“There are not many who can sing like this.”Al Jarreau We are remembering one of the greatest jazz singers, Gábor Winand, who passed away this June at the age of 57, with a concert by his friends and artist colleagues. Winand was the kind of singer who reimagined the relationship between the modes of expression of the human voice and instrumental music. He was able to sing all the registers equally firmly, without apparent effort, with disconcerting easiness. But most suprising was his relaxed attitude towards improvising. His first solo album, Corners of My Mind immediately won Jazzman magazine's 'Choc de l'année' award in 2002. His subsequent albums on BMC Records were also acclaimed internationally, and he received numerous invitations to stages all around the world. This concert is dedicated to Gábor's memory, and all ticket proceeds will go to create the Gábor Winand Jazz Singing Competition in 2022.

Quasars Ensemble, established in 2008, is a music ensemble, unique in its breadth of the repertoire consisting of contemporary classical music as well as of the music of the past eras. It confronts the latest contemporary works with the structural principles of the foregone classical music. The orchestra’s focus is on the introduction of rare and forgotten ensemble pieces, particularly by the Slovak authors. The ensemble performed concert works of some of the world’s most influential contemporary music composers such as Bent Sørensen, Michael Jarrell, Kaija Saariaho, Toshio Hosokowa and Tristan Murail with composers themselves in attendance. Quasars Ensemble cooperated with artists like Camilla Hoitenga (flute) Mario Caroli (flute), Ilya Gringolts (violin), Dalibor Karvay (violin), Lionel Peintre (baritone) Sergej Kopčák (bass) and Stephan Loges (baritone). In 2012, Quasars Ensemble was selected to take part in International Summer Course for New Music in Darmstadt, Germany, considered to be the most prestigious contemporary music event in the world. In addition, Quasars performed at Música Viva in Lisbon, Arcus Temporum in Pannonhalma, at Warsaw Autumn Festival and at Ostrava Days Festival, among others. It had the honor to play at Flagey in Brussels and at Gasteig in Munich. In Slovakia, it is a regular guest at festivals such as Bratislava Music Festival
and Melos-Ethos. Quasars Ensemble has been the resident ensemble of the Kasárne/Kulturpark Cultural Center in Košice. Its concert cycle was an essential element in the European Capital of Culture 2013 and ISCM Music World Days 2013 projects in the city. In a unique arrangement, the Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra hosted Quasars as its soloist performing Ivan Buffa’s „Organismi“. Quasars Ensemble has a recording contract with Hevhetia Recording Company. Their album containing pieces by Schönberg, Albrecht and Hindemith, who are considered the founding fathers of the chamber symphony, was awarded with the most prominent artistic award in Slovakia – Krištálové krídlo (Crystal Wing). Harmonie, a prestigious Czech music magazine, gave their recording of the works of Mahler, Debussy, Albrecht and Poulenc its „Editor’s Choice“ award and a six-star rating.

  "The instinct for musicality is ever-present in the pianism of Béla Szakcsi Lakatos. A crafty instrumentalist, the pianist is an introvert and miniaturist, infusing conventional forms ... while still suggesting Satie-like refrains of dissonance, with an intimacy and an emotional intensity that can only be described as the poetry of feeling." Raul da Gama, JazzdaGama One of the few Kossuth-Prize holders in jazz, 78-year-old pianist Béla Szakcsi is the emblematic, internationally renowned, outstanding figure of Hungarian jazz. Though invited mostly to perform in large venues, he is always happy to play at clubs-gigs as well. Especially when he does it in the good old trio line-up with such approved mates as Liszt-Price awarded drummer Imre Kőszegi and double-bass player György Orbán.

The music is deeply rooted in brutal hip-hop grooves, referring quite loosely to the sound of the 90s. Dirty and uncompromising, this music's strength lies in the drums and bass. Radical in a sense, it also captures the atmosphere of the times in which it is created. The times of climate change, distinct social divisions, hate speech, growing nationalism, police brutality, nepotism, political deals and the dismantling of legal state structures. All this is happening before our eyes. Our soil is eroding right now. Błoto (The Mire) is a band that came into being accidentally, yet naturally, like a puddle after a rainy day. It all started in the summer of 2018 when the Wrocław-based EABS sextet had a day off between concerts. Somewhere on the way one of the guys mentioned that there is a nice recording studio nearby... An evening off, a well-tuned rhythm section on the road, harmonious as can be, and a great deal of creative potential within the members of the Błoto band forming at that very moment stirred up common enthusiasm. However, the studio that the band was passing was not really available at short notice. Fortunately, the burning desire to record something new did not stop the group. It was Grzegorz Skawinski of the legendary polish synth-pop group Kombi who eventually hosted the band in his superbly equipped Maska studio that Friday evening. This is where Błoto was born. After the surprising success of their debut album entitled Erozje, they released their second album of 2020, called Kwiatostan on Astigmatic Records. In early 2021, the reality around us continued to provide inspiration for the team to create. The third full-fledged Mud album, Kwasy | Zasady ('Acids and Bases') was released this year. The team has always operated in the sphere of metaphors close to nature. It is similar this time, but Mud has gone deeper into "chemical compounds" called acids and bases. In the end, the theme of the album cleverly avoids the direct meaning of these words, playing with convention again. A set of improvised beats refers to interpersonal relationships, which nowadays often have an extreme, corrosive and explosive nature, so we need a framework that will allow us to counteract them. facebook.com/blotoquartet/instagram.com/bloto_quartet/bloto.bandcamp.com/

Two years ago, three musicians, who were also at home in theater circles, thought that they would call the sounds, rhythms and melodies they played in the plays directed by János Mohácsi to an independent life. They thought that the stringed strings of different origins, tearing apart from the system of a theatrical performance, could also come into contact with each other and tell further stories to both the musicians and even more so to the audience. And over time, more and more new melodies and rhythms emerge in the sometimes seemingly endless sound maze of the Trio Sordini. Composition and improvisation, traveling from everywhere to everywhere: More than an hour and a half of unstoppable sound streams in two parts.

Tele-Port! is a brand new, multi talented and highly energetic quartet. The band is composed of leading figures in the Luxembourg jazz scene (namely bassist Pol Belardi, keyboardist Jérôme Klein and drummer Jeff Herr) joining forces with Zhenya Strigalev, an adventurous Russian saxophonist, who also has been a mainstay on the London jazz scene for the last decade.  The concept of their original music can be defined as a distillation of carefully chosen ingredients coming as much from the heart of Europe (with its romance, wisdom and patience), the United States (with their jazz history), and Eastern influences (with their own rich traditions)! The result is an excitingly modern take on Jazz. One might imagine it as a sonic creature with a European head, American feet and a ticket to board the plane that starts the journey to find its ever shapeshifting body.  The compositions unfold in various directions, teleporting the listener to a multitude of places, owing to the fact that every band member is also an accomplished composer, bringing their own personal skillsto bare.  From careful minimalism, via groove-driven chants to completely improvised energetic supernovas… they are true to their name and will transport you to manifold realms! This music will excite you as much as the musicians and provide an unmatched and colourful live experience!

Jegesmedvék Szicíliában? Repülő disznók és party a kísértetházban? Várostrom medvékkel és majdnem gonosz varázslóval? Ezt mind és még sokkal több izgalmat zsúfoltunk ebbe az új ifjúsági kalandzenébe, melyet Dino Buzzati gyönyörű és vicces meséje nyomán zenekarunk megrendelésére komponált Antonio Casagrande, az Óbudai Danubia Zenekar bőgőse. Egy igaz történet becsületről, szeretetről, klímaváltozásról és a természet gyógyító erejéről.

Egy igazán szép történet, két zseni apa-fiú barátsága egy zseniktől túlzsúfolt század vége felé. Persze a Salieri-ügy „drámásíthatóbb” volt, ez a barátság azonban mérhetetlenül érdekesebb, mint amaz: két tökéletesen különböző világ, összetéveszthetetlen, és mindkettő a maga módján utánozhatatlan.

A strong tree has many roots. Last year, the Root 70 jazz formation celebrated it's 20th anniversary, which also means that the four membered band – formed by trombonist Nils Wogram, saxophonist Hayden Chisholm, bassist Matt Penman and drummer Jochen Rückert – is one of the most stable formations in jazz history. And in the case of the band, that has remained unchanged from the beginning, all this was not self-evident, as Hayden and Matt are from New Zealand, Jochen is from Germany, and Nils is from Switzerland, so it took a little miracle to meet. They first played together in 1999, which went so well, that Nils Wogram said: "This concentration of persons is something special, we have to do it for a little longer than just this one gig". So they started working together, during which it turned out, that the four musicians, who are extremely strong musically, can turn their differences to their advantage. The team created a dynamic musical image using tension between the musicians, in a good sense. Different perspectives and approaches alternate, this gives their music the spice. The analytical (Nils Wogram), the idea-millionaire (Hayden Chrisholm,) the perfectionist (Jochen Rückert) and the ironic-intellectual (Matt Penman) characters complement each other excellently in this lineup. The light, acoustic, translucent sound world of the formation without a harmonic instrument is preserved by eight records, which were re-issued last year in a complete box with 8 CDS, 1 LP, ubs stick with all videos from tour and studio, sheet music to all albums and a lovely photo book.

