One of Europe's celebrated jazz pianists, Emil Viklický has spent four decades weaving Moravian folk traditions into the language of contemporary jazz — earning international acclaim from Tokyo to London and New York.
Emil Viklický was born in Olomouc, studied mathematics there at Palacký University - graduated in 1971. He is a musician whose playing fuses the harmonic richness of Leoš Janáček with the rhythmic vocabulary of bebop and post-bop jazz.
His international career has taken him to festivals and concert halls across more than thirty countries. He has collaborated with jazz legends including George Mraz, Billy Hart, Lewis Nash, Wynton Marsalis, Bill Frisell, and Miroslav Vitouš — recording for labels in the USA, Japan, the UK, and Germany.
Critics have consistently praised his ability to synthesise diverse influences without losing his distinctly Central European voice. "One of Europe's most significant and yet unheralded jazz pianists and composers," wrote Ian Patterson in All About Jazz.
Beyond performing, Viklický has composed extensively for jazz ensemble, chamber ensemble, and orchestra. His operatic works draw on the same folk-jazz synthesis that defines his piano writing.