Collegium Musicum (band) explained

Collegium Musicum was a Slovak art rock / progressive rock band formed by Marián Varga and Fedor Frešo in Czechoslovakia in late 1969,^{[1] [2]} best known for their complex, predominantly instrumental compositions centred around Varga's keyboards/organ, and for their interpretations of classical works by Rimsky-Korsakov, Stravinsky, Bartók, and others. While never achieving mainstream popularity, the band was among the most influential formations on the Czech/Slovak music scene in the 1970s, drawing comparisons to the Emerson, Lake & Palmer, and featured some of the foremost Slovak rock instrumentalists, including Fedor Frešo (bass), František Griglák (guitar), and others. Known for their live performances, Collegium Musicum enjoyed a revival through touring in the late 1990s and early 2000s, particularly among younger generations. The band disbanded after the death of group leader Varga in late 2017.^[3]

Discography

• 1970 Collegium Musicum
• 1970 EP Hommage à J.S.Bach/Ulica plná plášťov do dažďa
• 1971 Konvergencie
• 1973 Live
• 1975 Marián Varga & Collegium Musicum
• 1978 Continuo
• 1979 On a Ona
• 1981 Divergencie
• 1989 Všetko je inak
• 1997 Collegium Musicum '97
• 2010 Speak, Memory

^[4]

Members

• Marián Varga organ (1969–2017)
• Fedor Frešo bass-guitar (1969–1973, 1977–1979, 1992–2017)
• Dušan Hájek drums (1969–1975, 1977–1979, 1997)
  • Fedor Letňan guitar (1969)
• Rasťo Vacho guitar (1969,1971)
• František Griglák guitar (1971–1972, 1997–2017)
  • • • • Pavel Váně guitar (1970)
• Ivan Belák bass-guitar (1973–1975)
• Jozef Farkaš guitar (1974–1975)
• Peter Szapu drums (1975–1977)
• Andrej Horváth guitar (1975–1977)
• Ľudovít Nosko vocal (1977–1979)
• Peter Peteraj guitar (1979–1981)
• Anastasis Engonidis bass-guitar (1981)
• Cyril Zeleňák drums (1981, 1992,)
• Pavol Kozma drums (1979–1981)
• Karel Witz guitar (1977–1979)
• Martin Valihora drums (2008–2017)

See also

• Collegium Musicum - a type of musical society
• The 100 Greatest Slovak Albums of All Time

External links

• Official website (in Slovak)
• TV series Slovenský bigbít (in Slovak)

Notes and References

1. http://www.pavolhammel.sk/index.php?part=1 Pavol Hammel - Život a tvorba (in Slovak)
2. http://www.marianvarga.sk/sk/zivotopis.php Marián Varga - životopis (in Slovak)
3. News: Vo veku 70 rokov zomrel Marián Varga, hudobník, skladateľ a jedna. Denník N. 2022-05-06. sk-SK.
4. Web site: Collegium Musicum - Diskografia (in Slovak) . 2010-04-20 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100506045144/http://www.collegiummusicum.sk/diskografia . 2010-05-06 . dead .