Related articles
Music ProfileVlasta Redl – taking Moravian folk to another level
Moravian folk music has long and rich traditions, and many artists work
with its motifs in creating their own musical style. One of them is the
“Walachian Bard” Vlasta Redl. He started his career in the mid 1980s in
a band that was very well received, but eventually looked ever closer to
the traditional Moravian music for inspiration.
More
One on OneMusician Robert Křesťan on bluegrass, Bob Dylan, and playing before Barack Obama
Czech bluegrass has a long tradition going back to the 1960s but it took
several more decades before it was acknowledged in the land of its origin,
the United States. Our guest in this edition of One on One is Robert
Křesťan, the banjoist, lead singer and the founder of a bluegrass
legend,
the band Druhá Tráva, formed in the early 1990s. Their latest album
Dylanovky, features songs by Bob Dylan translated into Czech by Robert
Křesťan, and he and his band set the scene before the public speech of
the US President, Barack Obama at Prague Castle earlier this month. More
PanoramaKarel Kryl, writer of ‘political love songs’, remembered 15 years after his death
Karel Kryl is considered by many to be the greatest Czech folk singer ever
to have lived. He was the voice of a generation, with this song -
‘Bratříčku, zavírej vrátka’ - becoming an anthem of protest
against the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. Kryl, who died
15 years ago this week, continues to enjoy a massive popularity in this
country. One of the first people to spot his talent was DJ and music critic
Jiří Černý:
More
Current AffairsRadůza does it for the kids with new CD and book
The popular Czech folk singer Radůza has just released a new CD for
children entitled O Mourince a Lojzíkovi. The album combines stories with
songs and is part of a project which also includes a nicely illustrated
book. Radůza told me how it came about.
More
Current AffairsUS musician Tom Waits plays first ever concerts in Czech Republic
The American musician Tom Waits has won legions of fans around the world
with his distinctive, growl-like voice and evocative lyrics. This week,
Czech music lovers finally got to see the singer live for the first time,
when he played two sold-out shows at Prague’s Congress Centre. I caught
the second concert, on Tuesday.
More
Current AffairsPretty Moravian town of Náměšť nad Oslavou plays host to annual world
The annual Folkové Prázdniny (Folk Holidays) music festival gets underway
in the south Moravian town of Náměšť nad Oslavou on Saturday. The
week-long event takes place in the grounds of the town’s castle and
features a broad selection of both international and Czech world and folk
musicians. Ahead of the festival, I spoke to one of its organisers, Daniel
Hejl. More
Czechs TodayKatka Garcia – Alfons Mucha’s cosmopolitan great-granddaughter
Katka Garcia, as her name suggests, is half Czech and half Spanish, with a
bit of Russian thrown in. In addition to that she sings traditional music
from Ireland and Scotland. She currently lives in Dublin and teaches
Spanish at Trinity College and occasionally comes to Prague to perform with
her fellow musicians. I caught up with her during her last visit.
More
Music ProfileJaromír Nohavica: Czech Republic’s most popular contemporary songwriter
Hello and welcome to this month’s edition of Music Profile. Today we are
going to look at the work of Jaromír Nohavica, one of the country’s most
respected singer songwriters. He released his first album Darmoděj in
1988. By that time, however, his songs were already well-known, as fans
circulated amateur recordings from his concerts. He now has numerous albums
to his name and sells-out concerts without having to put up a single
poster.
More
+1