Brian Charette is a New York City based jazz organist, pianist, composer and educator. He lists 19 albums and has worked with musicians such as Joni Mitchell, Chaka Khan, Paul Simon, John Patitucci or Vinnie Colaiuta. Besides being an active and recognized member of the jazz scene, Charette gives courses in music and publishes his articles in magazines like the DownBeat or The New York City Jazz Record. Modern Art Orchestra pays particular attention to participants of the Art Of Virus project and their connections. The AOV is a global musical movement that was invented and initiated by MAO trumpetist and band leader Kornél Fekete-Kovács and has become an international artistic collaboration involving 43 nationalities. AOV depicts and simulates the mechanism of the virus with ever-expanding and mutating melodies and compositions. Brian Charette - following the initiation of Kornél Fekete-Kovács - composed the hub for branch #4. The versatility and artistic liberty of both the Modern Art Orchestra and Brian Charette makes for a promising concert experience as the permeability of musical styles and genres is essential in the philosophy of MAO and Charette alike. The New York City organist shows deep respect in his playing towards the traditions of jazz while never stepping aside when it comes to experimenting and learning, making him a brilliant musician who cherishes values of the past, lives in the present and looks into the future.

Treetop is a Contemporary Chamber Jazz trio of Berlin based accordionist Vojta Drnek, Prague based trombonist Richard Šanda and Bratislava based bass player Michal Šelep. The unusual setting is the result of a unique synergy and musical and personal understanding between the three musical personalities. They inspire each other and the cooperation between the three "leaders" is very natural and fluid. Their diverse repertoire reflects many aspects of Treetop’s musical journey, spanning from jazz influences or folklore inspiration to contemporary musical concepts, enabling them to explore the unknown potential of this unique instrumentation. "Members of the trio Treetop rightfully belong to most sought after young musicians in Czech Republic and Slovakia. Their extraordinary interpretation skills go well with challenging arrangements and novel compositions which excel thanks to their professional playing. All together creates a splendid sample for representing the artistic generation abroad” - wrote about the band Dagmar Ostřanská, director of Czech Center in Sofia, Bulgaria. triotreetop.com

Jazz is a borderless music – and Lukas Aichinger’s AHL6 embodies this understanding. There’s a whole lot to like about this band: the leader’s risk-taking and gratifyingly solid playing; the guitarist’s seemingly endless sonic invention; a muscular horn section able to deliver precision without sacrificing sound. The improvising is thoroughly convincing, but the real star here is the ensemble and the music itself: Aichinger’s compositions are dense without being busy, complex and quirky but not alienating. Each piece guides the listener with a steady hand along the paths conceived by the composer. Aichinger’s inspiration comes largely from current societal developments, particularly our ongoing negotiation with new technologies – and these ideas find their way into the pieces as well; glitchy electronic effects from guitar and trumpet(!) are woven seamlessly into the music, as if to say yes, it’s a weird new world, but we may yet make our peace with it. In short, AHL6 has created a world of sound all its own – urgent, packed with surprises and open in heart and mind. "AHL6 fill the jazz theory with life through clever interplay, permanent musical transgressions as well as a big wealth of ideas and in doing so celebrate a sound that reveals extremely exciting idiosyncrasies." – Michael Ternai, mica

The outstanding Hungarian cimbalom player and composer, Miklós Lukács founded Cimbiosis in 2014. They have grown into one of the most original formations on the Hungarian jazz scene ever since. With a unique line-up and anever-expanding repertoire of original compositions, neither the leader nor the members are afraid of experimenting and searching for new ways of expression. They have released three albums on the Fonó Records label, the third extended to a quintet by two reed player. Their fourth CD entitled Music From the Solitude of Timeless Minutes was released in 2020 by BMC Records. This is how Gergely Fazekas musicologis described the album in the booklet: „Of course, within this style (idiom, atmosphere) can be found something from jazz too, for sure, but behind the musical ideas there is folk music, in its authentic form, in its art form after its Bartókish transfiguration, in the ornamentation there is Gypsy music, in places the volcanic energy of rock music erupts, and in the logic of the compositions, the complex harmonies, and the relentlessly serious attitude to the music is the entire classical tradition, from Bach through Debussy to Kurtág”.

Immáron második alkalommal ad közös szerzői estet Balogh Máté és Bánkövi Gyula. Az első koncertre néhány évvel ezelőtt szülővárosukban, Dunaújvárosban került sor. Bár kettejük között éppen egy generációnyi a korkülönbség, sok hasonlóságot mutat alkotóművészeti érdeklődésük. Mindkettejük művészetére jellemző a szellemesség, a kimunkáltság, az intellektuális humor. Ezúttal kamaraműveik kerülnek terítékre, Bán Máté (fuvola), Borbély László (zongora) és Zétényi Tamás (cselló) előadásában. Az est műsorvezetői a szerzők.

The Cracow Singers is a chamber choir composed of experienced professional singers, which immediately caused a stir in the world of performing art with novel projects that are centred around the relationship between the different forms of art and fields of knowledge.Old and contemporary music are present with equal weight in their a cappella repertoire, and they often appear in concert with instrumentalists and orchestras, partners who are as likely to be classical musicians as jazz performers. They first came to Hungary for the Hungarian premiere of Lera Auerbach’s 72 Angels. Zoltán Pad will now guide them through some of Liszt’s compositions and the works of composers from the Visegrád countries. Along with seminal artists from Czechia, Poland and Slovakia, Hungary is represented by two composers of the middle generation.

David Helbock’s fine musicianship goes hand in hand with a remarkable ability to communicate on several levels. German critic Roland Spiegel has elegantly described his music as "never cerebral, but captivating both the head and the body..." For his new album The New Cool, the Austrian-born pianist brings those strengths and that ability to engage and appeal to audiences into a new and different venture. "It was my wish to cool things down a bit", Helbock explains. He has formed a new trio with guitarist Arne Jansen and trumpeter Sebastian Studnitzky, and it is clear when he talks about it how far he has already moved on since his previous group: "In the Random Control Trio we had a lot of instruments on the stage, there was a lot of changing from one instrument to another... and a lot of notes." And the new group? "It is more about emotions. And emotions are the most important thing in music."

Georges Aperghis is one of the world’s foremost composer, focusing mainly on musical theatre and experimental music. In 2015 he received the prestigious BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award and in 2021 he has been awarded with the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize. He is coming to Hungary for the first time to teach young compossers and conductors together with Peter Eötvös during a masterclass and his piece Migrants will be performed by Danubia Orchestra Óbuda at Budapest Muaic Center. During the talks he will describe his musical world and his close connection to the theatre and vocal music.Program of the mini-concert: Rausch Host: Gergely Fazekas, music historian Language of the talks: English.www.eotvosmusicfoundation.org www.facebook.com/petereotvosfoundation

Akin musical interest, openness, similar vision and secession from the creative workday life, spent with tight-kept wings, turn the common improvisation to a celebration, resembling to a free soaring where Nothing-but-Nothing has been discussed but the time to be spent with playing. In the symbiosis of the trio, togetherness is the only source of inspiration for their gliding music. Though this musical retreat, based on contemporary improvisation techniques, may be a fragile flying modus, the participants speak a common language and hear each other on the right way. Cherubs have four faces, Kerub just three. Perhaps the fourth one is an Ancestor invoked by them – speaking in their tongues.

