Musical profile

Oldrich Bartas is one of the most important figures on Czech blues scene. Singer, guitar player, leader, composer, arranger, lyricist, producer, musical educator, translator and publicist. Graduate of Jaroslav Jezek Conservatory and Charles University - Master of Arts. Plays also harp and recently experiments with alto sax. In 2000 he became the vicepresident of Czech Blues Association.

His roots are without a doubt blues and soul, but he also likes to attend to funk and groove, but he does not keep away even from the classical jazz mainstream. As a guitar player, he is even more flexibile. He played absolutely free in the past and so he moved across musical styles and genres without any inhibitions in his musical career. From blues to classical rock and roll with legendary singer Miki Volek, from folk tunes with s Wabi Danek, to swing, fusion, or ethno music.

Musically he was havilly influenced by blues and jazz, number of american artists as Muddy Watters, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Miles Davis, Ray Charles, D. C. Thomas, Jimmy Smith, Johnny Winter, Robert Cray, Frank Zappa, Charles Lloyd, Keith Jarrett, Albert King, John Scofield and lot of others. He is a creative and spontanious type of musician and singer. As a singer he can be briefly descripted by powerfull voice and sofisticated phrasing.

Bartas performs regularly in jazz clubs and on festivals, and also prepares material for his new recording projects. At present he is the producer of tour, recordings (2CD) and documentary film for Morgan State University Choir - the top gospel choir from Baltimore (Maryland, USA). Along with that he continuously writes the book about - nothing but the Blues…