If youre look`ing
for a place where you can listen to some good music over coffee or a couple
of beers, that’s what you’ve found. At Floriañska Street
3, in one of Krakow`s nicer cellars, there is a place called The Jazz
Club “At Muniak’s”. For connoisseurs, it’s truly
a musical sanctuary from the omni-present din of techno, rap and disco
that engulfs us these days.
This unique place could not be what it is, if not for the people that create the atmosphere here - people like Janusz Muniak, renowned jazz musician as well as the club’s founder and proprietor. While being a charming confabulator and sophist, he is first and foremost a superb saxophonist. His wish to create a place in which to perform, as well as invite others for concerts, became a reality. The club also fulfills another of Janusz’s long-time desires – that of reviving the jazz traditions of Krakow, the home of one of the most active jazz scenes in Poland in years past.
Since the club’s inception on the 18th of October 1992, it has been visited by untold multitudes of admirers of the jazz music and talent of Janusz Muniak. The guest book is bursting with compliments, full of inscriptions from appreciative guests from Poland and abroad.
Our modus operendi, according to which concerts take place weekly at 9:30 PM on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, has withstood the test of time. Janusz Muniak performs accompanied by sections with various line-ups. It’s worth looking in to the club at those times, as often one or more of those in the band is a well-known jazz musician in his own right, invited by Janusz, or shown up unexpectedly – even for the host – just to hang out with some excellent musicians in a splendid, convivial atmosphere. As Janusz Muniak himself says – “I like it when there’s a good atmosphere in my club, that’s conducive to playing. Luckily, I’m able to experience this often by inviting top-notch jazzmen-colleagues to work with me.”
So many wonderful musicians have come through the club that it would be impossible to name them all - some of the more noted are: Tomasz Stañko, Zbigniew Namyslowski, Slawomir Kulpowicz, Jaroslaw Smietana, Andrzej Jagodziñski, Wojciech Karolak, Kazimierz Jonkisz, Zbigniew Wegehaupt. Besides Polish musicians, there have also been foreign guests; one of the true highlights being an unforgettable jam session that saw the participation of Wynton Marsalis. Janusz Muniak encourages the younger generation of Polish jazz musicians as well, and invites them to his club. Some of these have been: Leszek Mozdzer, Marcin Wasilewski, Michal Tokaj, £ukasz Zyta, Adam Kowalewski, Slawomir Kurkiewicz.
The club’s uniqueness is not only due to fantastic music and the picturesque interior of a 16th century tenement house. The friendly service as well, the relaxed and easy-going atmosphere, beer and excellent cocktails are all part of the reason why The Jazz Club “At Muniak’s” is more and more eagerly visited by people from Krakow, as well as tourists from other regions of Poland and abroad.
Professional musical performance, good food, and relaxed atmosphere – notwithstanding the club’s exclusiveness and distinction, make this a place that has no equivalent on the map of Krakow.
This unique place could not be what it is, if not for the people that create the atmosphere here - people like Janusz Muniak, renowned jazz musician as well as the club’s founder and proprietor. While being a charming confabulator and sophist, he is first and foremost a superb saxophonist. His wish to create a place in which to perform, as well as invite others for concerts, became a reality. The club also fulfills another of Janusz’s long-time desires – that of reviving the jazz traditions of Krakow, the home of one of the most active jazz scenes in Poland in years past.
Since the club’s inception on the 18th of October 1992, it has been visited by untold multitudes of admirers of the jazz music and talent of Janusz Muniak. The guest book is bursting with compliments, full of inscriptions from appreciative guests from Poland and abroad.
Our modus operendi, according to which concerts take place weekly at 9:30 PM on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, has withstood the test of time. Janusz Muniak performs accompanied by sections with various line-ups. It’s worth looking in to the club at those times, as often one or more of those in the band is a well-known jazz musician in his own right, invited by Janusz, or shown up unexpectedly – even for the host – just to hang out with some excellent musicians in a splendid, convivial atmosphere. As Janusz Muniak himself says – “I like it when there’s a good atmosphere in my club, that’s conducive to playing. Luckily, I’m able to experience this often by inviting top-notch jazzmen-colleagues to work with me.”
So many wonderful musicians have come through the club that it would be impossible to name them all - some of the more noted are: Tomasz Stañko, Zbigniew Namyslowski, Slawomir Kulpowicz, Jaroslaw Smietana, Andrzej Jagodziñski, Wojciech Karolak, Kazimierz Jonkisz, Zbigniew Wegehaupt. Besides Polish musicians, there have also been foreign guests; one of the true highlights being an unforgettable jam session that saw the participation of Wynton Marsalis. Janusz Muniak encourages the younger generation of Polish jazz musicians as well, and invites them to his club. Some of these have been: Leszek Mozdzer, Marcin Wasilewski, Michal Tokaj, £ukasz Zyta, Adam Kowalewski, Slawomir Kurkiewicz.
The club’s uniqueness is not only due to fantastic music and the picturesque interior of a 16th century tenement house. The friendly service as well, the relaxed and easy-going atmosphere, beer and excellent cocktails are all part of the reason why The Jazz Club “At Muniak’s” is more and more eagerly visited by people from Krakow, as well as tourists from other regions of Poland and abroad.
Professional musical performance, good food, and relaxed atmosphere – notwithstanding the club’s exclusiveness and distinction, make this a place that has no equivalent on the map of Krakow.