FATHER - DIARY OF FAITH(Apa - Egy hit naplója)Hungarian drama film, 1966, 88 min. - In Hungariandirector: István Szabóscript writer: István Szabó, János Herskócinematography: Sándor Sáraeditor: János Rózsacostume design: Erzsébet Mialkovszkyproducer: Tibor Hranitzkymusic by János GondaFeaturing: András Bálint, Miklós Gábor, Dániel Erdélyi, Klári Tolnay, Kati Sólyom, Zsuzsa Ráthonyi, Rita Békés, Judit Halász, Péter Huszti, András Kozák The screening will be introduced by film- and music critic László Kolozsi (in Hungarian).Guest: Kornél Zipernovszky - journalist, editor, jazz critic One of the most lyrical films of the Hungarian New Wave, winner of numerous prizes, was made with the affection and intimacy of a Truffaut film. Budapest, the darkest years of the Stalinist era, and a young boy weaves a series of fantasies around his father who died in the war. The traumatic period of dictatorship is evoked through the experiences and emotions of the young boy and university student: Auschwitz, 1956, the contradictions of existing socialism. It is the story of the insecurity of a fatherless generation. The film won the Grand Prix at the 5th Moscow International Film Festival and the Special Jury Prize at Locarno, and established Szabó as a director of international stature. The film was also selected as the Hungarian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 40th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee. In 2000, Father appeared at number 11 on a list of the 12 best Hungarian films according to a group of Hungarian film critics.

The members of the Dalinda a cappella vocal ensemble – Fanni Nádasdy, Julianna Paár and Sára Tímár – are all committed to Hungarian folk music. In their musical, however, they strive to bring the authentic, instinctive folk singing style to the stage in a modern, polyphonic form. Their songs are about common human experiences, because our folksongs are the bearers of collective feelings and thoughts that affect all of us – the purest source of our self-expression. The idea of the band was born in 2015. Dalinda crystallized from its members' experience in numerous folk and world music projects over the years. For the past four years they have performed in the biggest concert halls and festivals in Hungary and released two very successful records. After their debut album, Dalinda (2018), they released a new material last year called Átjárók, which this time the audience of the Opus Jazz Club can also get acquainted with.

The Serenade for 13 Wind Instruments, which Richard Strauss wrote at the age of seventeen, is one of the works the Péter Eötvös Contemporary Music Foundation’s mentoring programme for conductors and composers focuses on this year. The mentored composers, Balázs Kecskés D. and Francisco Domínguez compose new works for a performing force identical with that of the Serenade. As in former years, the two leading mentors, Péter Eötvös and Gergely Vajda are joined by a third artist, this year the world-famous Greek composer Georges Aperghis, who lives in France. He is best known to Hungarian audiences as a composer active on the borderland between experimental theatre and contemporary music. His 2017 piece for two singers and an orchestra had its world premiere in Berlin. The programme of this concert includes the first Hungarian performance of Péter Eötvös’s double bass concerto; the solo will be played by Matthew McDonald, who also performed it at the 2019 Berlin world premiere of the piece.

After a collaboration started in 2010, the duo album released in 2013 entitled Together, together! (Jazzmagazine - Choc, Jazz News Sélection, Citizen Jazz - Élu ), then Three Roads Home in 2018 with Henri Texier and Claude Tchamitchian (Citizen Jazz - Élu, Culture Jazz - Oui!, etc.), Daniel Erdmann and Christophe Marguet continue their association by inviting two major figures of the french Jazz scene: the piano palyer Bruno Angelini and the bass player Hélène Labarrière. This collaboration is completely new, it was born from the desire to confront each other's universes, as well as to bring together these strong and outstanding personalities of contemporary jazz. The repertoire will be entirely composed by Daniel Erdmann and Christophe Marguet. Rich in many experiences, they are always eager for new human and musical encounters, this quartet is an exact reflection of that. Pronto! means 'ready': to be ready for something, to be ready, fast, prompt, and resonates like an urgency to live the present moment, the intensity of the moment, it is also the awareness of being at a point of balance, a special moment when we feel totally invested in our quest for music and life. Christophe Marguet · Daniel Erdmann & Christophe Marguet "Pronto!"

A 17. századi Itáliában a vokális zene fejlődése jelentős hatással volt a billentyűs muzsika kibontakozására is. Rómában Girolamo Frescobaldi, a pápa orgonistája honosította meg billentyűs műveiben a Monteverditől megismert újszerű komponálási stílust, amelynek célja: felkorbácsolni az érzelmeket, megérinteni a lelket és egyenesen a szívhez szólni. Frescobaldi, amellett, hogy korának egyik legjelentősebb billentyűs virtuóza volt, énekhangra is komponált. Az 1630-ban megjelent "Arie Musicali" címmel megjelent kötete a kor népszerű műfajait, mint a passacaglia vagy ciacona változtatja vokális remekművekké. A koncerten Frescobaldi billentyűs műveiből hallhatnak válogatást. A darabok egy 16. századi olasz csembaló pontos másolatán szólalnak meg.

A közelmúltban hunyt el a kortárs magyar zene és zeneélet két meghatározó személyisége, Soproni József és Balassa Sándor. Az 1960-as években felívelő zeneszerzői pályájukat, miként oly sok kortársuk orientációját az úgynevezett „harmincasok” generációjában, a nyugati avantgárd közelsége, a „tiltott gyümölcs” inspiráló zamata és a modern magyar zene óriásainak, Bartók Béla és Kodály Zoltán örökségének újra-értelmezése határozta meg. Az utak természetesen hol párhuzamosan, hol egymástól eltávolodva, kisebb-nagyobb fordulatokkal tarkítva haladtak, ugyanakkor e két zeneszerző soha nem hagyott kétséget afelől, hogy zenéjüket, művészetüket szolgálatnak tekintik és kompozícióikban a legmagasabb esztétikai elvárások maximáját követik.

Special orchestration, obvious friendships, memories of exemplary collaborations, sharing between generations, greedy curiosity, indecisive optimism. As soon as a few notes, ideas or visions are being worked on a rehearsal, the magic is already happening. We can sense that the energy is flowing, that the relays are working, that the ears and hearts are opening, not only to others but to the whole world itself.  "Otherness Alert and Shared Panache" could be the motto of the band. The work is always "in progress" and this is also what the band stands for: hand in hand with the music and the audience. Singular musicians, rare assemblages, rebellious instruments, collective work, plural strategies, common reflections. Collegiality allows things that are impossible in solitude. Les Arpenteurs du Son · Quiet Men

One of the new wave of French chansonniers to emerge in the new millennium, Loizeau’s music is also heavily influenced by her theatrical background. Born to a French father and English mother, Loizeau received classical training in the piano and spent time in London studying theatre at the L’École Philippe Gaulier. Her initial showbusiness aspirations were directed towards the theatre, including time spent working as an assistant director to composer Georges Aperghis. She launched her singing career in the new millennium, spending several years working on her debut L’Autre Bout Du Monde. The album favoured rhythms drawn from music hall and cabaret alongside conventional singer-songwriter traits, and featured duets with the US artist Andrew Bird and fellow French singer-songwriter Franck Monnet. Released in 2006 by the Fargo label, the album enjoyed commercial success in France and was also a cult hit in the UK. Loizeau’s live shows are notable for their theatrical bent, complete with carefully choreographed visuals. Csaba Palotaï  was born in 1972 in Budapest, and since 1996 he has lived in Paris. His style is defined by rock, free-jazz, blues and Eastern European folk music. He studied jazz guitar with Gyula Babos, then continued his studies at the Paris Conservatoire. A great influence on his early style was Gábor Gadó, another Hungarian guitarist living in France. In his projects he has enjoyed the company of musicians such as Thomas De Pourquery, Rémi Sciuto, Fred Pallem, John Zorn, John Parish, Jeff Hallam, Wladimir Anselme, Bertrand Belin, and Emily Loizeau. To date Csaba has released six albums on the BMC Records label, including his solo album The Deserter, and the CD Antiquity released in 2019, as well as the Cabane Perchée awhich was recorded in a duo with Steve Argüelles, and released in 2021.  Csaba Palotaï has long been involved in Emily Loizeau's productions, her latest album, Run Run Run (Hommage à Lou Reed), released in 2020, and Icare, which will be released a few weeks before the concert on September 17th. Their duo concert at the Opus Jazz Club - where Csaba will play guitar and Emily will play keyboards in addition to vocals - will be inspired by the spirit of Lou Reed, Bob Dylan, Nick Cave, as well as the legacy of great chanson composers, Ferré, Brassens, or Leforestier, while no doubt audience can be part of a personal, intimate and passionate concert.

