Missa Jazz
Jaromír Hnilička composer
B-Side Band ensemble
Since its inception in 2006, the B-Side Band has become the premiere professional big band in the city of Brno in the Czech Republic. Now, under the direction of bandleader Josef Buchta, the band presents its newest album: MISSA JAZZ. In this latest work, the B-Side Band is joined by Chamber Orchestra Brno and the Ars Brunensis chamber choir; together, they perform Jaromír Hnilička’s Missa Jazz. As its name suggests, the work is a complete Mass, and the score for its first iteration is held at the Vatican Library. Now, the original composition has been expanded to include a chamber orchestra and several new choral parts, resulting in a total reimagining of the work. First debuted in the fall of 2008, this album is the first-ever studio recording of the final expanded version of the Missa Jazz.
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Track Listing & Credits
| # | Title | Composer | Performer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Missa Jazz: Preludium | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 3:48 |
| 02 | Missa Jazz: Introitus | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 5:36 |
| 03 | Missa Jazz: Kyrie | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 10:21 |
| 04 | Missa Jazz: Gloria | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 4:53 |
| 05 | Missa Jazz: Graduale | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 5:59 |
| 06 | Missa Jazz: Omnes gentes jubilate Deo | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 3:03 |
| 07 | Missa Jazz: Credo | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 3:20 |
| 08 | Missa Jazz: Sanctus | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 0:57 |
| 09 | Missa Jazz: Pater noster | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 1:27 |
| 10 | Missa Jazz: Interludium | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 2:43 |
| 11 | Missa Jazz: Agnus Dei | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 1:19 |
| 12 | Missa Jazz: Communio | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 3:02 |
| 13 | Missa Jazz: Postludium | Jaromír Hnilička | B-Side Band | 3:57 |
B-SIDE BAND
Trumpet:
Josef Buchta bandleader
Lukáš Koudelka
František Adamík
Juraj Bartoš (solo flugelhorn 2, solo trumpet 4, 13)
Trombone:
Petr Hnětkovský (solo 4, 5)
Martin Henek
Pavel Semek
Saxophone:
Pavel Zlámal tenor (solo 2, 4, 13), baritone (solo 3)
Petr Kovařík tenor
Antonín Mühlhansl alt
Lubor Pokluda baritone
Jiří Kalousek guitar
Tomáš Vunderle Koudelka double bass
Richard Mlynář piano
Petr Ptáček drums
CHAMBER ORCHESTRA BRNO
Pavel Wallinger, Maria Filová, Irena Hůrková, Jan Vašta violin I
Leoš Zavadilík, Filip Kostelecký, Jan Rybka, Marie Pšenicová violin II
Tomáš Kulík, Petr Pšenica viola
Pavel Šabacký, Libor Kučera violoncello
Michal Pokorný contrabass
Jan Ondruš oboe
Martin Sobol flute
Karel Hofmann, Miloš Kovařík french horn
Pavel Sapák, Jiří Klement clarinet
Jan Říhák timpani
Alžběta Horská harp
ARS BRUNENSIS
Dan Kalousek choir master
Recorded at TONSTUDIO RAJCHMAN in Dolní Bojanovice, Czech Republic, and Divadlo na Orlí recording studio, Brno, Czech Republic
Executive Producer & Music Supervisor Josef Buchta
Music supervisor Dan Kalousek
Session Engineer, Session Producer, Editing, Mixing & Mastering Jan Košulič
Session Engineer, Session Producer (choir) Jakub Hadraba
Assistant Engineer Petr Prokop
Art Direction & Cover Design Štěpán Žampach
Photography Tino Kratochvil
Production Lucie Netušilová Karafiátová www.bujoart.cz
Production Assistant Lucie Šimůnková
General Manager of Audio & Sessions Jan Košulič
Recording Sessions Director Levi Brown
Audio Director Lucas Paquette
Executive Producer Bob Lord
Executive A&R Sam Renshaw
A&R Director Brandon MacNeil
A&R Quinton Blue
VP, Design & Marketing Brett Picknell
Art Director Ryan Harrison
Design Edward A. Fleming
Publicity Patrick Niland, Sara Warner
Artist Information
B-Side Band
The beginnings of the B-Side Band, a professional Brno big band led by the bandleader Josef Buchta, date back to 2006. Since its inception, the band has performed at prestigious social events, large festival stages (such as Smetana's Litomyšl, Český Krumlov, Colors of Ostrava, Karlovy Vary), and in European musical centers (Vienna, Leipzig, Prague, Bratislava). It is a residential ensemble of the Groove Brno International Music Festival.
