach as a vocalist, performer and songwriter, touring with the group around the world. She originally co-wrote the song that later became The Engine of Survival, which gained new meaning for her after she became a mother.

In July 2026, Marina and Izola musician Drago Mislej – Mef won the main award at the 45th Melodije morja in sonca festival with Drugačna je le noč. Their collaboration began exactly as many Izola stories do: over a drink in what the sisters affectionately call “Mef’s corner”.

Izola: inherited roots, chosen home

For Emilia and Marina, Izola is much more than a setting for their music. Their mother spent the first years of her life near Manzioli Square, while their grandparents kept Slovenian traditions, food and a sense of belonging alive in the family even after moving to Sweden.

Emilia returned to Izola at the age of 23 and found a place where she could slow down, write and reconnect with her creativity. That experience later inspired Beyond Vocals. Marina first visited as a teenager and returned in 2013, initially planning to stay only for a short time. One of her main reasons was to learn Slovenian and connect more deeply with her grandparents.

Their relationship with the town was also shaped by the people they met here. Mef became a close friend and organised their first concert in Izola, while Manzioli Square gradually became both their stage and what they affectionately call their “living room”.

Foto: Neja Filipčič

Although Emilia now lives in Berlin and Marina in Ljubljana, Izola remains deeply connected to their idea of home. As they reflect in the episode, home is not necessarily one place. It is wherever the people you love are.

And what does Izola sound like to two musicians? You will have to listen to the new episode to find out.