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Janusz Józef Muniak (3 June 1941 – 31 January 2016) was a Polish

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

musician, saxophonist, flutist, arranger, and composer. He was one of the pioneers of

free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians during ...

in Europe, although later in life tended towards the mainstream. He debuted in Lublin in 1960. During the 60s and 90s, he worked with, among others,

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, Eddie Henderson,

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, Rusty Jones,

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, Branislav Lala Kovačev,

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, Takeo Moriyama, Joe Newman,

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and Polish musicians such as Vladyslav Sendecki,

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, Wojciech Karolak,

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, Jan Jarczyk, Włodek Pawlik,

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and

Michał Urbaniak Michał Urbaniak (born January 22, 1943) is a Polish jazz musician who plays violin, lyricon, and saxophone. His music includes elements of folk music, rhythm and blues, hip hop, and symphonic music. History He was born in Warsaw, Poland. U ...

. He was one of the first jazz musiciansd who performed who cooperated with rock musicians like Dżamble and

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. After 1976, he was the leader of several ensembles, and since 1991 he has been running the Jazz Club "U Muniaka" at Florianska 3 in Krakow, which, under his artistic management, became an important incubator of new talents. In the poll of Jazz Top 2011 of the monthly ''

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'', Janusz Muniak was voted the best saxophonist in Poland. He is buried at

Rakowicki Cemetery Rakowicki Cemetery (English: ; pl, Cmentarz Rakowicki) is a historic necropolis and a cultural heritage monument located on 26 Rakowicka Street in the centre of Kraków, Poland. It lies within the Administrative District No. 1 ''Stare Miasto'' ...

in Krakow.

Orders and decorations

* 1962 Złoty Helikon awarded by Krakow Jazz Club * 2015: Złoty Fryderyk for outstanding artistic achievement awarded by Phonographic Academy * 2016: Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta awarded posthumously for outstanding achievements in promoting jazz music in Poland.

Discography

As leader

* 1965: ''Andrzej Trzaskowski Quintet'' (CD reissue: ''Polish Jazz vol. 4'', Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1966/2004: ''Seant'' (CD reissue: ''Polish Jazz vol. 11'', Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1978: ''Question Mark'' (Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1983: ''Placebo'' (PolJazz) * 1986: ''Crazy Girl'' (PolJazz) * 1994: ''You Know These Songs?'' (GOWI Records) * 1995: ''Not So Fast'' (GOWI Records) * 1997: ''One And Four'' (GOWI Records) * 1998: ''Spotkanie'' (Cracovia Music) – with Wojciech Karolak and

Kazimierz Jonkisz Kazimierz Jonkisz (born 1948 in Wilamowice) is a Polish jazz drummer. Jonkisz's musical education began aged 10 with accordion lessons at his high school. Later on, at the Bielsko-Biała Music high school, he switched to drums. He appeared at th ...

* 2000: ''Just Friends'' (Not Two Records) * 2002: ''Annie'' (Not Two Records) * 2015: ''Contemplation'' (Inspiration) – with Joachim Mencel, Willem Von Hombrecht, Harry Tanschek

Sideman

* 1964: Various artists ''Jazz Jamboree 1964, vol. 2'' (two tracks only with the Andrzej Trzaskowski Quintet; Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1969: Jazz Studio Orchestra of Polish Radio (''Polish Jazz vol. 19'', Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1970: Krzysztof Sadowski ''Krzysztof Sadowski and His Hammond Organ'' (''Polish Jazz vol. 21'', Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1970/1999/2004: Tomasz Stańko ''Music for K'' (''Polish Jazz vol. 22'', Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1971: Piotr Figiel ''Piotr'' (Pronit) * 1971/1987/1993: Dżamble ''Wołanie o słońce nad światem'' (Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1972: Tomasz Stańko ''Jazzmessage from Poland'' (JG Records) * 1973: All Stars After Hours ''Night Jam Session In Warsaw 1973'' (''Polish Jazz vol 37'', Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1973: Polish Radio Jazz Band ''Koncert podwójny na pięciu solistów i orkiestrę'' (PolJazz) * 1973: Tomasz Stańko ''Purple Sun'' (Calig) * 1973: Tomasz Stańko ''W Pałacu Prymasowskim'' (released 1983, Pronit) * 1975: Stowarzyszenie Popierania Prawdziwej Twórczości Chałturnik, Andrzej Rosiewicz ''SPPT Chałturnik, Andrzej Rosiewicz'' (co-led album, PolJazz) * 1976: SPPT Chałturnik ''Kto tak pięknie gra'' (Polskie Nagrania Muza) * 1982: Grand Standard Orchestra ''Grand Standard Orchestra'' (conducted by Jan "Ptaszyn" Wróblewski; PolJazz) * 1995: Andrzej Dąbrowski ''A Time For Love'' (Polonia) * 1998: Krzysztof Komeda ''Vol. 4 - Moja Ballada'' (three tracks only, recorded 1966–1967, PolJazz; previously reissued as ''Muzyka Krzysztofa Komedy 4'' in 1989) * 2003: Piotr Lemańczyk ''Follow the Soul'' (Two tracks only; Allegro)

Compilations and collections

* 1967/2000: Novi Singers ''Torpedo / Rien Ne Va Plus'' (JVR) * 1999: Novi Singers ''Vocal Jazz From Poland 1965-75'' (Jazzanova Compost Records (JCR)) * 1999: Various artists ''Polish Jazz: Modern Jazz From Poland 1963-75'' (Jazzanova Compost Records (JCR)) * 2002: Various artists ''Antologia jazzu'' (6CD box-set, two tracks only; Polskie Radio) * 2015: Various artists ''The Best of Cracow Jazz – Traditional'' (Kurant)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muniak, Janusz 1941 births 2016 deaths 20th-century jazz composers 20th-century male musicians 20th-century saxophonists 20th-century Polish musicians 21st-century jazz composers 21st-century male musicians 21st-century Polish musicians 21st-century saxophonists Avant-garde jazz composers Avant-garde jazz flautists Avant-garde jazz saxophonists Bebop saxophonists Free jazz composers Free jazz flautists Free jazz saxophonists Hard bop saxophonists Jazz soprano saxophonists Jazz tenor saxophonists Male jazz composers Polish male musicians Modal jazz saxophonists Musicians from Kraków Polish jazz composers Polish jazz musicians Polish saxophonists Post-bop composers Post-bop saxophonists Swing saxophonists 20th-century flautists 21st-century flautists