Michal Tokaj – piano
David Dorůžka – guitar
Lukasz Zyta – drums
Jaromír Honzák – bass
The Jaromír Honzák Quartet performs the original compositions of its members. Grounded in contemporary jazz, but open to the many influences beyond, they perform music both fragile and charged with energy.
Michal Tokaj and Lukasz Zyta are among the greatest talents of the Polish jazz scene. Separately and together they have performed with such leading figures of Polish jazz as Jan Ptaszyn Wroblewski, Janusz Muniak, Piotr Wojtasik and Greg Nagorski. Since graduating from the jazz department of the Music Academy in Katowice, they have gained major national and international awards. Lukasz won the Grand Prix at the Grodzisk Mazowiecki competition, while Michal has won major competitions in Poland, Belgium and Germany. Together with bassist Darek Oleskiewicz they recorded Michal's album Bird Alone which was awarded the Fryderik Prize for the best Polish jazz CD of 2003.
David Dorůžka graduated from the Berklee College of Music in Boston. Active on the Prague jazz scene since age 14, he has received international acclaim for his work as a guitarist and composer. In 1995, at the age of 15 he received the Czech Jazz Society for the best jazz talent. While at Berklee, he received the Wayne Shorter and Jimi Hendrix awards, and in 2000 he was chosen by Pat Metheny as the only guitar player to gain a place at the prestigious masterclass led by Christian McBride in Aspen, Colorado. In 2002 he toured throughout Europe as a member of the „Swinging Europe“ big band led by Django Bates. He has recorded with K.Růžička Jr. (You Know What I Mean) and Jaromir Honzak (Earth Life). In 2003 David recorded his debut album „Hidden Paths“ in New York. He now lives in Paris.
Bandleader, bassist and composer Jaromír Honzák graduated from the Conservatory of Teplice in 1982, and completed additional studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He has performed with virtually all of the major figures of the Czech jazz scene and with many international artists such as Bill Hardman, Phil Wilson, Art Farmer, Victor Lewis, Amina Claudine Myers and Jorge Rossy. He has performed at a number of international festivals including Sea Jazz Helsinki, Ingolstadter Jazztage, Leverkusener Jazztage, the Jazz Jamboree Warsaw, and the Montreal International Jazz Festival.
Jaromír has documented his work as a bandleader, bassist and composer on four recordings. His compositions and recordings have been awarded numerous prizes both in the Czech Republic and abroad. His CD „Present Past“ was praised by Harmonie Magazine as „one of the most significant events in the history of Czech jazz“, and was awarded both the Harmonie magazine and the Angel prizes as the best Czech jazz CD released in 2003, Jaromír's composition „Constant Struggle“ is featured in The European Real Book (Sher Music).
Jaromir also leads the quartet Face of the Bass, and is the chairman of the jazz department at the Jaroslav Jezek Conservatory in Prague