Before arriving in Prague, we expected to witness grand old cathedrals, explore historical public squares, and enjoy some classic Czech cuisine. The city didn’t disappoint on any of these fronts; but we were pleasantly surprised to discover much much more.
One aspect of the city we weren’t anticipating was a heavy focus on live music, particularly jazz. You can find jazz clubs all over town, most of which offer live performances on a pretty-much nightly basis. You’ll also regularly come across street performers jamming with a stand up bass (i.e. cello) and a saxophone.
The jazz tradition in Prague actually dates back to the Roaring 20’s era, so the scene is well developed. We were so intrigued during our visit that we had to catch a show. The options are enormous, but we decided on the Reduta Jazz Club based on many positive reviews and history – the club has been open since 1958, and lays claim to being the “oldest jazz club in Europe.”
Our experience did not disappoint. The club is styled like a 1950’s era rat-pack hangout, with velvet seating arranged in a small basement hall around a stage. There are also pictures of the club’s famous guests/performers covering the walls:
Certain seats in the venue are also labelled with the names of famous guests who sat in the exact location:
After a drink (or two) from the bar, the music begins. We caught a performance of the local “house” band playing with a saxophonist on a European tour. If you like jazz, the performance was great. If you don’t like jazz, I don’t know what to tell you.
The bass player was really getting into it with the facial expressions…
As an added bonus – after the show, you get to enjoy your walk home through the beautiful city of Prague! We decided to grab some late-night kebabs (the show was from 6-10:30 so we’d missed dinnertime):
And then leisurely made our way back through the winding streets:
All in all an excellent experience, and something we’d recommend to anybody visiting Prague. Even if you don’t consider yourself a jazz fan, this is the perfect city to give it a try!