Chamber Orchestra Brno
The chamber instrumental ensemble tailored to the needs of the projects organized by the Groove Brno music festival is composed of leading players from the renowned Brno ensembles – the Brno Philharmonic, the Brno National Theater Opera Orchestra, and the Brno Municipal Theater Orchestra. They first performed in this line-up as part of the renewed premiere of the expanded version of the Jazz Mass in 2008. Since then, they have collaborated with the B-Side Band on almost all projects that require a larger orchestral sound, such as the stage performance of Leonard Bernstein’s MASS.
Ars Brunensis
Ars Brunensis is a mixed choir with more than 40 years of tradition. The choir is highly valued for its exquisite artistic qualities, especially in the field of interpretation of musical works of the Baroque period. The choir also participates in projects of other musical genres, such as jazz, folklore, musicals, or alternative music. They get invited to music festivals, collaborate with renowned ensembles and artists, theaters, and cultural institutions in the Czech Republic and abroad. The choir has participated in over two dozen CD recordings. The ensemble records stage music for leading theaters and collaborates with a number of contemporary authors, especially with Vladimír Franz.
Dan Kalousek
Dan Kalousek is the chief conductor of the Brno City Theater, choirmaster of Ars Brunensis, and tutor at the Janáček Academy of Performing Arts in Brno. He collaborates with Czech and foreign ensembles, philharmonic and chamber orchestras (e.g., Czech Virtuosi), choirs (e.g., Jenaer Madrigalkreis, Bohemiachor), and theaters (e.g., Slovakia narodno gledališče Maribor, Walensse-Buhne). As a conductor and music director he conducts film and incidental music for leading Czech theaters, radio, television, and foreign productions. He has made a number of recordings, especially compositions by contemporary authors and for publishing houses including Naxos, Vienna Modern Masters, Supraphon, Capstone Records, Querstand and others.
Notes
Jaromír Hnilička (Feb 11, 1932—Dec 7, 2016) Trumpet player, composer, arranger, teacher, and amazing person
photo by Tino Kratochvil
photo by Tino Kratochvil
MISSA JAZZ
The Jazz Mass is undeniably a pivotal composition in the work of Jaromír Hnilička. The original version was created in 1969. Hnilička created the Kyrie eleison, to major acclaim, and he was consequently approached by the German record company Saba to compose an entire mass. It was recorded the same year. Later, after the change of the liturgy, it underwent further adjustments. In the following years, further modifications and additions were made to some parts. The Mass was a major success in Western Europe and in the Vatican in the 1970s. In 1972, Hnilička received a letter of thanks from the Società Italiana Musica Contemporanea, which appreciated the work with great interest and asked the author for permission to keep the score in the Vatican Library.
A new impetus came in 2007, when, at the request of the B-Side Band trumpet player and bandleader Josef Buchta, Hnilička reopened the work, expanded it to include a chamber orchestra and added several new choral parts. This resulted in a new work, full of innovative colors and a more powerful sound. The renewed Jazz Mass had its world premiere on September 28, 2008 in the Basilica of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Brno. The reception by the audiences was very warm. Since then, it has been regularly performed at concerts and is considered a “Brno family jewel,” a composition of international significance.
In 2012, the Mass represented the city of Brno in Leipzig, Germany, on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of the Thomaskirche and the 40th anniversary of the partnership between the cities of Brno and Leipzig.
The album you are looking at now is the first studio recording of the final expanded version of the Jazz Mass. It is the result of 12 years of intensive work by Josef Buchta, for whom it represents one of his life goals fulfilled.