ARTA jazz

1. Dunaj - traditional, arr. Jiri Stivin 6:38
2. Summertime - George Gershwin 5:31
3. Bazalicka - traditional, arr. Jiri Stivin 6:45
4. So What - Miles Davis 7:38
5. Balada pro W.L. - Jiri Stivin 5:12
6. Work Song - Nat Adderly 5:37
7. St Thomas - Sonny Rollins 7:29
8. Modra ruze - Jiri Stivin 2:42
9. Memphis Underground - Herbie Mann 8:12

Jiri Stivin - flute, clarinet, alt saxophone, pipe Jaroslav Sindler - guitars Zdenek Tichota - bass guitar Michal Hejna - drums

When the Prague International Jazz Festival was being organized in 1988, I was asked to open for Chick Corea and his Electric Band. Together with Jarda Sindler, Frantisek Uhlir, and Cyril Zelenak, I put together a quartet and arranged some traditional songs for the occasion. Because bringing together these musicians and the performance seemed to work well, I continued to give concerts with the quartet in jazz clubs in Prague and abroad, and later also at international jazz festivals. Over the years the Quartet has gone through several changes. Drums: Cyril Zelenak, Josef Vejvoda, Jiri Zelenka, Jiri Stivin Jr, and, most recently, since 1996, Michal Hejna. Bass: Frantisek Uhlir, Ales Dusa, and Zdenek "Wimpy" Tichota since 1998. Only Jaroslav Sindler has stuck with the group since the very beginning. The album tak co… (so what…) is the third CD in the history of the Quartet. The repertoire has not changed much, because "only wimps rehearse". Thanks, however, to the new musicians in the band, the style has shifted and new compositions are being born from the old standards.

I hope you enjoy the CD!

Jiri Stivin