Jazz Dock Orchestra ft. Ashley Slater

Legendary British musician Ashley Slater – singer, trombonist, and composer, best known as the frontman of the iconic band Freak Power – will be a special guest of the Jazz Dock Orchestra this April. Slater, the creator of the global hit Turn On, Tune In, Cop Out, which defined the sound of the 1990s, will perform not only his most famous tracks but also other original compositions, blending jazz, funk, and pop in big band arrangements! On stage, he will take up both trombone and microphone, delivering an original, playful, and energetic performance that combines musical vision with a fresh dose of humor and inventiveness. Under his leadership, the Jazz Dock Orchestra will offer a unique interpretation of his music, while also leaving space for improvisation, dynamic interplay, and rich orchestral color.

The Jazz Dock Orchestra is a modern jazz big band of European level focused on original compositions and interpretations of the classic big band songbook. In the six years of its successful existence, the orchestra has become the "flagship" of the Jazz Dock club and has worked with world class musicians such as Kurt Elling, Richard Bona, Ben Wendel, Niels Klein and others. Precise yet lively interplay, great solos and quality scores have brought the big band great renown in the wider context of the European jazz scene. The orchestra's work focuses on its own original compositions (especially those of Jan Jirucha, Andy Schofield, and Miroslav Hloucal), but also on high-quality arrangements of the world repertoire (Duke Ellington, Gill Evans, Bob Brookmeyer, Charles Mingus, etc.). Following the example of New York's Vanguard Jazz Orchestra (the resident band of the Village Vanguard club, which plays there regularly once a week), they have been performing on the Jazz Dock stage every third Monday of the month. This long-term and regular concert activity has yielded excellent results and today the Jazz Dock Orchestra is rightly ranked among the leading European big bands.

The JAZZ DOCK ORCHESTRA's activities have culminated in the release of its first album,
Tonight, which was created from the recording of two live concerts at Jazz Dock. It was released by the prestigious Animal Music label in October 2023 to great reviews from the professional and general public!

The Jazz Dock Orchestra consists of elite players from the contemporary Czech, Slovak and British jazz scenes: Saxophones: 1. alto - Andy Schofield, 2. alto - Petr Kalfus; 1. tenor - Marcel Bárta, 2. tenor - Suzanne Higgins, baryton sax - Jakub Cirkl; Trumpets: Jaroslav Kohoutek, Martin Jůzl, Miroslav Hloucal, Miroslav Nováček; Trombones: Jan Jirucha, Štěpán Janoušek, Richard Šanda, Tomas Bialko; Rhythm section: piano - Jiří Levíček; double bass - Tomáš Baroš; drums - Daniel Šoltis.