Új, már tavalyra tervezett sorozatunk a Múlt és jelen, több más programunkhoz hasonlóan került át az idei évadra, változatlan műsorral. Nem egy hagyományos bérletsorozatról van szó, olyan művészeket kértünk fel közreműködőnek, akikkel ritkábban találkozunk, mégis fontos számunkra a velük való együttlét, a közös munka. A hangversenyek műsora sem teljesen hagyományos, a koncerteken egymás mellett él a régebbi korok és a mai idők zenéje. Viszont a „Klasszikusok tükrében” sorozatunkkal ellentétben a darabokat nem kíséri magyarázat; úgy érezzük, hogy ezek a darabok nagyon jól megférnek együtt, egy hangverseny keretében. A sorozat első koncertje október 17-én a BMC-ben lesz, szeretettel várjuk Önöket!Pilz János Az 1930-as születésű Petrovics Emil zeneszerzőként a második világháborút követő korszak legmarkánsabb egyéniségei közé tartozik. Délvidéki gyökerei és az ötvenes-hatvanas évek Budapestjének zenei élete határozták meg művészetét. Halálának tizedik évében egy 1997-es megindító vonószenekari darabbal emlékezünk rá. Érdi Tamás honlapján olvashatjuk, hogy a legnagyobb öröm számára, ha egy koncertjén bebizonyíthatja: „Mozart nélkül lehet élni, de nem érdemes”. A világszerte elismert koncertező művész ma nekünk kínál lehetőséget, hogy Mozart társaságában töltsük az estét. A zeneszerző saját szervezésű bécsi koncertjeire komponálta zongoraversenyeit, melyeket a hajdani közönség Mozart előadásában élvezhetett. A jelenkor és a 18. század után a romantika egyik különleges alkotásával zárjuk műsorunkat. Josef Suk cseh zeneszerző és hegedűművész, Dvořák legkedvesebb tanítványa és veje volt. Mindössze 18 évesen írta vonósszerenádját, mestere tanácsát megfogadva: „nyár van, írjon valami vidámabbat és élvezetesebbet!” A négytételes mű meghozta a sikert, Brahms elismerését is kiváltotta.

Puskás Levente a Debreceni Egyetem Zeneművészeti Kar és a budapesti Egressy Béni Református Művészeti Szakgimnázium szaxofontanára, a Budapest Saxophone Quartet altszaxofon művésze. 1991 és 1993 között a budapesti Szent István Király Zeneművészeti Szakközépiskolában tanult klarinétot Schadl Péternél, 1991 és 1996 között a Szent István Király Szimfonikus Zenekar szólóklarinétosa volt. 1993-ban felvételt nyert a Liszt Ferenc Zeneművészeti Főiskolára, Dittrich Tibor osztályába, ahol 1998-ban szerezte meg klarinétművész-tanári diplomáját. 1994-ben alapító tagja a Budapest Saxophone Quartetnek, melynek azóta is alt-szaxofon művésze. 2002-2005 között a Párizsi Conservatoire posztgraduális kamarazene képzésén tanult Hadady László irányításával, majd 2006-ban szaxofontanári diplomát szerzett a Párizsi Conservatoire National de Musique et de Dance de Montreuil főiskolán, ahol tanára Jean-Pierre Baraglioli volt. 2014-ben szerezte meg doktori címét a Besztercebányai Egyetem Zeneművészeti karán. Olyan zenekarokkal lépett fel mint a Budapesti Fesztiválzenekar, a Nemzeti Filharmonikus Zenekar, a Magyar Állami Operaház Szimfonikus Zenekara, a Liszt Ferenc Kamarazenekar, a Magyar Rádió Szimfonikus Zenekara, a Quatar Philharmonic Orchestra, a Bruno Walter Szimfonikus Zenekar, a MÁV Szimfonikus Zenekar, a Concerto Budapest, az Osztrák-Magyar Haydn Zenekar, a Dohnányi Ernő Szimfonikus Zenekar, az Óbudai Danubia Szimfonikus Zenekar stb. Váradi Judit közép- és felsőfokú tanulmányait Debrecenben végezte, majd a Liszt Ferenc Zeneművészeti Egyetemen és az Eötvös Loránd Tudományegyetemen tanult, ahol zongoratanár, szolfézstanár, karvezető, énekes zongorakísérő, korrepetitor és kulturális menedzser diplomát szerzett. 2010-ben doktori fokozatot szerzett (PhD) a Jyväskylä-i Egyetemen (Finnország), amelyet 2014-ben honosított a Debreceni Egyetem. A Debreceni Egyetem Zeneművészeti Karán 1988 óta folytat oktatói tevékenységet, 2014 óta egyetemi docens. Több hangversenysorozat alapítója és koordinátora. A hazai fellépések mellett kamarazenészként és zongorakísérőként koncertezett a világ számos országában. Televízió és rádió felvételeken, kortárs magyar és külföldi zeneművek bemutatásában közreműködött. Különböző hangszeres mesterkurzusok szervezője és közreműködője. Puskás Levente és Váradi Judit 2014-ben lemezt készítettek Saxon címmel, majd 2019-ben Tetra című CD-jük is megjelent. Mindkét albumon kortárs magyar zeneszerzők kompozíciói hallhatók. 2021-ben indították közös YouTube csatornájukat, amelyen az oktatást segítő szaxofonra és zongorára írt műveket jelentetik meg.

"No other composer had such a great influence on jazz as Bartók. The incredible strength and dynamics of his pieces literally sweeps away the listener. His music is pure excitement, mystery, infinite depth and limpidity. We have created this material so that listening to our Bartók arrangements even those who had been averse to his music would take a liking to it. Jazz and Bartók is a perfect match. The piano pieces adapted to a jazz trio sound even more characteristically, pieces written for a full orchestra and folk adaptations show a completely new face and offer a large scope for improvisation. I warmly recommend our concert for lovers of both classical and jazz music." - said Peter Sarik about the Bartók-project.

The songs entered into the small jazz formation category of Müpa’s Composition Competition were written for the most diverse ensembles, as regards both the number of players and the instruments, and the award winners cover a broad spectrum from solo keyboards plus electronics to a septet. The six compositions performed at the concert offer a vivid illustration of the musical thinking that inhabits the broad range between free improvisation and fixed forms, as well as the efforts of the various generations that are active at the same time, from the doyens to career starters. Of course, the compositions represent very different musical and artistic universes: one of the pieces seeks musical answers to philosophical questions, another was inspired by the atmosphere of a popular film, and yet another by abstract musical structures.

Founded in 2004, the trio Spoom with Jonas Westergaard on double bass and Christian Lillinger on drums started focusing on the Great American Songbook. Over the years more and more original compositions by Ronny enriched the scope of their musical quest resolving into the first release and vinyl As They Are released by Shoebill Music in 2012. After two CDs released by Pirouet Spoom in 2013 and The White Belt in 2016, the trio has broadened its musical horizons by inviting an ingenious saxophone player, Christian Weidner. In 2019 the 4th album Bridge Ices Before Road and the first as quartet was released on Label Shoebill Music. ronny graupe · Sunset Setting - Ronny Graupes Spoom Album: The White Belt

In 1999 MATS-UP was founded with the idea of a group that combines both the broad sonic landscape of a chamber ensemble with the vitality and interaction of a jazz combo. Shortly after Le Temps in Geneva predicted that "MATS-UP will be the most important event in Swiss Jazz" and only a few years later, MATS-UP was counted among the "outstanding working bands in jazz today". The instrumentation with two horns and rhythm section still offers a large palette of unexplored musical possibilities discovered by bandleader and composer Matthias Spillmann. The band combines a rare sense for larger musical forms with a vivid spontaneity. Rhythms inspired by the heritage of african music and the romantic, sometimes abstract melodies out of Spillmanns imagination melt into a unique and fascinating musical language. On their brand-new album, entitled Ivovo, MATS-UP explore the sounds of South Africa together with the singer Mbuso Khoza. "South Africa’s music has always fascinated me. Little else influenced me as deeply, in a musical and a spiritual way, as the projects I had with South African artists as well as the concerts I played there. Jazz in South Africa has a significant value because it’s one of the very few fields in which people of different colours, ethnics and backgrounds cooperated on an equal basis, even during the apartheid system. Mbuso’s voice is totally unique and extremely versatile. His melodic ingenuity and his story-telling abilities are endless, his virtuosity not being a purpose on itself. Anything he sings sounds completely natural and fresh. In same time, he knows KwaZulu Natal music, that of his origins, like nobody else" - said the bandleader Matthias Spillmann. matsup.ch/projekte/

