Illustratosphere

Originally a one-off project, Illustratosphere, a vent for the creative and playing excess pressure of the three members of the musical group J.A.R., Dan Bárta, Filip Jelínek and Miroslav Chyška, supplemented by Robert Balzar’s Trio and formed at the turn of the millennium, has proven to be exceptionally viable despite a number of personnel changes. The first album, Illustratosphere (2000), was a solid success and won a number of awards.

Dan Bárta – vocals

Dan Bárta, an eleven-time winner of the Anděl Award in the categories Singer of the Year and Singer of the Quarter Century, became widely known in the 1990s with the band Alice and his performance in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. He also became an integral part of the band J.A.R. In 2000, he surprised fans with his own group, Illustratosphere.

Filip Jelínek – keyboards

After studying piano for seven years at the Prague Conservatory, he graduated from the Prague Conservatory and the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague in the trombone department. During his last years at the conservatory, he accepted cooperation with J.A.R. as a player and leader of the Splash horns wind section, with whom he recorded a number of other CDs by other performers in the field of Czech music production. Here he was able to apply his knowledge and interest in arranging and composition. In addition to J.A.R., he worked in the Sexy Dancers formation and, among others, in the group accompanying Jarek Nohavica and Neřež. He has played in symphony orchestras and orchestras in Prague musicals (Dracula, Hair, Mission). With the musical contribution of ILLUSTRATOSPHERE, he composed music for the theater performances Terrace and Stories of Ordinary Madness directed by Petr Svojtka, and music for the short film Frikasé directed by Martin Krejčí. He is also the author of the music for the feature film directed by T.Mašín “Three Seasons in Hell”.

Robert Balzar – double bass, bass

After four years of preparation at the LŠU in Hronov, he graduated from the Brno Conservatory – double bass department. He appeared on the jazz scene alongside prominent figures and as a member of various ensembles, such as Gabriel Jonáš, Emil Viklický Q, Karel Růžička Q, Jazz Face, David Friedman, Allan Praskin, Larry Porter, Joe Newman, Benny Bailey, Tony Scott, Hal Galper Trio, Benny Golson, Tony Lakatos, Victor Lewis, Graig Handy, John Abercrombie and others. In 1997 he began working in the group J.A.R. and subsequently in Sexy Dancers. In J.A.R., Robert first met Dan Bárta, Filip Jelínek and Miroslav Chyška, with whom he then founded Illustratosphere in 2000. The founding of their own group, the Robert Balzar Trio, dates back to 1996. It later won the Band of the Year 2000 award at the Karel Velebný Awards. The long-term collaboration between the Robert Balzar Trio and Dan Bárta resulted in their first album, THEYORIES, in 2010, which was nominated for the Anděl 2010 award.

Martin Valihora – drums

Martin Valihora is a Slovak drummer and percussionist. He was born into a musical family – his father Dušan Valihora was a professional bass player and his mother was a singer Jana Beláková. He first learned to play the piano and then started taking lessons from drummer Old Petráš. He studied drums and percussion at the Bratislava Conservatory from 1990 to 1992. He played in Slovak pop, rock and jazz bands such as IMT Smile, Midi, Prúdy, Fermata, Gaba Jonáša Quartet, Barflies, Deepnspace, Collegium Musicum and others. He is also known for his collaboration with Japanese jazz pianist Hiromi Uehara. He has toured with various performers in the USA.

Miroslav Chyška – guitar

Míra is a founding and returning member of the band Illustratosphere. He graduated from a graphic arts school in Prague, but since 1989 he has been a musician – a guitarist with bands such as Die El. Elefant!?, Baterky or Sexy Dancers with Dara Rolins. He has performed as a great guitarist in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar and as a composer of film music in films such as Rafťáci, Ro(c)k podvraťáků, Snowboarders or O život. In 2004, he won the Czech Lion award for best music for the music for the film Snowboarders. He is currently a member of two leading bands on the Czech scene – J.A.R. and Illustratosphere.