Breakdown of Na koncertu želim probati pjevati s glazbenicima, ali sam još stidljiv.
Questions & Answers about Na koncertu želim probati pjevati s glazbenicima, ali sam još stidljiv.
Croatian uses different prepositions for “at” depending on the type of event or place.
- na koncertu = at the concert
- u koncertu would literally be inside the concert (physically inside something), which is wrong here.
With events and public activities, Croatian normally uses na:
- na koncertu – at a concert
- na zabavi – at a party
- na utakmici – at a match
- na poslu – at work
The noun koncertu is in the locative singular:
- nominative: koncert (a concert)
- locative: (na) koncertu (at the concert)
So the preposition na + locative case expresses being at an event or on a surface.
Yes, Želim probati pjevati na koncertu is perfectly correct.
Both:
- Na koncertu želim probati pjevati s glazbenicima…
- Želim probati pjevati na koncertu s glazbenicima…
are grammatical. The difference is mostly emphasis:
- Starting with Na koncertu puts more focus on the location/time: At the concert, I want to try singing…
- Starting with Želim is a more neutral, typical English-like order: I want to try singing at the concert…
Croatian word order is relatively flexible, so both are common. The original sentence sounds very natural and slightly emphasizes the setting (na koncertu).
In Croatian, the verbs probati and pokušati (“to try”) are normally followed directly by an infinitive:
- probati pjevati – to try to sing
- pokušati pjevati – to try to sing
- probati naučiti – to try to learn
- pokušati razumjeti – to try to understand
So the construction is:
probati / pokušati + infinitive
Using da here (probati da pjevam) is not standard and sounds wrong.
Using a noun (probati pjevanje) would mean to try (out) singing as an activity in a very strange, non‑idiomatic way. Native speakers simply say probati pjevati.
Yes, želim probati pjevati is natural Croatian.
The structure is:
- želim – I want (1st person singular of željeti)
- probati – to try (infinitive)
- pjevati – to sing (infinitive)
Literally: “I want to try to sing.”
This kind of “verb chain” with multiple infinitives is normal:
- Želim pokušati naučiti svirati gitaru.
I want to try to learn to play the guitar.
You’re not overdoing it; the sentence sounds fine.
Both can mean “to try” an action, and in this sentence they are almost interchangeable:
- Želim probati pjevati…
- Želim pokušati pjevati…
Both sound good.
Subtle tendencies:
- probati literally also means to taste (food/drink): probati kolač – to try cake.
- For trying to do something, many speakers feel pokušati is a bit more “formal” or “effort-focused,” while probati is a bit more casual.
Here, either is acceptable. If you want to sound slightly more “careful/serious” about the attempt, pokušati pjevati might feel a bit stronger, but it’s a small nuance.
- s vs. sa
The preposition s (“with”) appears in two forms:
- s
- sa
You normally use s, and sa is used mainly:
- to avoid awkward consonant clusters (e.g. sa psom, not s psom)
- for emphasis or style sometimes
s glazbenicima is easy to pronounce, so s is the regular choice.
- Case of glazbenicima
glazbenicima is instrumental plural:
- nominative singular: glazbenik – a musician
- nominative plural: glazbenici – musicians
- instrumental plural: (s) glazbenicima – with musicians
The preposition s / sa meaning “with” always takes the instrumental case:
- s prijateljima – with friends
- s roditeljima – with parents
- s glazbenicima – with musicians
Both mean “musician”, but there are some stylistic and regional differences.
glazbenik
- More common and standard in Croatia.
- Slightly more neutral/formal.
- Related to glazba – music.
muzičar
- Very common in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro.
- In Croatia it’s understood, but glazbenik is preferred as the standard term.
In your sentence, s glazbenicima is the most natural choice for Croatian standard.
In Croatian, subject pronouns (ja, ti, on, ona etc.) are usually dropped because the verb ending shows the person:
- (Ja) želim… – I want…
- (Ja) sam stidljiv. – I am shy.
So ali sam još stidljiv already clearly means but I am still shy.
You can say ali ja sam još stidljiv, and that is:
- grammatically correct
- used when you want to emphasize I (contrast, insistence)
Example of emphasis:
- Svi su opušteni, ali ja sam još stidljiv.
Everyone is relaxed, but I am still shy.
The most natural order here is:
- ali sam još stidljiv – but I am still shy
Typical pattern:
(ali) + sam/si/je… + još + adjective
Examples:
- Još sam umoran. – I’m still tired.
- On je još mlad. – He is still young.
ali još sam stidljiv is not ungrammatical, but it sounds unusual and can shift emphasis onto još in a way that isn’t needed here. Native speakers almost always say:
- ali sam još stidljiv
- or ali još uvijek sam stidljiv (with extra emphasis: still, even now, I’m shy)
Both adjectives mean “shy”, and both are correct.
stidljiv
- Very common in everyday speech.
- Neutral, simple, slightly more colloquial in feel.
sramežljiv
- Also very common, fully standard.
- Some people feel it’s a bit more “bookish” or descriptive, but both are fine.
In most contexts you can freely switch them:
- Još sam stidljiv.
- Još sam sramežljiv.
Both mean I am still shy.
Yes, in standard Croatian you normally put a comma before ali when it introduces a new clause:
- Želim probati pjevati s glazbenicima, ali sam još stidljiv.
Pattern:
[clause] , ali [clause]
Examples:
- Htio sam izaći, ali je padala kiša.
- Pokušavam govoriti, ali se bojim.
So the comma in your sentence is correct and expected in written Croatian.