JanoskaEnsemble

The Janoska Ensemble was founded in Vienna in 2013 and has since established a musical language of its own, the Janoska Style. The three brothers Ondrej, Roman and František Janoska and their brother-in-law Julius Darvas are classically trained and arrange their entire repertoire themselves. The result is neither crossover nor fusion, but an approach to playing that picks up the improvisational practice of the Baroque and draws on jazz, Latin, tango and their family’s own musical tradition.

Four albums have been released on Deutsche Grammophon so far: JANOSKA STYLE (2016), REVOLUTION (2019), THE BIG B’s (2022) and VIVALDI. THE FOUR SEASONS IN JANOSKA STYLE (2024). The first two went gold.

The brothers come from Bratislava, Julius Darvas from Konstanz. The Janoska family has been making music for seven generations, while Darvas builds on three generations of double bass playing. All four received first-class classical training and have appeared as soloists.

Every arrangement comes from within the ensemble, alongside original compositions, above all by František Janoska. Familiar works are not given a virtuoso polish, they are retold. Improvisation is not an effect here but a method. No two concerts are the same.

The Janoska Ensemble is a live band in the best sense. Direct contact with the audience, humour and an almost blind mutual understanding are as much part of a concert as the music itself. Performances on four continents regularly end in standing ovations.

The ensemble appears at the Vienna Musikverein, the Vienna Konzerthaus, the Vienna State Opera and the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg. Its artistic partners include Anna Netrebko, Al Jarreau, Bobby McFerrin, Juan Diego Flórez, Brian McKnight, Julian Rachlin, Randy Newman, Biréli Lagrène and Lalo Schifrin.

For the Johann Strauss anniversary year 2025 the ensemble created the programme “Die Fledermaus à la Janoska” with the soprano Daniela Fally, which has remained in the repertoire since. 2026 brings tours of Japan and Taiwan as well as concerts in Vienna, Paris, Strasbourg, Spain and Italy.

Alongside its concert work the ensemble gives workshops and masterclasses, among others at the Kronberg Academy, the Menuhin Festival Gstaad, the Amadeus Festival Vienna and in Hong Kong. The feedback is consistent: working with the Janoskas gives young musicians confidence in free improvisation within the classical tradition.