"The approach of the composers is defined by the different definitions of notation and sonority; at the same time, they share a mutual focus on the tonal characteristics of the language material." Nikolaus Gerszewski Nava Hemyari: Sussane (solo soprano) Sussane is a piece for solo soprano from a series called Names among other pieces like, Richard for solo guitar, Jens for piano trio, Konstanz for organ and projections, Margaret for tape and Mario for a small ensemble. The pieces is about a rather crazy woman getting ready for a party. She seems to be thinking different elements in her environment know that sheʼs not ready and call on to her. She says in the end that she will in fact never be ready. Nikolaus Gerszewski: More Songs on Nothing (for voice & piano) 2018 The piece belongs to the genre of mobiles; these are pieces consisting of kinetic modules, which have to be put together by the performer, according to specific playing rules. Here there are always 10, not coordinated notations, for piano and voice, which can be combined ad libitum. Each of 10 pieces is noted in two lines, the 2nd of which is the rake-form of the 1st. The reference tone is chosen individually; from there the intervals within the individual parts are fixed. The textmaterial is chosen freely, preferably from a language not spoken by the performer; whereby individual words or syllables can be left out for the sake of singability, regardless of language context. The piece explores the relationship of constants and variables within music; one may just as well say: the relationship of composition and interpretation; whereby the term interpretation indicates both, the musical performance, and the individual listening experience. Christoph Herndler: I SING YOUR NAME – ZOLTÁN JENEY (for voice) 2020 Christoph Herndler has developed his own medium, which he calls ‘Notationsgrafik’. In contrast to a graphic score, the Notationsgrafik is always applied in combination to an interpretational instruction. The graphic design reveals the pure form; the shaping of the piece in actual sounds falls basically into the area of responsibility of the interpretation. One and the same graphic design can be combined with different interpretation-instructions, and each instruction can lead to different sounding results. The Notationsgrafik ‘I sing your Name’ can basically be applied to any name (any text-object), whereby the sound material is generated from the combination possiblities of the letter sounds of the chosen name. For Átlátszó Hang Festival, we have asked Christoph Herndler to create a version with the name Zoltan Jeney; as a hommage to the great Hungarian composer who passed away recently. Zoltán Jeney: Twelve Songs (for female voice, violin & piano) 1983 The song cycle sets poems by E.E. Cummings, William Blake, Sándor Weöres, Dezső Tandori and Friedrich Hölderlin to music; each poem is sung in its original language. In each individual piece, Jeney has applied a different compositional technique; whereby the text always constitutes the central formative element for the music. In the musical moment, the figurations of sound and language merge to a unity. Christoph Herndler has studied organ and electroacoustics at the university of music in Vienna, and composition with Roman Haubenstock Ramati. He has studied abroad at Stanford University, California, Department of Visual Art in San Diego and Art Department in Claremont, Los Angeles. 1997 he founded Ensemble EIS, an interdisciplinary project-group, involving numerous reputable musicians. His work priorities are notational graphics and intermedial scores, which can be realized also in extra-musical media, notational objects, musical installations, video works, and art in public spaces. Zoltán Jeney (1943–2019) has studied composition with Ference Farkas, at Liszt Ferenc Musicacademy Budapest and Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, in the 1960s. Hie first compositions were influenced by Bartok and the 2nd viennese school. In the late 1960s he started to get interested in the theories of Pierre Boulez and Karlheinz Stockhausen, as well as oriental Philosophy. In the 1970s he composed in minimalistic style; his works are often described as extremely sparse and static. Since 1986 he was professor at Liszt Ferenc academy of music Budapest, where he was director of the composition department until 1995. Nikolaus Gerszewski is academically trained as a visual artist, and autodidact as a composer of experimental music. Since the 1980s he is involved in non-representational art in theory and practice. In 2005 he firstly came in touch with Cornelius Cardew’s graphic score Treatise; ever since he develops his own musical notations, in form of graphics, texts, alternative sign systems and semi-conventional sheet music. Since 2006 he directed Forum Neue Musik at Christianskirche Hamburg, and was one of the originators of Blurred Edges festival of current music. Since 2013 he teaches experimental sound-production at university of fine arts (MKE) Budapest, and at scientific university Pecs (PTI). In 2017 he founded ensemble mobile, with György Bartók.

Ünnepi koncert a szerző születésének 200. évfordulójára. Az idén 200 éve született Doppler Ferenc, és testvére, Károly az Osztrák-Magyar Monarchia Európa szerte ismert és ünnepelt művészei voltak. A testvérpár elsősorban virtuóz fuvolajátékával szerzett hírnevet, de a zenei életben karmesterként és komponistaként is meghatározó szerepük volt. A kerek évforduló kapcsán egy egész estés Doppler-művekből álló hangversennyel emlékezünk meg a művész testvérpár munkásságáról. Bálint János világhírű fuvolaművész, a detmoldi Hochschule für Musik tanára, meghívott vendégként André Cebrián, spanyol származású fuvolaművész, a Skót Kamarazenekar szóló fuvolása és Fajd-Kerner Mária fuvolaművész, a győri Széchenyi István Egyetem tanára tolmácsolásában ismerkedhet meg a közönség a Doppler-fivérek romantikus fuvoladarabjaival és ritkán hallható fuvolás kamaradarabjaival.

Franciaországban élő, nemzetközileg elismert gitárművészünk, Gadó Gábor ezúttal a magyar jazz középgenerációjának egyik legkiemelkedőbb szaxofonosával és zeneszerzőjével, Ávéd Jánossal közösen hozott létre új zenei matériát. Ahogy a 2018-ban a BMC Records gondozásában megjelent, Laurent Blondiau trombitással közös duólemeze, a nagysikerű Veil and Quintessence, úgy ez a szövet is a horizontális és vertikális zenei szálak szimbiózisaként jött létre. „A gitár egy polifonikus hangszer és ezen belül is nekem egy vertikális zenei gondolkodás adatott. Tehát az én vertikumomhoz kell egy lineáris sík. Jancsival megismerkedtem, és egyrészt nagyon tetszett a lineáris szaxofonjátéka, másrészt ő tud vertikálisan gondolkodni. Egész máshova megy az improvizációi során és az írásban, ugyanis ő tud gitárra írni. Másrészt én nagyon szeretem a kamaraformációkat és ezen belül a duóformációt azért, mert rettenetesen nagy a tér” – nyilatkozta az Ávéd Jánossal közös anyag kapcsán Gadó Gábor. A Whispering Quiet Secrets into Hairy Ears című, megjelenés előtt álló lemezt ugyanakkor egyfajta áhitat lengi körül, amely mindkét szerző művészi alapállásában fellelhető. Gadó Gábor szívesen nevezi a zenéjét fohásznak, Ávéd János saját szerzeményeibe pedig kódolva van a szándék, hogy hallgatói a saját gondolatainkon túljutva, a hangok között fellelhető isteni minőségeket, ha csak töredékességükben is, de meghallják. Közös zenei anyagukat gregorián dallamok, ortodox egyházi kórusok és Liszt-művek inspirálták, jóllehet, mindezek soha nem közvetlen utalásként bukkannak fel. Ahogy Franc Bergerot fogalmaz egy korábbi Gadó-lemez kapcsán: „Elsodor és kiforgat magunkból, oda juttat, ahol elveszítjük magunkat, és úgy elragad, hogy beleborzongunk”. Fotó: Huszti István

George Crumb az Egyesült Államok és a világ kortárs zenéjének egyik legjelentősebb alakja. A mester október 24-én ünnepli 92. születésnapját, ebből az alkalomból tisztelgünk előtte egy olyan koncerttel, melyen az egyik legfontosabb és legnépszerűbb művéből szólalnak meg részletek. A Makrokosmos című sorozat négy füzetből áll. 1972-ben kezdte komponálni egy barátja, David Burge számára, az utolsó kötet 1980-ban született. A ciklus négy füzetéből koncertünkön az első, a második és a negyedik kötetből szólalnak meg tételek. A mű címe Crumb legkedvesebb 20. századi szerzőjére és annak művére, a Mikrokozmoszra utal. Az első két füzet szerkezete és alcíme is azonos: 12 fantáziadarab a csillagjegyekre, erősített zongorára. Crumb mindig is kereste az újszerű hangzásokat, a Makrokosmos komponálására is az indította, hogy kutassa, milyen módon lehet a zongora kifejezésmódját kiterjeszteni, tágítani. Ezt a cél szolgálja a hangszer hangosítása is, amellyel extrém dinamikai tartományok is megszólaltathatóvá válnak.  Szokatlan hangzásokban tehát nem lesz hiány, az előadónak például a hangszeres játék mellett gyakran a saját hangját is használnia kell: éneklés, suttogás, kiáltás és fütty is szerepel a kottában. A negyedik füzet alcíme: Kozmikus táncok erősített zongorára, négy kézre. A nem mindennapi művek előadására Borbély László, Kiss Péter és tanítványaik, Forgó Benjámin, Ittzés Péter, Király Ádám, Mikulík Márton és Robotka Bertalan vállalkoztak.

