Orchestra History

North Big Band comes from town of Litvinov, which is situated at the foot of the Ore Mountains in the Czech Republic. It was formed in the beginning of 2005 from the Student Big Band, that was founded in the autumn of 1992. This band performed for instance on Jazz festivals in Karlovy Vary, for the Jazz section ARTFORUM Prague, on the Jazz festival Velke Losiny, on the national competitions of Elementary Schools Of Arts in Roznov pod Radhostem (1995), Jablonec nad Nisou (1998) and Litvinov (2001, 2004), on Big Band festivals in Prague, Plzen, Rokycany, Chomutov, Ceska Lipa, Decin, Kraslice, on Jazz Spring in Loket nad Ohri etc.

From the year 1994 the band started to perform on festivals and many other opportunities in many European countries (Germany, Italy, Spain, Croatia, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden etc.).

This band appeared on several channels of Czech TV in 1996. In the following year the band accepted the invitation for recording for a German TV channel MDR.

North Big Band has made several recordings for the Czech Radio station as a guest of The Czech Radio Big Band and this co-operation still continues.

North Big Band is a young orchestra, whose members play with much enthusiasm and verve, which you might note inside the band as well as in the audience.

In the year 2002 North Big Band got over a next imaginary grade in the band's history by introducing the unique composition "Missa Jazz", written by the Czech trumpet player Jaromir Hnilicka. This composition we played already in Czech Republic, in Germany and also in Sweden.

North Big Band contains of flute, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, 5 saxophones, piano, guitar, bass guitar, drums, vibraphone and vocals. From 2003 the vocal quartet 4 Voices is a part of the band too.

For many years the most of arrangements for North Big Band had been written by Josef Malypetr. Nowadays most of the compositions played by our band are arranged by Frantisek Krticka.

 

1995	2nd place - Roznov pod Radhostem, CZ, Republic finale of Elementary Schools Of Arts competition
1998	1st place - Jablonec nad Nisou, CZ, Republic finale of Elementary Schools Of Arts competition
2000	1st place, absolute winner- Decin, CZ, Golden Note (international competition)
2001	1st place, absolute winner- Decin, CZ, Golden Note (international competition)
	1st place, absolute winner - Litvinov, CZ, Republic finale of Elementary Schools Of Arts competition
2002	2nd place - Decin, CZ, Golden Note (international competition)
	1st place, absolute winner - Glauchau, Germany, 2. Internationale Swingfestival Swingin' Saxonia 2002
2004	1st place, absolute winner - Litvinov, CZ, Republic finale of Elementary Schools Of Arts competition
	1st place, absolute winner - Glauchau, Germany, 3. Internationale Swingfestival Swingin' Saxonia 2004 Frantisek Krticka recieved a special prize for playing the vibraphone and for arrangements
2008	1st place, absolute winner - Glauchau, Germany, 5. Internationale Swingfestival Swingin' Saxonia 2008 Frantisek Krticka recieved a special prize for arrangement Zuzana Kvapilova recieved a special prize for playing sopranino recorder and singing as a member of vocal quartet 4 Voices