Štěpán Janoušek
Born in 1989 in Klatovy where he became avidly interested in music, first passively and then actively as he taught himself the flute and harmonica. Participated in the art school of Jaroslav Klička choir in Klatovy and the choir at Karafiát Elementary School Čapkova a few years later. He ventured into a new musical dimension when, at the age of eleven, Štěpán took up the trombone and joined the School of Music under the direction of František Kubáně. A year later he became a member of the Youth Brass Orchestra at the same school.
At twelve, he was determined to pursue his studies at the noted Pilsen Conservatory of music, but armed with an increasing awareness of jazz, he opted to study trombone at the Jaroslav Jezek Conservatory in Prague in 2005 from which he graduated in 2011. His formative years at the conservatory included appearances in many bands such as Green Smatroll, the College Big Band conducted by Milan Svoboda, and the Mocca Malacco quintet. Has also been a member of the Czech Radio Big Band since 2010. His studies afforded him the opportunity to attend many festivals in the Czech Republic and abroad including the Next Generation Festival in California and the International Junior Jazz Festival in Usti nad Labem, where he was awarded the prize for best soloist of the year in 2009. Štěpán is now in his second year of studying singing at the Jaroslav Jezek Conservatory.