Žentour is a Czech pop rock group led by

Janek Ledecký Jan Ledecký (born 27 July 1962), better known as Janek Ledecký, is a Czech singer, songwriter, guitarist, and composer born in Prague. After graduating from Karla Sladkovského high school, he attended the law faculty of Charles University in ...

. They have been active since the early 1980s and has gone through a number of lineup changes over the years, as well as several prolonged breaks. They have released four studio albums as well as three albums of English versions of their Czech material. As of March 2020, Žentour is on hiatus, and they haven't released any new music since 2014.

History

In 1981, jazz musician Jan Šulc was looking for people to start a band with at the

Prague Conservatory The Prague Conservatory () is a public music school in Prague, Czech Republic, founded in 1808. Currently, the school offers four- or six-year courses, which can be compared to the level of a high school diploma in other countries. Graduates c ...

. Bass guitarist Jan Černý, keyboardist Petr Ackermann, drummer Václav Kabát, and guitarist and singer

joined the project. Šulc originally kept the name of his previous band, Hemenex, with the assumption that they would play jazz. The other members leaned toward rock, however. The name was changed to Žentour after the title of one of their first songs. Šulc switched to playing guitar instead of keys, and their sound began to fit the new wave genre, which was then gaining popularity in

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

. Žentour made their first appearance as an opening act for

Abraxas Abraxas (, variant form romanized: ) is a word of mystic meaning in the system of the Gnostic Basilides, being there applied to the "Great Archon" (), the princeps of the 365 spheres (). The word is found in Gnostic texts such as the '' Holy ...

in late 1982. In February 1983, Šulc left the band. Ackermann took over guitar duties, and Černý became band leader. In 1985, drummer Kabát parted ways with the group and was replaced by

David Koller David Koller (born 27 September 1960) is a Czech musician and record producer. Career Music Koller started his career in the early 1980s as the drummer of Jasná Páka and has also played in various other bands, including Žentour, Pusa, an ...

( Jasná Páka, Kollerband), who also sang backing vocals alongside lead vocalist Ledecký. In 1986, the band recorded their first album, ''Žentour 001'', featuring guest vocals by actress

Ivana Chýlková Ivana Chýlková (born 27 September 1963) is a Czech actress. She appeared in more than eighty films since 1983. In 1985, she graduated from DAMU The Department of Dramatic Theatre (, abbreviated DAMU) is one of three departments at the Ac ...

, as well as an English version, titled ''Žentour 002''. In addition to playing concerts in Czechoslovakia, Žentour toured Poland, Sweden, and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. Koller left at the end of 1987 in order to focus on his other band,

Lucie Lucie is the French and Czech form of the female name Lucia. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Lucie Ahl (born 1974), British tennis player * Lucie Arnaz (born 1951), American actress * Lucie Aubrac (1912–2007), member of ...

, and Ackermann took over on drums, though he also left shortly after. This was followed by a number of personnel changes. 1990 saw the release of the band's sophomore album, ''Žentour 003'', once again followed by an English version, ''Žentour 004'', and in 1991, they issued ''Žentour 005'' and ''Žentour 006'' (this, again, being the English version of ''Žentour 005''). In 1992, the band broke up when Ledecký left to pursue a solo career. In 2009, Žentour reunited and toured Slovakia. In 2014, a new album was released, titled ''Žentour 007'', although this time an English version did not follow. The music was written by Černý and the lyrics by Ledecký. Other members of the group at this stage were drummer Štěpán Smetáček, guitarist Lukáš Martinek, and keyboardist Jára Bárta.

Band members

Current *

– vocals, guitar * Jan Černý – bass * Štěpán Smetáček – drums * Lukáš Martinek – guitar * Jára Bárta – keyboards Past *

– drums, backing vocals * Petr Ackermann – keyboards, drums, guitar * Václav Kabát – drums * Jan Šulc – keyboards, guitar * Michal Šenbauer – guitar * Jiří Šedivý – guitar * Jaromír Kašpar – drums * Pavel Skala – drums * Ája Suková – vocals * Helena Dlasková – vocals

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Žentour 001'' (1986) * ''Žentour 002'' (English version of ''Žentour 001'', 1986) * ''Žentour 003'' (1990) * ''Žentour 004'' (English version of ''Žentour 003'', 1990) * ''Žentour 005'' (1991) * ''Žentour 006'' (English version of ''Žentour 005'', 1991) * ''Žentour 007'' (2014)

Singles

* "Všechno bude fajn" * "Proklínám" * "Utajený světadíl" * "Skončil flám" * "Promilujem celou noc" * "Pojď ven" * "V příštím životě"

Awards

Bratislavská lýra Bratislavská lýra was a Czechoslovak festival of popular songs that took place every year from 1966 until 1990 and was held in Bratislava. It was renewed in 1997 but cancelled again in 1998. The festival involved national and international co ...

– Bronze prize for "Promilujem celou noc" (1989)

References

External links

Janek Ledecký official website

Unofficial Žentour website
{{Authority control Czechoslovak rock music groups Czech rock music groups Czech pop music groups Musical groups from Prague Musical groups established in 1981 1981 establishments in Czechoslovakia Musical groups reestablished in 2013