Jeremy Chapman Quartet @ U Staré paní 19.9.2025
A rare quest was to be seen last night at U Staré paní when Jeremy Chapman Quartet; Jeremy Chapman – sax; Libor Šmoldas – g; Daniel Soltis – dr; Petr Dvorský – b, took over the stage. Jeremy, a British saxophonist and flutist is mostly to be found in The International School of Music in Prague as a music teacher and gives concerts with very irregular intervals. I was told that the last time was about a year and a half ago in a totally different environment but with the same setup on stage. This will explain a little of the performance last night, a night filled with standards carried out in the normal way and in a not so normal way. I don’t know if it was Jeremy the teacher or the bandleader who held the baton last night and it’s actually a side issue as long as the outcome is what we heard performed. Jeremy showed us how to combine his own love for playing the sax, which was so clearly heard and seen, with leading a band that held very much the top of Czech jazz musicians, all experienced and skilled individuals.
As a bandleader should...
And as a good bandleader Jeremy gave room for his fellow musicians to show their skills, and they did. Libor once again showed why he is internationally considered one of the best guitars there is. It never stops to amaze me how he night after night approaches his beloved guitar in a way that makes you stop and listen, no matter what you do, just like last night. I could also see the seamless connection Jeremy – Libor and I think I understand why they enjoy each other’s company.
Another seamless connection was to be found in the rhythm section where Petr and Daniel on top of their sometimes outstanding personal performances, gave us a demonstration on what the dialogue between bass and drum should sound like, this, using the old cliché, took your breath away, and judging from the reaction from the audience I was not the only one to lose my breath. 
An altogether very pleasant night with some memorable performances that you don’t hear everyday. Made me think that maybe…, Jeremy could cut down some of the teaching hours and put them into the live performances?
To see all the evening’s pictures click HERE!
