Budapest Jazz Bones is a project put together by international trombone artist Zoltán Kiss, joined by some of Hungary's best jazz trombonists, Attila Korb, Krisztián Csapó and Murád Abbas. The ensemble combines the virtuosity of classical music and the freedom of jazz improvisation backed up by an amazing rhythm section, Gábor Cseke on piano, Ádám Bögöthy on double bass and László Csízi on drums.

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. They have recorded the material for their fourth CD at the end of June at BMC. To celebrate the BMC International Cimbalom Competition 2019, this special concert features the trio in the first set, mostly playing from the material of their forthcoming album on BMC Records. In the second set, two excellent musicians on reeds, Csaba Klenyán and Attila Jankó, both of them active in classical-contemporary music, join them to play pieces from Lux et Umbra, Cimbiosis’ third album, seldom performed live. 

The Gipsy Cimbalom Band is a sextet of virtuoso musicians who combine Roma music, jazz, flamenco, swing, klezmer and ragtime. The end result is an incredibly diverse and universal music, offering new surprises each time. The band has a unique world that includes many European countries where Gypsies play folk music, jazz or any kind of fun music: both instrumental and vocal music fits in to the program of the sextet, and although the instrumentation is arranged around Kálmán Balogh’s cimbalom, the bass, violin, guitar or trumpet play also important role. This time, the Hungarian-Serbian singer Branka Básits joins the formation. Branka’s presence can open up new perspectives of musical cooperation, as she gives credentials to the Balkan music alongside Hungarian and Serbian folk songs, and captivates the audience with her passionate and unique performance.  kalmanbalogh.hu facebook.com/Balogh-Kálmán-the-Gipsy-Cimbalom-Band facebook.com/brankaofficial 

Ready for Freddie, the album by trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, released on the Blue Note label in 1962, was identified by Scott Yanow in his Allmusic essay Hard Bop as one of the 17 Essential Hard Bop Recordings. “Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard really came into his own during this Blue Note session. He is matched with quite an all-star group (tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter, pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Art Davis, and drummer Elvin Jones in addition to Bernard McKinney on euphonium), introduces two of his finest compositions (Birdlike and Crisis), and is quite lyrical on his ballad feature, Weaver of Dreams. Hubbard's sidemen all play up to par and this memorable session is highly recommended; it's one of the trumpeter's most rewarding Blue Note albums.” Scott Yanow, AllMusic

The two renowned figures of the Slovak jazz scene, saxophonist Nikolaj Nikitin and pianist Ľuboš Šrámek, have been working together in different projects and on several recordings since a long time. Their partners included among others Miroslav Vitous, Gregory Hutchinson, Peter Erskine, JD Walter, Lonnie Plaxico, Stanley Banks or Patches Stewart. In 2017 the duo joined their creative forces and performing skills again, and the result of their intense cooperation became to an enchanting album, Altar, with nine fragile miniatures, among them originals as well as paraphrases on themes of Leoš Janáček, J.S.Bach or a well-known standard. The album reflects both the classical and contemporary influences of the artists and their individual approach to tradition, and was awarded with the Esprit Award, the Slovak Grammy, in 2017. The duo’s recent tour in Mexico was joined in April by a recording at The Samurai Hotel Recording Studio in New York, with Tom Harrell, Drew Gress and Johnathan Blake. On the Budapest concert their long-time friend, trumpeter Kornél-Fekete Kovács wil be their guest. facebook.com/LuboSramek facebook.com/nikolajnikitinjazz   feketekovacs.com 

Guitarist István Gyárfás’s longtime dream of creating a Hammond trio came to frutition last year with organist Mátyás Premecz and György Jeszenszky on drums. Their debut album, Organ Grinder's Suite, paying homage to the relevant trios of the genre, earned critical acclaim and the trio is regularly perfoming its material. In the meantime they already started to work on the music of their sophomore album, thus the audience of Opus already can hear some parts of it on the present concert.  Organ Grinder's Suite by Gyárfás-Premecz Organ Trio

The trio was founded at the end of 2017 at the initiative of guitarist Roland Heidrich, who first started playing in separate duos with Csaba Pengő and Zsolt Sárvári Kovács. But, having known them better, the opportunity for a long-awaited drum - bass - guitar trio soon started glimmering. During the past year’s work they have created a common voice that soon will be available on disc as well. Crudity of experimental rock, refined textures of “Northern jazz” as well as the exciting world of free improvisation all appear in the trio’s music. Roland’s themes provide the framework for a common adventure, where the classical trio setting gets to display in a broad variety. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Roland-Heidrich-guitarist-and-composer

Two young generation artists join forces on the first evening of Hevhetia Days. Slovak guitarist and film music composer David Kollar has a unique musical vision that absorbs and reflects all manner of music while retaining an enviable individualism and high quality craftsmanship that can span from music creativity to very powerful and deep music. He is one of the most productive Slovak instrumentalists and composers of experimental, movie and scenic music. David has a long list of albums and collaborations with many left-field artists to his name, including much respected Norwegian guitarist Eivind Aarset, Arve Henriksen, Fennesz, Steven Wilson, Pat Mastelotto. The latter described his style as “an interesting combination of Eastern European classical influences, jazz, ambient, techno, EDM, trippy heavy blues rock mixed with eastern folk styles, played on a homemade guitar through a quirky combination of pedals and effects.”  The sounds and emotions of Polish accordionist Zbigniew Chojnacki constitute an effort to reveal the accordion from a hitherto unknown perspective. The purpose of extracting various colors from the instrument and its sound, as well as the use of electronics and everyday items, is to reveal a different aspect of the accordion to the listener. “When I heard Zbigniew Chojnacki, I realised that accordion playing will never be the same as what it used to be.”  said Michał Urbaniak about his debut album, Elektrotropizm. “Chojnacki experiments, and his debut is a challenge for the listener. He’s subjecting his individuality to the highest test of tastes. He emanates the soul of contemporeneity (...) he's different (...) he seeks his own path (...) he's worth listening to!”  wrote enthusiasically about him another of his compatriots, Maciej Obara. Elektrotropizm by Zbigniew Chojnacki