Modern Art Orchestra’s Legendary Albums series presents the most important and unique albums of jazz literature, performed by MAO. By learning and playing these compositions and arrangements, the musicians are paying tribute to the jazz legends and are undergoing an intense process of musical improvement. The band absorbs the material of the original recordings, sticking to the arrangements, forms and compositional features. As improvisation is the blood of jazz, solos are invented by the players in the moment. Due to the respect shown towards the original conceptions of the legendary composers and the level of craftsmanship known from Modern Art Orchestra, the Legendary Albums series both brings you the essence of jazz tradition and guarantees a fresh musical experience. Herbie Hancock’s debut album as a band leader was released in 1962 on Blue Note Records where the uprising piano genius had just signed a contract. Takin’ Off is considered the hard bop idiom among critics and musicians, as it revealed a way on which Hancock would continue to explore musical boundaries in the next couple years to come. Although Takin’ Off is arguably the most unorthodox album of Hancock, it without a doubt still carries the unique approach and personality of the jazz legend. The band speaks for itself as well. Dexter Gordon is in a streak of producing some of his greatest albums both as leader and sideman. Young trumpet player Freddie Hubbard had already put down four albums at Blue Note by ‘62 and had established an uprising trajectory for himself in the jazz scene. Hubbard’s impulsive and many times surprising hard bop melodies tend to harmonize perfectly with Gordon’s vocal solistic approach. Bassist Butch Warren and drummer Billy Higgins had proven their greatness as a rhythm section on several recordings, as well on Gordon’s albums. The remarkable band composition, Hancock’s characteristic tunes and his truly personal and unique approach to harmony and musical form makes Takin’ Off a must-have in Modern Art Orchestra’s Legendary Albums series.

"Improvised music grips human beings because it is illuminated by the vivid presence of myriad possibilities that were not taken." Tim HODGKINSON: Migraines of a Caustic Ear. In: Resonance, Vol. 6., No. 2. (LMC, 1998) The formation borrowed its name from the Greek language, where Ξενοι or Xenoi means ‘outsiders, strangers’. The word refers to individuals who have not integrated into a particular community, only enjoyed its hospitality for an extended period of time. At the same time, foreigners who had lost their freedom (slaves, prisoners of war) could not be members of the xenoi group, so freedom is the secondary meaning of the term.The performers of the evening also somehow feel the same way among the music genres: they have toured in many different musical fields, but they have found their home mostly in free improvisational music - this is also the point of connection between them. They have long known each other from different formations and have played together several times. Diana Miron, Albert Márkos and Laurențiu Coțac are members of a band called HYPERION, which deals with spectral music (a trend that explores and sounds the microelements of sound and their inner movement - ed.), with which they have traveled the world. The composer and electronic musician, Bálint Bolcsó and Albert Márkos, who enriches many formations with his cello playing, have been collaborating as a duo for a long time and regularly. In 2018, Bálint met Diana and Laurențiu at the Săptămîna Sunetului Festival in Bucharest. In addition to being a thorough acquaintance and interpreter of authentic Hungarian folk music as a violinist, Áron Porteleki is one of the most significant figures in the improvisational music scene in Budapest as a drummer and percussionist, so he also played a lot with Bálint and Albert. George Staicu, who also studied music publications based on free improvisation as a collector, will take the stage as a DJ in the third part of the evening. The performers take the concept of free improvisation literally: they venture without restriction between the genres they know and cultivate (traditional folklore, free jazz, church and secular music of old times, etc.). What the artistic attitude of creation in the present is, the doyen of free improvisation, was excellently articulated in his axioms by John Butcher. John Butcher: 15 Simple Statements on Free Improvisation – with Illustrations and Contradictions* 1. Group improvisation involves an attempt to make music that no one player could imagine. It should force the musicians beyond their own conceptions. 2. Each player should equally be able to affect the content, form and direction of the music at any moment.[…]4. Free improvised music is necessarily spontaneous, but is built on a background of years of study, experiment, thought and experience. 5. There exists the possibility of trying to play a music with no history. 6. Free improvisation shows that complexity is actually very natural. […] 15. In improvisation you can hear the human beings behind the instruments. (photos: Rzina Kiss, Albert Márkos)

Mischa Blanos is one of those artists who are tirelessly working to escape the tedium of composing around a single genre. It's boredom that makes him rage against the creative plateau; it's fatigue that drives him to immerse himself into manifold richly-hued projects. With each migration he brings something new into the next one as if hunting down moods, feelings and soundscapes in a nomadic way of life.  In Crossrhodes, he brings contemporary classical music from his neoclassical acoustic-electronic solo project and gracious patterns from his techno endeavors. Here you have a gentle Mischa Blanos struck in awe by the sounds of the clarinet, sometimes weaving around threads with his Rhodes, so careful not to touch the fragile silky core and sometimes lending a child-like hand smoothly guiding the story with his piano and synths into places of sincere curiosity.  Khori Ander embodies the alias of Horia Dumitrache, triggering the leap to cross the borders of the familiar. While the contemporary clarinet performer got his international kudos on well-known stages and along with much acclaimed classical orchestras around the world, Khori Ander is convinced that focusing in a single musical direction would make him feel a stranger in his own house.  In Crossrhodes he dives headfirst into composition and improvisation quenching that intense thirst of discovering what his wind instruments would sound like in the hands of a liberated performer.  Crossrhodes by Mischa Blanos & Khori Ander

Opus Jazz Club’s Fresh Folk series features performers who, based on folk music basics, create a fresh world of sound with a contemporary approach. Ötödik évszak (Fifth season) is urban music played with acoustic folk instrumentation. Their melodies evoke a melancholic, romantic picture of a city infused with the spirit of Hungarian folk heritage and the memory of French salons. Their music is born in an urban setting and pays respect to tradition, playfully combining these two worlds. All band members are true contemporary masters of authentic folk music. Building on this foundation they open their music to improvisation and the unique world of French chansons. Ötödik évszak was selected by the seven-member jury of WOMEX 20 for the regional Duna stage, and their first album, Ne rejtsd el!, won a Fonogram Award in 2021 in the “Hungarian World or Folk Music Album of the Year” category.

Elliot Galvin is one of the stars of UK jazz. A superbly gifted composer and pianist, whose maverick imagination and magpie like ability to blend a disparate world of influences into his own unique musical vision has been compared to Django Bates although he sounds like no one except himself. Elliot is a prolific composer and has been commissioned by a number of Ensembles, Dance Companies, Theatre Groups and Festivals including the London Sinfonietta, Ligeti String Quartet, St. John Smith’s Square, The London Jazz festival, The RESOLUTION! Dance Festival at The Place and the Theatre Company Cut Tongues. He works regularly with multi-media and in 2014 put on a multi-media installation piece at the Turner Contemporary Gallery, which consisted of live performance, interactive sound sculptures and film. The Elliot Galvin trio have released 3 critically acclaimed albums on Edition records to date, winning a host of awards and plaudits including Young European Jazz Musicians of The Year and one of the albums of the year in Downbeat Magazine. Their last album, Modern Times was a unique project recorded direct to Vinyl, each side in one continuous take, with no stops, no editing, and no mixing or mastering. They always push themselves sonically and creatively, having a unique style all of their own, while still taking influence from the history of Jazz and contemporary music.

A Franciaországban élő, vajdasági születésű zongorista, Kovács Tickmayer István, a magyar szabadzenei színtér doyenje, Grencsó István szaxofonos, valamint a szintén vajdasági származású dobos, Miklós Szilveszter (aki szintúgy az improvizált zene kiválósága), Trió Kontraszt néven 2011 óta keresik az ellentétekben rejlő erőt. A névadással nem csupán a Bartók iránti tiszteletüket fejezték ki, – jóllehet, a szerző jazztrióra írt, azonos című műve mindenképp példaként szolgált számukra – hanem a tagok eltérő zenei világából adódó, gyümölcsöző kontrasztokra, valamint zenei örökségünk és a mai szabadzenei világ között feszülő ellentétekre is utalnak vele. A Trio Kontraszt ezúttal harmadik, 2020-ban a BMC Records gondozásában megjelent lemezét, A feledésbe merült idő rejtélyes képfoszlányai című zenei anyagot mutatja be az Opus Jazz Club közönségének. Az album tulajdonképpen a zenekarvezető-zongorista Kovács Tickmayer István zenei emlékkönyve, amennyiben a lemezen szereplő összes kompozíció az ő tollából született különböző alkotói korszakai során. Mint Szindbád utazgat az időben, régi korok szétterülő nyugalmával lapozgat élete fejezetei között az újvidéki időktől, a budapesti szabadzenei iskolán keresztül, a hollandiai tanulmányokig, így kerül egymás mellé a szabad- és kortárszene, a tánczene, valamint a jazz nyelve. Kísérői hiteles tanúk, amennyiben zenésztársaival régóta keresik a közös nyelvet, amely úgy fest, maga a zenei többnyelvűség. 

