Eva Olmerová

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Eva Olmerová: memorial plaque on the house in Prague 6 - Bubenec, Eliášova 21, where the singer lived

Eva Olmerová (born January 21, 1934 in Prague ; † August 10, 1993 there ) was a Czechoslovak pop and jazz singer . She delighted the audience with her soulful jazz voice and was compared to the singer Bessie Smith because of her talent ; political persecution and drugs stood in the way of greater fame.

Live and act

Olmerová comes from a middle-class family; Grandfather and uncle worked for the Czechoslovak government in exile in England. As a six-year-old she received piano lessons; at the age of 14 she discovered her passion for singing. In the early 1950s she performed with the Arnošt Kavka Band. In 1951 she was interrogated and harassed by the secret police because her grandfather worked in President Edvard Beneš's office and her uncle served in the Royal Air Force during the war . From 1957 she sang in cafes in Prague, the following year she fought with a police officer, which earned her a prison sentence. In 1962 she brought Karel Mareš to the Semafor theater in Prague , but where anonymous slander prevented her further career. Nevertheless, she won the competition “We're looking for songs for everyday life”. Since the end of 1963 she was allowed to perform again in public and worked with the Traditional Jazz Studio . After finishing second in the Zlatý slavík (Golden Nightingale) poll in 1966 , her first album, Jazz Feelin ' , was released in 1968 . The second album Eva Olmerová , however, was only approved for export for political reasons.

Her personal life was chaotic - she started drinking and became addicted to pills, which made public appearances increasingly difficult. After causing a car accident in 1972, she was jailed for 10 months. Nevertheless, she worked with the Prague Big Band and Milan Svoboda and was able to record other albums. Since 1978 she sang in the Czech language and had success as a chanson singer with titles such as "Černá kára" (The black cart), "Předejít čas" (overtaking time) and "Čekej tiše" (wait quietly) . In the 1980s she also performed with the Metropolitan Jazz Band , the Steamboat Stompers and Senior Dixieland , in the last years of her life with Emil Viklický . "The singer finally broke because of the gap between her vocal uniqueness and a broken way of life."

Discography

  • Jazz Feelin ' ( Supraphon 1969, with Karel Velebný and SHQ)
  • Eva Olmerová & The Traditional Jazz Studio (Supraphon 1974)
  • Zahraj i pro mne (Panton 1980, with the Czechoslovak Radio Jazz Orchestra)
  • Vítr rváč (Panton 1983)
  • Dvojčata (Supraphon 1987, with Jitka Vrbová & Hot Jazz Prague)
  • Svíčka a stín (Panton 1992)
  • Legenda - Eva Olmerová, Sony (2008)

Web links

Commons : Eva Olmerová  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f Eva Olmerová: The singer's comet-like rise was followed by a deep fall (Radio Prague)
  2. ↑ Jaroslav Kříženecký: Eva Olmerová. Příběh zpěvačky, vzpomínky, dokumenty . XZY, Prague 2007, ISBN 978-80-7388-034-7 . , P. 24
personal data
SURNAME Olmerová, Eva
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Czechoslovak pop and jazz singer
DATE OF BIRTH January 21, 1934
PLACE OF BIRTH Prague
DATE OF DEATH August 10, 1993
Place of death Prague