Jazz Articles about Emil Viklicky

Emil Viklický & Pavel Hrubý: Between Us

by Ian Patterson
May 4, 2021

After four decades of small ensemble recordings, veteran Czech jazz pianist Emil Viklický is developing a taste for duo albums. Following the fine duo outings Together Again (ACT Music, 2014) with George Mraz, and Moravian Romance: Live at Jazzfest Brno 2018 (Venus, 2018) with Miroslav Vitous, Viklický partners with reed player Pavel Hrubý, here on bass clarinet, to deliver a dozen intimate dialogues which draw as much from blues, classical and Eastern European folk traditions as they do from jazz. ...

Emil Viklicky & George Mraz: Mraz & Viklicky: Together Again

by Ian Patterson
March 21, 2014

In European jazz the assimilation of folkloric influences has become commonplace as the American vernacular--or more specifically the Great American Songbook--exerts less of a hold. Czech musicians pianist Emil Viklický and bassist George Mraz's collaborations on Morava (Fantasy/Milestone 2001)--with drummer Billy Hart and singer Zuzana Lapcikova--and Moravian Gems (Cube-Métier 2007) with singer/violinist Iva Bittova and drummer Laco Tropp--explored the beauty of Moravian folk music in a jazz context. ACT Music's Siggi Loch was so captivated that he has made it ...

Emil Viklicky: Emil Viklicky 60

by Victor Verney
June 12, 2009

Emil Viklicky Emil Viklicky 60 Multisonic 2009

Imagine Barack Obama introducing, say, keyboard player Herbie Hancock for a live concert at the White House on the occasion of Hancock's 60th birthday (a milestone, incidentally, that Hancock reached on April 12, 2000). Pianist Emil Viklicky's latest CD was created under somewhat analogous circumstances. The analogy is admittedly a bit strained, and not just because Czech president Vaclav Klaus doesn't wield the sheer power ...

Emil Viklicky Trio: Ballads And More

by Victor Verney
March 25, 2008

Emil Viklicky Trio Ballads And More Arta 2008

Pianist Kenny Barron, on several occasions, has said that in his view the ballad is what separates the wheat from the chaff with musicians. “As far as I'm concerned," he maintains, “if you can't play a ballad, forget about it!" Numerous jazz luminaries, as if in recognition of this fact, devoted an entire album to the form, including saxophonists Dexter Gordon, John Coltrane, Stanley ...

Emil Viklicky: Patriarch of Czech Jazz Piano

by Victor Verney
October 31, 2006

When most American jazz buffs think of the Czech Republic, they probably think of bassists George Mraz and Miroslav Vitous or keyboardist Jan Hammer. However, Europeans knowledgeable about the same topic probably think of Emil Vicklický, the acknowledged “Patriarch of Czech Jazz Piano." Known for combining the melodism and tonalities of Moravian folk music with modern jazz harmonies and classical orchestration in a distinctly individual style, Vicklický grew up in the former Czechoslovakia, where his father was a university art ...

Emil Viklicky: Cookin' In Bonn

by Victor Verney
October 6, 2006

Mention the Czech Republic to American jazz fans and most would likely think of George Mraz, Miroslav Vitous or Jan Hammer. However, these three musicians would almost certainly agree that pianist Emil Vicklický is the “Patriarch of Czech jazz," a title bestowed on him by general consensus.

Without question, there remain lingering pockets of Americans who doubt, privately if not aloud, whether Europeans can really play jazz; in fairness, there are also many Europeans who believe Americans can't really play ...