One of the first live jazz experiences of the young pianist Sámuel Baló was a Dresch Quartet concert, he admits, and now he plays on the Opus stage with the excellence of ethno-jazz as a colleague. The father of Sámuel Baló is the drummer István Baló, who is, among others, Mihály Dresch's old musician friend, so he was born into this atmosphere. No wonder that the musical experiences that have valued him since childhood are reflected in his music. Sámuel Baló studied jazz piano in Graz, an institution (Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Graz) whose main profile is the high-level teaching of mainstream jazz. However, his teacher, Olaf Polziehn, placed at least as much emphasis on conveying an approach that teaches openness, overcoming prejudice against genres. Sámuel Baló synthesizes these experiences in compositions in which the elements of hardbop and modal jazz form an organic unity with Hungarian folk music motifs. With his trio formed in the spring of 2020, in which Richter Ambrus plays drums and Márk Miskolczi on double bass, they present Samu’s own compositions featuring Mihály Dresch on saxophone at their concert in Opus. In 2021, they also won two awards at the "Jazz Showcase" organized by Müpa, winning the approval of a jury of international members.

Igor Stravinsky: Tango – 2. változatDanses concertantesWolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Notturno négy zenekarra, K 286Két quadrille, K 463Öt kontratánc, K 609Idomeneo – balettzene, K 367  

"Artvark’s music is alternately meditative and exciting and has a very visual character. It never gets boring, because at the right time the alto sax players snatch you from the upcoming hibernation. It’s that playfulness, ever remaining musical, that is the characteristic of this musical ensemble. The music of Artvark sounds fresh and new every time" – Jazzenzo Cyriel Pluimakers on Trance "The smooth flow of rhythmic arrangements embedded in the African and European music traditions are moody and playful: a fertile ground for Rosie’s passionate lyrics... Together they form a lively entity with multiple dimensions due to the stirring saxophone solos of the quartet" – Jazzenzo on Homelands Away with chairs! Away with music stands! Artvark moves! Artvark stands for innovative original compositions, strong individual soloists and the adventurous groove of four saxophones. The quartet meanders through musical traditions, sometimes on the intersection of classical and jazz, while always soulful and with blues, and sways across the stage according to an improvised choreography. Artvark thrills, Artvark stinks, growls and sizzles. Rolf Delfos (alto sax), Bart Wirtz (alto sax), Mete Erker (tenor sax) and Peter Broekhuizen (baritone sax) blend their different backgrounds to form a unanimous, creative and unique sound; the sound of Artvark! On 21 September 2021 saxophone quartet Artvark released their 10th album Mother of Thousand which will also be presented in the Opus Jazz Club. Completely new music, inspired by the music of Arvo Pårt and Aphex Twin. Artvark has retreated in their self-built studio for the past year. The search for that one truffle has never felt so urgent. This time the compositions were not created at the individual desks, but in the studio itself. The quartet started to experiment based on first ideas. New roads and new sounds were the result. On the album you can hear original Adolph Saxes from 1860, very rare slide saxes from 1920, a baritone recorded with a snare drum between sax and microphone, and a whole quartet moving from left to right through the speakers. A dreamy world of sound and space, hypnotic patterns and genuine blues. A soundtrack for the ultimate road trip.

A Fehérlófia az egyik legismertebb és egyben legarchaikusabb magyar népmese, ami évszázadokon keresztül hagyományozódott tovább. Olyan sok bölcsességet, tudást rögzít, ami koroktól függetlenül érdekes és érvényes mindenki számára. Dobszay-Meskó Ilona kortárs zeneszerzőnő és Tarr Ferenc szövegíró ezért is döntött úgy, hogy ebből a csodálatos meséből modern hangzású zenejátékot készít, amelyben a mesélő szerepét Lukácsházi Győző tölti be. Adaptációjuk célja kettős. Egyrészt céljuk ezt az izgalmas történetet olyan megvilágításba helyezni, amely a mai ember és különösen a még nyitott fiatalok számára is elérhetővé és érthetővé teszi ezeket az örök értékeket. Másik céljuk, hogy e történeten keresztül bevezessék a legfiatalabbakat is a klasszikus zene és a koncerttermek világába, a darabot hallgatva ők is kedvet kapjanak a klasszikus zene hallgatásához.

During the 16th century, Josquin Desprez acquired the reputation of the greatest composer of the age, his mastery of technique and expression universally imitated and admired. Writers as diverse as Baldassare Castiglione and Martin Luther wrote about his reputation and fame, with Luther declaring that "he is the master of the notes. They must do as he wills; as for the other composers, they have to do as the notes will." But it is worth digging deep into the works and the musical thinking behind them – and then it turns out that the secret of this unparalleled greatness may not have been relentless will, but rather patient listening: the most concentrated knowledge of the nature of sounds led to their peculiar intensity. The concert performances break down the oeuvre along various aspects of Josquin’s style.

Nehéz azt megfogni, mi is olyan mozartos Mozartban, de van valami, ami azért visszatükröződik néhány utód habitusában, meg munkához való hozzáállásában az amadeusiból. Talán a játék? Az jó közelítés lehet. Ugyanakkor nagyon profi, csak felkérésre dolgozó és az érzékenységet szinte agresszíven rejtegető habitus ez – számomra Stravinsky is kicsit ez a tészta.

"Improvised music on high-level" – Music frames, Mattie Poels"Sparkling music where sound and silence are each equivalent and makes you feel small" – Music Frames"Powerful music without compromise" – Nederlands Dagblad Three generations of unique Dutch musicians find each other in a common urge to improvise in which aesthetics, poetry and ensemble play have a major role. The listener is taken to an almost dreamlike new reality. Under the Surface is a new Dutch band formed by drummer Joost Lijbaart (1967), guitarist Bram Stadhouders (1987) and vocalist Sanne Rambags (1994). Their debut album released on Challenge Records in 2017 was nominated for an Edison. The improvisations of Under the Surface are far from abstract and sound as thoughtful compositions; Rambag's voice rhymes, whispers and sings over the melody lines of Stadhouders and the subtle percussion of Lijbaart. The atmosphere is made out of silence and reveals the pure kindred spirit communion between the musicians. The universal language of music took the group to major festivals around the world; to Africa, South America, Asia, the Middle East and Europe. The fully improvised concerts of Under the Surface continue to be an experience for both band and audience. This experience can be heard beautifully on the live album Trinity that was released in 2019. www.triounderthesurface.com www.facebook.com/triounderthesurface

A Dohnányi Quartet ötödik koncert-triptichonjának műsorai két szálon futnak. Mindhárom koncerten elhangzik egy-egy vonósnégyes, amit szerzője Franz Joseph Maximilian von Lobkowitz hercegnek, a 18-19. század fordulójának egyik legnagyobb mecénásának ajánlott. A három mű viszont három különböző zenei világot jelenít meg; Haydn egyik utolsó kvartettjéről és Beethoven két különböző alkotói korszakának terméseiről lévén szó.A koncertsorozaton végigfutó másik téma a francia zene. Mivel a vonósnégyes műfaja nagyon erősen az osztrák-német zenei hagyományban gyökerezik, az arányaiban kevés francia mű mind különleges színt jelent a műfaj történetében. Még az olyan remekműveket jegyző szerzők, mint Debussy és Ravel is csupán egy-egy kvartettet hagytak az utókorra. A koncertek harmadik összetevőjeként pedig olyan francia zenék is megszólalnak, melyek a vonósnégyes „feltalálása” előtti időkből valók: a francia barokk csemegéket Tornyai Péter dolgozta át négy vonós hangszerre.

Modern Art Orchestra’s Legendary Albums series presents the most important and unique albums of jazz literature, performed by MAO. By learning and playing these compositions and arrangements, the musicians are paying tribute to the jazz legends and are undergoing an intense process of musical improvement. The band absorbs the material of the original recordings, sticking to the arrangements, forms and compositional features. As improvisation is the blood of jazz, solos are invented by the players in the moment. Due to the respect shown towards the original conceptions of the legendary composers and the level of craftsmanship known from Modern Art Orchestra, the Legendary Albums series both brings you the essence of jazz tradition and guarantees a fresh musical experience. Dizzy Gillespie: Sonny Side Up The 1959 recording published on Verve proved to be not only an explosive show of musical ideas and instrumental craftsmanship but also a memory of bebop and hard bop at its highest. The truly legendary wind section includes Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Stitt and Sonny Rollins and delivers both jazz in its most sophisticated form as well as the steamy atmosphere of a jam session.  Gillespie was not only one of the most prominent figures of bebop – right beside Parker – but also an educator of this musical language. The legendary trumpet player, composer and arranger proves that he is also a remarkable singer on The Sunny Side Of The Street.  As for the reeds, it is interesting to note that both Sonny Stitt and Sonny Rollins internalized the mechanism of bebop in the same environment and at the same time but their melodic output is essentially different. Stitt’s vertical approach to harmony results in a rather linear rhythmic soundscape, while Rollins is likely to deliver unorthodox ideas in his rhythmic conceptions and melodic shapes as well. However, they are both supercharged with the essential force of the blues. Sonny Side Up is an exceptionally round album as it includes almost every mood one can come across in 1950’s and 60’s jazz. And it is doing it with authentic energy, while remaining effortless and elegant, thus being unquestionably a jazz masterpiece.

