Marián Varga

Marián Varga (29 January 1947 – 9 August 2017) was a Slovak musician, composer and organist. In the context of Czech-Slovak musical culture of the second half of the 20th century, Varga was a significant figure in the field of autonomous, modern classical music, rock music, as well as improvised or experimental music. In 1967, he became a member of the band Prúdy, with whom he recorded and co-wrote the legendary album Zvoňte, zvonky. Influenced by Brian Auger and Keith Emerson, Marián Varga founded the band Collegium musicum in 1969, whose albums Konvergencie, Zelená pošta, Collegium Musicum Live and Divergencie represent the main pillars of Czech-Slovak rock music. He died on 9 August 2017 after several health problems, including cancer and lung disease.