Born: September 25, 1906 | Died: January 1, 1942 Primary Instrument: Composer/conductor
Jaroslav Jezek: 1906 (Czechoslovakia) - 1942 (New York). Jezek was a brilliant jazz composer and leader of a big band in addition to a career as a classical composer and pianist. In November 1934, the young composer – he was 28 at the time - came into the radio and talked about jazz. “Jazz is a new form of art. It demands a real composer and a proper orchestra made up of virtuosi. That’s not the case with most so-called jazz orchestras, which are nothing more than coffee-house dance-bands.” His music is almost unknown outside of Czechoslovakia. Some of his best pieces are Bugatti Step, Three Policemen Step, Dark Blue World Tmavomodry Svet, White Sisters (Bilé Séstry) and Upside-Down World (svet na ruby). Here are the youtube links. Dark Blue World http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92pEbZ69vaY Bugatti Step http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=am_hlAdTyDs Bilé Séstry http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx2bC1thFIE Svet na ruby http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFm14hscW1c
Last Updated: July 11, 2012
