Rock singer, guitarist, composer and lyricist Michal Ambrož, known as the frontman of the bands Jasná Páka, Hudba Praha and Divoký srdce, died today at the age of 68 after a long illness. The musician’s family, who some time ago had to limit his musical activities due to health problems, did not provide further information on the final farewell. ČTK was briefed on this by his Hudby Praha teammate and bandleader, guitarist Radovan Jelínek.
In April of this year, Ambrož’s last recording was the EP by Jasná páka, entitled Starej bejt jajne neu umí. The band, which together with the Prague selection is considered a symbol of the Czech new wave, has released an EP with four songs. Due to rheumatism problems, Ambrož had to give up playing the guitar. “I only play ‘for the rest’ with Jasna páka, but it’s more of a show, I stick to the guitar and try not to spoil it for them. But luckily my voice stayed,” he said recently in an interview with ČTK.
In 2019, Ambrož released a studio album with Hudba Praha called Michal Ambrož & Hudba Praha. Though it was recorded by a new lineup, musically it follows the vibe of his mid-1980s songs. The sound of the album Michal Ambrož & Hudba Praha involved new bandmates: guitarists Radovan Jelínek and Michal Pelant, keyboardist and guitarist Matěj Belko, bassist Jakub Vejnar, drummer Roman Vícha, saxophonist Jakub Doležal or singers Tereza Kopákováč , Veronika Vítová and Markéta Foukalová. Eight texts were written by Michal Ambrož, the other two came from Petr Váša and JH Krchovský.
The previous Hudba Praha team disbanded eight years ago. Two ensembles were created that continued its tradition: Hudba Praha Band and Michal Ambrož & Hudba Praha. From the old Hudba Praha, Ambrož tried to transfer the mood of the songs into the new album, which, according to him, was always “about alcohol, Bolsheviks and women”. “I think it’s still about that, just that a Bolshevik is no longer a complete Bolshevik, he’s a bit disguised. Through partner relations, I deal with social issues. And women will always be a topic, they’ve been sung. by bluesmen for centuries, who barely sit in their chairs while they play, “he added.
Music Praha was founded by Ambrož in 1984 after the ban on Jasná páka, which had been blacklisted in the Nová vlna article with old content in Tribuna magazine. The article, signed with the fictitious name of Jan Krýzl, started the persecution of the alternative Czech rock scene, which mainly affected representatives of punk and new wave. In addition to Jasná páka, the Prague selection was also affected. Ambrož rebuilt the band and used a trick that was widely used at the time: he renamed the group. The first phase of Hudba Praha closed in 1996. The reason was the overload of the group and the solo projects of its members. Ambrož worked on the Wild Heart project. The second period began in 1999 with the Benefit Concert for Kosovo. In the fall of 2006, the band known at the time as Jasná páka / Hudba Praha celebrated its 25th anniversary and entered the Beat Hall of Fame.
Ambrož was born on January 23, 1954 in Havlíčková Brod. He also worked as a presenter on Radio Beat.
