Jiří Jelínek (6 July 1922 – 16 October 1984) was a
Czech painter,
illustrator,
jazz
trumpeter and popular
singer, one of the music legends of the
Semafor Theatre in 1960s. His hoarse singing
voice - similar to
Louis Armstrong's
- earned him the nickname
"The Czech Satchmo".
Biography
Jelínek was born at
Tisa u
Žlutic.
He studied painting and illustration as a pupil of
František Tichý, but also showed
early promise as a talented and skilful trumpeter. At first he
worked as a professional painter and illustrator, and played in
various amateur jazz ensembles, but in 1945 he began a part-time
professional career as a trumpeter with the
Karel Vlach Orchestra and the
Gustav Brom Orchestra and began to use the
distinctive, hoarse singing voice which later became one of his
most notable characteristics. Jelínek left the
Karel Vlach
Orchestra and joined the
Taneční orchestr Československého
rozhlasu (Dance Orchestra of the Czechoslovak Radio), still
dividing his time between his two part-time professional careers.
In 1963 joined the
Semafor Theatre as a replacement for
Waldemar Matuška of the
successful Semafor duo Matuška/
Pilarová. In the event, both Matuška and
Pilarová left to work with the
Rokoko
Theatre, and the Semafor's founders,
Jiří Suchý and
Jiří Šlitr, brought in
Jana Malknechtová to partner Jelínek.
Suchý and Šlitr composed
"Motýl" (The Butterfly) for the
duo. It became one of the best-selling recordings of its time.
Jelínek sang other Semafor hits, including
"Zčervená",
"Bolí mě hlava" and
Chlupatý kaktus. He also took
an acting role in the 1964
film "Kdyby
tisíc klarinetů".
Jelínek admired (and convincingly imitated)
the famous jazz trumpeter and singer Louis Armstrong, who he met
during Armstrong's first visit to Prague
and to whom
he dedicated the song "Hello Satchmo". In 1963 he
left the Semafor Theatre to perform with his own sextet.
In 1968 he
was one of the few members of the Karel Duba Orchestra to
survive a tragic bus accident during their tour of Mongolia
. The
incident left a permanent mark on Jelínek's state of mind.
He
gradually retired from music, devoted himself to painting and
worked for Czech Railways
in Prague's Main railway station
until his death in 1984 in Prague.
Filmography
Discography
- Jiří Jelínek: Motýl, [CD], Radioservis (FR 0142-2).
Notes
External links