Hang Em High is a music project of three musicians of different nationalities. Bond – who is recognized worldwide for the unique approach to bass – in 2013 picked up a 2-string bass and together with Lucien Dubuis and Alfred Vogel formed HANG EM HIGH. Lucien Dubuis is a non-conformistic multi-reedist, who has been an active musician in the jazz and improvised music scene for several years with more than 20 albums to his credit. "Chromosomic mingling of a touch of John Coltrane genes and the DNA of the Beastie Boys" is one way to describe him. The third member of the trio is Alfred Vogel, who is one of the most productive figures of the austrian jazz scene, and also active as producer, runs Boomslang Records label and Bezau Beatz festival in upper Austria. Most of the songs of Hang Em High follow rock song structure. Bond and Vogel lay down libidinous rhythms that establish earthy themes while Dubuis’ clarinets provides the off-beat, raunchy, bent-note melodic lines that often soar into ejaculatory, ecstatic improvised solos. Tres Testosterones (aka HANG EM HIGH) recently decided to kidnap norwegian retro-futurist keyboardist/composer Ståle Storløkken and shape their distinct sound into another dimension. This is how their latest album, The Kidnapping of Ståle Storløkken, was born. But don’t worry, at least no fingers of keyboardists were harmed. Ståle wasn’t forced to join the team of course: at a short but very highly appreciated sit in at Bezau Beatz 2018 the four men teamed up again in February 2019 for one-off show at Cinema Sil Plaz in Ilanz, Switzerland. The band went straight to record after that with Ståle enjoying being a hostage and fitting in as if it wasn’t the first time. "The four of us appreciate the companionship tremendously - and guess you will hear that in the music, too". Chances are high, that the kidnappers and their kidnappee will be hanging it all as HIGH as possible on the road again. www.hangemhigh.pl The Kidnapping of Ståle Storløkken by HANG EM HIGH

The group, founded in 2002, developed a special sound for its composed and improvised chamber music by combining instruments, rather uncommon in jazz, like the Bulgarian gadulka, or the African array mbira with the more traditional setting of guitar, saxophone, double bass and drums. The name Ektar comes from the Indian word 'ek-tar'which means one string. Indeed, the five musicians play and improvise in such harmony as if they were all playing on a single instrument.

In the universe of ROUGE, three pigments are enough to unsettle known colors. Surrounded by Sylvain Didou (double bass) and Boris Louvet (drums), pianist Madeleine Cazenave takes us on a chromatic odyssey. We explore with happiness their multicolored spectrum, between the classic waves of Satie and Ravel and the hot-cold tones of Tigran Hamasyan, EST or Gogo Penguin. Their first album Derrière les paupières evokes a stormy crossing, an ethereal and delicate journey towards an inner sunny spell. With a certain ease, these musicians create the conditions for a contemplative and hypnotic immersion, to better drag us down to the heart of the gentle ROUGE storm. ROUGE · Extraits du prochain album

Created in 2019 by violinist Clément Janinet with Elodie Pasquier on clarinets and Bruno Ducret on cello, La Litanie des Cimes plays with long movements, seemingly slow tempos, and harmonic contemplations. Within this trio, improvisation is free and introspective without being recluse. The exchanged harmonies are constantly re-beaten by the repetition of the themes. One could almost hear agitated dialogues. It’s a blast of energy. Intimate jumble against common clarity, line vivacity against melodic delicacy. This very open music could sound like the soundtrack of a disaster movie about the end of the world, heard from the top of tall trees. Clément Janinet · La Litanie des Cimes

"The kind of folk that penetrates the wisdom tooth. Not with songs for tourists, but with dervish dances and the ecstatic shamanism of the mediums. Or a ritual execution accompanied by music" – Dmoon.ru"When asked what style of music we play, we are always in trouble with the answer. There’s no good word for it, maybe world music is closest to us, but it’s not accurate. There is psychedelia in it, but it is not entirely psychedelic. There is rock in it, but it is not rock. And so on. Musically, Siberian, psychedelic rock, lyrical music all affect us. We are inspired by everything and everyone who affects us on any level. It flows through us and your own music is born out of it. And the texts are about the torments, beauties, difficulties of everyday life, including death, panic, love" - said Annamária Oláh singer.

Two old favourites come together: the garbage truck and Santa Claus. We reinvent old Saint Nick  

During the 16th century, Josquin Desprez acquired the reputation of the greatest composer of the age, his mastery of technique and expression universally imitated and admired. Writers as diverse as Baldassare Castiglione and Martin Luther wrote about his reputation and fame, with Luther declaring that "he is the master of the notes. They must do as he wills; as for the other composers, they have to do as the notes will." But it is worth digging deep into the works and the musical thinking behind them – and then it turns out that the secret of this unparalleled greatness may not have been relentless will, but rather patient listening: the most concentrated knowledge of the nature of sounds led to their peculiar intensity. The concert performances break down the oeuvre along various aspects of Josquin’s style.

Igen, valóban, ez amolyan olcsó bulváros címadás, de hát mit csináljunk? Így a nőkről, nőknek, nőkért soha senki nem írt. És talán közhely, de a női lelket sem nagyon értette más ennyire. Hab a tortán, hogy Celeng Mária valódi nemzetközi sztár, olyan énekes, akinek talán Mozart is szívesen írna egy új áriát.

Modern Art Orchestra’s Legendary Albums series presents the most important and unique albums of jazz literature, performed by MAO. By learning and playing these compositions and arrangements, the musicians are paying tribute to the jazz legends and are undergoing an intense process of musical improvement. The band absorbs the material of the original recordings, sticking to the arrangements, forms and compositional features. As improvisation is the blood of jazz, solos are invented by the players in the moment. Due to the respect shown towards the original conceptions of the legendary composers and the level of craftsmanship known from Modern Art Orchestra, the Legendary Albums series both brings you the essence of jazz tradition and guarantees a fresh musical experience. Getz/Gilberto Producer Creed Taylor suggested that the musicians of the Gilberto band would get in contact with Sten Getz as the saxophone genius was already pursuing Brazilian music for a number of reasons. Because of these events, The Sound eventually got involved in the project that ended up producing one of the most-sold recordings of jazz music and also became the winner of several prizes.There is a fairly long list of specialities that could be mentioned in relation to Getz/Gilberto. One of them is the appearance of Astrud Gilberto, who stepped up as a professional singer for the first time on this very recording. Impressively, Girl From Ipanema was awarded a Grammy, which is just one of the acknowledgements the album has received.One cannot emphasise enough the importance of Antonio Carlos “Tom” Jobim. The Brazilian composer cherished the music of Debussy, Ravel and Heitor Villa-Lobos, as well as traditional Brazilian music. All these influences combined with jazz improvisation resulted in one of the most popular jazz recordings of all time.

Vida Mónika Ruth zongoraművész gyermekkora óta a zene szeretetének szenteli életét. Álma, hogy a muzsika öröme és gyógyító ereje mindenkihez eljusson. Fiatal kora ellenére a legtöbb európai országban koncertezett már, fellépett Afrikában, az Egyesült Államokban és több ázsiai országban is. Országos és nemzetközi sikereit követően mindössze 14 éves volt, amikor megnyerte élete első nemzetközi versenyét Szerbiában, majd röviddel ezt követően Kínában debütált a Shanghai-i világkiállításon. A többszörös verseny-győztes legutóbb az V. Coimbra Zongora Világtalálkozón állhatott dobogóra, és az Olasz Parlament kitüntetésében részesült kiváló zenei munkásságáért. Kitüntetéses diplomáit 2016-ban és 2020-ban szerezte a Zeneakadémián. Első nagy hangversenysorozata, a “Sem emlék, sem varázslat” 2019 szeptemberében indult útnak. 2020 sem telhetett izgalmak nélkül: a Művésznő – kiemelkedő zeneművészeti teljesítményének elismeréseként – Junior Prima díjban részesült.