Duo

Marimba

Martin Opršál

During his studies at the conservatory, he became a member of the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, the International Gustav Mahler Orchestra and the European Union Orchestra (conducted by Claudio Abbado). He went on to study at the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts, where he now works as an associate professor of melodic percussion instruments and chamber music and is Head of the Percussion Department. He was one of the founding members of the DAMA DAMA Central European Percussion Ensemble, with whom he won the international competition of percussion orchestras in the Netherlands.

His favourite instrument is the marimba. In his solo performances he purposefully stages Czech and international premieres of works written for the instrument. He coaches seminars on the interpretation of contemporary music for marimba and has been invited to sit on competition juries. He is a sought‑after performer of contemporary chamber music and also works on multi‑genre projects: among others, he contributed to two of Iva Bittová’s CDs and to the recording of the Stories of the Danube symphony by jazz legend Joe Zawinul.

Martin Opršál has performed solo and in ensembles at concerts and festivals in Central and Western Europe, Japan and Korea. He has also recorded and released his CD Reverberations, featuring solo and chamber music for the marimba.

Drums & percussion

Martin Kleibl

A native of the Czech Republic, Martin Kleibl studied at the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts, where he received training in classical, jazz and popular music. During a two‑year scholarship at the University of North Texas, he studied in the jazz studio of Ed Soph, one of the world’s top educators. He also explored Indian, Latin American and African music through a series of workshops with leading performers.

As a prominent performer of his generation, he has been invited to collaborate with leading Czech and foreign artists in classical, jazz and popular music. He also focuses on experimental music, having worked with the Swiss Paul Klee Ensemble and the Slovak Quasars Ensemble, and deepened his classical expertise during seven years as a percussionist of the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra. Despite his versatility, the drumset remains his principal instrument. He has performed as a soloist and in ensembles in most European countries, Japan and the USA, and is endorsed by Canopus Drums, Ufip Cymbals, Innovative Percussion and Evans Drumheads.

Alongside performing, he teaches in the Percussion Department at the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts. He also studied with Fritz Ozmec at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna and in the jazz master’s programme with Mario Gonzi and Walter Grassmann at the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna.

www.martinkleibl.com ↗