TOMÁŠ HRUBIŠ DUO | Czech Republic

Tomáš Hrubiš's current music goes back to his family's roots, as organ music in the church filled his childhood. However, he approaches kvarhanas not as a sacred instrument, but places them in a contemporary experimental context. In addition, he combines them with synthesizers, mainly of an ambient nature.
 
As a composer, pianist and artist Tomáš Hrubiš (1984) oscillates between a melancholic/psychedelic atmosphere and a raw expressive expression in his instrumental compositions. He uses a combination of electroacoustic sounds (prepared piano, organ and synthesizer) to create minimalist, experimental and ambient music. He hermetically closes his concerts, or rather musical performances, into one dynamic story. Ulabelu Polí5 has already released three critically acclaimed self-titled albums: Tlecí doba (2016), Report (2017) and Prismatic (2022).He collaborated, for example, with producer Tomáš Vtípil (DG 307, Načeva, etc.), Jiří Jelínek, former saxophonist of Dog Soldiers, or drummer Martin Čech (Rough Music, Forest Animals, Ensoi, etc.)
 
This time, on the Prismatic record, Hrubiš completely dropped the piano, which was the dominant instrument in his previous albums, and built the third record on an unusual combination of an organ and an analog synthesizer. The author tries to redefine his relationship to the organ, with which his family has been connected for generations, and seeks another context for the organ sound. He does not place so much emphasis on the sacral connection of the instrument, but he strives for a more meditative, hypnotic atmosphere in the combination of repetitive motifs with drone synthesizer surfaces. Drummer Martin Čech's rhythmic entries throughout the album are intended to support the ritual undertone of the entire recording.
 
Project Prismatic
 The concert that Tomáš Hrubiš will play is also a celebration of the release of the author's third album, Prismatic. Hrubiš, together with guest drummer Martin Čech, works this time with an unusual combination of organ, analog synthesizer and drums.
 
The author said in an interview: "I've had the organ in my head for a long time: I come from an organ-playing family, so I have a natural affinity for it. I wanted to do something with them outside the context of the pews: more psychedelia, trance, darker ambient and mystery. At the time, it all came together: I was looking for sound fields in which to set the basic atmosphere on the synthesizer, and motifs on the organ that would give the abstraction a more concrete drawing and a kind of spirituality."
 
 
Tomáš Hrubiš (organ, synthesizers)
 Martin Čech (percussion)