Janoska Ensemble – Musica Viva!

The Janoskas have been making music for seven generations, Julius Darvas builds on three generations and more of double bass playing. Another quality shared by the ensemble’s members is a first-rate classical education and prizewinning solo achievement.

Selectively enriching their programs, often with evocative titles, compositions of their own serve as emotional visiting-cards that shed a revealing light on the personalities of these outstanding artists. In their own individual styles, the four musicians join in expressing their love of improvisation with enthusiastic abandon and consummate virtuosity and are rewarded for their achievement at live performances on four continents to date with rapturous applause from a discerning audience. The Janoska Ensemble is – in pop jargon – a “live band”. The emotional intelligence and subtle humor of the artists’ interaction with their audience and their masterfully staged play on familiar melodies and surprise effects in the musical numbers they have newly created can be relied upon to stir listeners from their seats, who almost invariably, at the end of the concert, show their appreciation in enthusiastic standing ovations.

Their Janoska Style, their never merely superficial virtuosity and their ability to engage with one another and their audience in quick-fire musical dialogue have brought the artists invitations from big-name stage personalities such as Anna Netrebko, Al Jarreau, Bobby McFerrin, Juan Diego Florez, Brian McKnight, Julian Rachlin, Randy Newman, Biréli Lagrène or Lalo Schifrin.

The Janoska Ensemble transmits an inexhaustible passion for making music, despite their full calendar of engagements and tours, and the four musicians are constantly working on new programmes and projects. Their unique “Janoska Style” forms the basis for all that is yet to come, representing the seal of approval for one of the most thrilling and universal music ensembles of the present day.

The Janoska Ensemble is also in a kind of continuous “improvisation mission” in terms of workshops and master classes: This teaching activity led the four musicians, among others to the Kronberg Academy, Amadeus Festival Vienna, Masterclasses in Hong Kong or to the Menuhin Festival in Gstaad. The reactions of the course participants were euphoric throughout: The collaboration with the Janoska Ensemble – so their general opinion – gave them much more confidence to improvise freely in the classic context.

born in Bratislava in 1986, first studied at the local conservatory and continued his studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. He has won prizes at numerous competitions, including the Franz Liszt Piano Competition in Hungary, and has worked with renowned classical orchestras. František made his debut as a composer with his Symphony entitled „Impressions along the Danube”, premiered at Vienna Konzerthaus in May 2019, the release of the first movement „Bratislava“ has been performed by Vienna Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Ádám Fischer at the Wiener Musikverein in spring 2018. His first “Rhapsody”, commissioned by Esterházy Palace (Eisenstadt) was premièred in August 2019 together with the Haydn Philharmonic.

František Janoska is Bösendorfer Artist.

was born in Constance, Germany, in 1976 in a renowned family of musicians from Hungary, who had been cultivating the genre of double bass for more than three generations. Julius Darvas received his first lessons from his father at the age of 9. He first studied at the Landeskonservatorium Feldkirch (Austria), where he completed his studies with the concert diploma. He later changed to the Vienna University of Music and graduated with distinction under Alois Posch. The first prize winner of the Budapest Jazz Double Bass Competition in the “Foreigner” category has been a member of the Vienna State Opera Stage Orchestra since 2001 until 2023 and has regularly participated in concerts and tours of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

Julius Darvas is Thomastik-Infeld Artist.

was born in Bratislava in 1985. Already at the age of 10, he was accepted into the class of Jozef Kopelman at the local state conservatory. The winner of numerous renowned violin competitions studied from 2000 at the Vienna Conservatory and at the same time at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz with Boris Kuschnir. From 2008 to 2012, Ondrej was a member of the first violins of the Vienna State Opera Orchestra and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. Since its foundation in 2013, Ondrej has been touring exclusively with the Janoska Ensemble throughout Europe and the whole world.

Ondrej Janoska is Thomastik-Infeld Artist and plays a 1760 Carlo Ferdinando Landolfi violin, kindly loaned to him by Goh Family Collection.

was born in Bratislava in 1989. At the age of 5, he started to play the violin. Later, he studied at the conservatories of Bratislava and Vienna (in the class of Pavel Vernikov). Performances and concerts, both as a “classical” and as a jazz violinist, regularly took and take him to major international concert halls. As a prize-winner of numerous competitions, Roman impresses audiences with ingenuity and inspired improvisations, especially in the field of Jazz.

Roman Janoska is Thomastik-Infeld Artist and plays a Ferdinandus Gagliano Filius, Nicolai fecit Neap. 1769, kindly loaned to him by Dr. Christian Kuhn Collection.

Is this concert free?
No, this concert is only open to paying members. To learn more about MBAW’s membership and join, click here.

What is the parking situation?
Parking is dependent upon each venue and will be communicated directly to members prior to the event.

Can I see this artist elsewhere?
Yes. This artist is available for another membership series and a free public concert. Please return to the event calendar to see these other events.

Can I take pictures or video at the event?
Please no flash photography during artist(s) performance. We would love for you to capture and share your experience, but we do ask that you be conscientious of others and the artists during their performance so as not to disrupt the event.

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