Laco Deczi

Secondary Technical College in Bratislava, self-taught musician

member of the Academia Club, oriented towards the West Coast style; formed the Danubia kvintet

headed the East Coast Studio (Laco Bystrický – tenor saxophone, Viktor Hidvéghy – piano, Gustáv Riška – bass, Jozef Škvařil – drums) oriented towards hard bop

during his military service, he participated in jam sessions at the Winter Stadium pub in Štvanice, Prague

played with the Jazz Orchestra of Czechoslovak Radio in Prague, the Rokoko Theatre sextet (also known as the Jazz Outsiders, Prague)

performed at the Na zábradlí Theatre Jazz Festival (Prague) with the Jazz Outsiders; played with the dance orchestra of Jaroslav Decker and Zbyněk Červenka at the Obecný dom wine cellar (Prague)

member of Karol Velebný’s SHQ

member of Jan Konopásek’s Quintet, later renamed Reduta Quintet

member of the Reduta Quartet (Jan Hammer – piano, Miroslav Vitouš – double bass, Laco Tropp – drums); performed in a quartet with the singer Eva Olmerová for the full-length film Mučedníci lásky (dir. Jan Němec)

received an award from the Czechoslovak Jazz Federation for solo performance; cooperated with Karol Krautgartner on the album Jazz kolem K. K.; played with the Czechoslovak Radio Jazz Orchestra (performing in the ‘Le Grand Music Hall de Tchécoslovaquie’ at Olympia, Paris), and with Karol Velebný’s SHQ (an anthology of Czechoslovak jazz 1966)

Luděk Hulan’s group of soloists (a series of radio broadcasts, including Embraceable You, Once In A While, The Man I Love...)

member of the Czechoslovak All Star Band

established his own group, Cellula; collaborated with Ladislav Gerhardt

played with the Czechoslovak Radio Dance Orchestra in Prague and the Czechoslovak Radio Jazz Orchestra

played in a duo with Zdeněk “Sarka” Dvořák (Leipziger Jazz Tage – 1980, the International Jazz Festival in Prague – 1981, a concert tour of Cuba – 1983)

spent a short time in the USA, where he was an occasional guest performer of Sonny Costanzo’s Quintet and Big Band; performed in Věra Chytilová’s full-length film Calamity

stage and club performances in New York

the making of Laco Déczi’s film biography, entitled Voľná noha (directed by J. Matula, with Laco Déczi played by Marián Zednikovič)

a performance at the Bratislava Jazz Days with his group Jazz Cellula (Laco Deczi – trumpet, Laco “The Egg” Deczi Jr. – drums, D. Anderson – bass guitar, keyboard instruments, W. Barrow – keyboard instruments)

Kolín Jazz Festival, Košice

Slovak Jazz Festival in Žilina

the Jazz under the Castle Jazz Festival in Trenčín

regular club performances with his own band at ‘Nimrod’, Manhattan