Nikol Bóková is known as a classical pianist with a repertoire stretching from the Baroque period to contemporary music. Her first album of her own music inspired by jazz, classical music, minimalism and, in some respect, popular music, has been recorded in the traditional jazz-piano-trio line-up and the pianist's musical partners in this project have been talented exponents of the young jazz generation: Martin Kocián on the double bass and Michal Wierzgon on the drums. Nikol Bóková's compositions are perfectly polished miniatures, simple in form but echoing the harmonic and melodic complexity of classical piano literature. Indeed, Bóková's play, defined to a great extent by her experience with classical-music interpretation, her brilliant technique and dynamic keystroke, is unique in the world of the jazz piano. In her compositions, Nikol Bóková effortlessly travels between genres, clearly fascinated by the possibilities they have to offer.

Classical Music

Trumpeter and composer Štepánka Balcarová, known from the successful quintet “Inner Spaces” and as the leader of the progressive big band “Concept Art Orchestra” (for the albums of both she has received the „Angel“ award for the jazz album of the year), has compiled her first solo album from her own compositions made on poems of the Polish poet Julian Tuwim (1894-1953). Tuwim´s poems seem to be very simple and plain, but each of them carries many deep thoughts as well. And the congenial music can be described the same way. Balcarová has invited Polish singer Malgorzata Hutek and the band made of fantastic Czech and Polish players (Jaromír Honzák, Marcel Bárta, Robert Fischmann, Nikola Kolodziejczyk and Grzegorz Maslovski) to record with her.

Classical Music

The album of the reunited legendary Organic Quartet, led by Hammond organist and Grammy winner Ondrej Pivec, who currently resides in New York (playing with Gregory Porter and Gregoire Maret, among others) is released precisely ten years after the band´s previous album titled “Never Enough“ (2007), the release of which was an impetus to Animal Music label foundation. The Album contains new fresh material penned by the band members, was recorded to tape using solely analog equipment, without any use of digital effects, computers or editing. The album is released on CD, vinyl (with large booklet containing the sheet music) and digitally. The band members, who concurrently lead their own projects and release their own solo albums, have matured into remarkable personalities without losing anything from their youthful enthusiasm and energy.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Rostislav Fraš, the first-class Czech jazz saxophonist and composer, has invited two giants of the world jazz scene to record his new album with him – Italian pianist Antonio Faraò and the legendary American drummer Jeff „Tain“ Watts. The fourth in the band is the bassist Josef Feco. The album has been recorded at the end of the short tour of this line-up and it brings a collection of Fraš´s and Faraò´s own compositions performed with fantastic and driving delivery. A multifaceted saxophonist Rostislav Fraš graduated from the Jaroslav Ježek Conservatory in Prague and the Jazz Institute of the Academy of Music in Katowice, Poland. Already during his studies at the conservatory he quickly emerged as a vital element on the Prague jazz scene, where he became a popular sideman, leader of his own groups and gradually an acclaimed composer. In addition to its own projects, he regularly performs as a member of the Gustav Brom Czech Radio Big Band, The East European Artsemble and many others.

On his album ''Invisible Faces'', bassist and composer Tomas Liska returns to the style and sound of his successful project ''Invisible World'' (2009). Liska's own compositions (accompanied here by one Turkish folk tune), inspired by folk music of various origins, oscillate between lyrical melodies and rhythmical explosiveness and offer powerful emotional experience. Liska is accompanied here by Serbian accordionist Nikola Zaric, Turkish violinist and singer Efe Turumtay, legendary Czech guitarist David Doruzka and Czech percussionist Kamil Slezak.

On its eponymous album, "Blue Shadows" consists of four musicians with different musical backgrounds. Cellist Jirí Bárta is a virtuoso known in the world of classical music, an excellent drummer Martin Novák plays with Lenka Dusilová, Jana Kirschner and David Doružka, versatile guitarist Josef Štepánek performs and records with many artists of alternative and pop music, and guitarist Petr Ostrouchov is known mostly as a composer of film music (with five nominations for the Czech Lion award), and from his former long-term participation in the band Sto zvirat. The project of their joint album arose naturally from their last year’s collaboration on recording of the score for the Czech TV miniseries "Blue Shadows". Each of the musicians contributed to the album with his original abilities and the diversity of their individual musical careers has become an advantage: the result seems to be a natural sum of their diverse musical experiences and skills. The album, mixing genres and influences covered mostly by the term "americana", i.e. american acoustic music, country, jazz and folk music, is in its majority an instrumental one and consists of recordings of compositions mostly scetched in the course of recording. Guest vocalist James Harries is featured in two songs, including the title song "Blue Shadows" from the TV miniseries of the same name.

One of the leading artists of modern Czech jazz, saxophonist Lubo� Soukup reunites his band "Points" and has broadened it into a septet for this album. Points Septet is made up of the best Czech saxophone and horn players, and is backed up by a phenomenal rhythm duo. This album contains modern and cherished music on the line between contemporary classical music and improvisation. Soukup himself has labeled it as a "universe of sounds."

Classical Music

Two jewels of 20th century chamber music, piano quintets by Mieczyslaw Weinberg (1919-1996) and Ernest Bloch (1880-1959), are contained on this Animal Music release in excellent performance by one of the best Czech ensembles – The Stamic Quartet, together with pianist Aneta Majerová. The Polish-born Weinberg was of Jewish origin and spent most of his life in the USSR. He is often ranked (along with Shostakovich and Prokofiev) among the most significant Soviet composers of the 20th century. His importance, however, is still being discovered, his oeuvre being popularized namely by the violinist Gidon Kremer, performer of many Weinberg´s compositions. Ernest Bloch was also of Jewish origin; he lived alternately in Switzerland and in the USA, where he took refuge from the German Nazi regime.

Zdenek Li�ka's music for the feature film "Marketa Lazarov�" represents the height of the legendary composer's legacy. In 2015, the first and so far the only concert performance of the work took place at the F�rum Karl�n concert hall in Prague as part of the Strings of Autumn music festival. The work was performed as a 90-minute oratorio created by Petr Ostrouchov on the basis of the authorial manuscript, retaining the original orchestration. The performance featured vocal soloists Katerina Kne��kov� and Josef Moravec, actors Josef Somr and Jana �tep�nkov�, and the ensembles Martinu Voices, conducted by Luk� Vasilek, and Babor�k Ensemble, conducted by Radek Babor�k. The production met with high critical acclaim and an enthusiastic response from the audience. Three years later, Animal Music and Strings of Autumn now issue a studio-mastered recording of that live performance which is also the first recording of Li�ka's composition since it was originally captured on the film soundtrack.

This original project is the result of a collaboration between three important figures on the Czech music scene. The trumpetist Oskar Török is known above all as member of the progressive and highly-valued Vertigo formation which celebrated its 15th anniversary this year. The double bassist Jirí Slavík, a musical partner of David Doružka and others, achieved great renown in 2016 for his project “Materština” (Mother Tongue) for which he received the “Andel” Award in the World Music category. The composer and pianist Vít Krištan is known as a member of the international Czech-Polish quintet Inner Spaces (“Andel” Award for the jazz album of the year in 2012) and the progressive big-band “Concept Art Orchestra” (“Andel” Award for the jazz album of the year in 2015), but also for his album “Imprints“ (2013). Combining their strength in this original trio (with no drums) they offer an album full of lyrical, playful and energetic compositions.