The multi-awarded Polish guitarist Szymon Mika is well known to visitors of Opus, entering its stage four times during the six years of the club’s existence, playing a key role in four different Polish or European groups. Now finally he arrives with the Szymon Mika Trio, his own project formed with his two compatriots, double-bass player Piotr Południak, a prominent musician of the Polish jazz scene, and another “Opus-stalwart”, drummer Dawid Fortuna. Distinguished by their unique sound and original compositions, the trio will perform pieces from the last two Hevhetia albums of the leader – Unseen and Togetherness – and some brand new compositions as well. szymonmika.com 

Inspired by the instruments of the classical symphonic orchestra, the three French virtuosos perform on strings, winds and various percussion. Jérome Fouquet, Leila Soldevila and Ugo Boscain have developed their own language in which new sounds emerge through advanced techniques. Their aim is to create a completely new instrument, alias Nebula Machina, where the roles of the instruments or of the three musicians are completely interchangeable. Nebula Machina attempts to evolve a sound experience evoking different frames of mind in their audience, in particular those induced by the nature: air, wind and water are the guiding principles for their compositions. Jérome Fouquet is as experienced in funk and jazz as in the field of improvised music. He made his name musically outside France, mainly in Japan. He has made an international appearance with his own band KUMA and the International Supersonic Quintet. Bass player Leïla Soldevila is active in almost all genres, she is active member in the Loïs Levan Sextet, plays Kurdish music with Nishtiman, Eastern European folklore with Bazaarium, Russian sounds  with the Baikal Quartet, French chansons with Djazz`elles or pop music with Half Seas Over. Ugo Boscain studied with Mal Waldron, Steve Lacy and Evan Parker. He is a member of bands around Carlo Actis Dato and Claude Parle. For the past ten years, he has devoted himself entirely to the bass clarinet, which brought him to Anthony Braxton’s ensembles. jeromefouquet.com leilasoldevilarenault.com cmapx.polytechnique.fr/~boscain 

The young Hungarian saxophonist and composer, Daniel Varga, doesn’t really care about musical genres. He made himself a name with his virtuoso playing in the colorful experimental indie rock band Moped Loewen but he also nurtures his own quartet, a loose formation playing contemporary jazz rooted both in free and modal music, however never missing lyricism. Performing earlier at the Opus twice, this time he arrives with his Polish firends, guitarist Piotr Lipowicz and drummer Piotr Budniak, beside his regular Croatian double-bass player, Ivar Krizic. His relationship with the Polish musicians started in 2014 when they were playing tours and gigs around the country, presenting their own music and ideas in different groups and projects (Animal House Project, Piotr Budniak Essential Group, Lipowicz - Budniak MAD Unit). After a 2 year break they group up again as the Daniel Varga Eastern European Quartet to undust nostalgic memories and bring us the fire of fresh, modern ideas of jazz. Dániel Varga studied in Austria under the hands of Julian Arguelles and Ed Partyka. In the past year he has been winning numerous awards in Hungary with his bands (Palace of the Arts Jazz Showcase - special prize, 2nd best band on a Hungarian Talentshow with Moped Loewen, Gábor Újfalusy award for most talented musician in 2018/2019) and also by his compositions for big band (3rd prize on the Hungarian Jazz Composing and Arranging Competition organized by the Hungarian Jazz Federation). Recently he has been invited in to the finals of the prestigious Michael Brecker International Saxophone Competition, which will take place in August at the Red Sea Jazz Festial in Eilat, Israel. danielvargamusic.tumblr.com   

Polmuz is the outcome of Michał Fetler’s artistic residency at Zamek Culture Centre in Poznań. The project’s starting point was a collection of archival recordings of folk songs and compositions from the Greater Poland regions, preserved on a unique set of shellac gramophone records from the turn of the 20th century.  Fetler invited to contribute in the project artists with distinct musical characters of different sensibilities and temperaments. Their task was to come forward with contemporary interpretations of folk music from the areas of Śrem, Pleszew and Poznań. The musicians decided to draw on the nature of the archival recordings and the manner of music-making from a century ago, creating open and unrestrained, quasi-jazz compositions with a large dose of primeval improvisation, ritual trance and a narrative based on Greater Polish folk motifs. In 2018, the band’s debut album Drzewiej was released. The album actually consists of two albums, containing the same repertoire, but in significantly different performances. michalfetler.com/polmuz facebook.com/polmuzyka 

Szabolcs Oláh’s music reflects matters of the soul, flowing around with a balanced serenity. His new album, Crystal Brook, to be released in September 2019, goes further on the path he started years ago, but thanks to a fresh rhythm section, this time the path is wider than on his previous recordings. Szabolcs Oláh discovered early that the composing is the right channel through which he can clearly express himself. After graduating from the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in 2005, already achieving some international success with his own quartet, he became the same year one of the founding members of the Modern Art Orchestra, one of Hungary’s most unique bands, the cradle of the most progressive musicians, where anything can happen, where the various shades of styles are shamelessly blended with each other. He founded his quintet hugely influenced by this atttude. Already on their first album, Connection (2013), the quintet’s courageous, experimenting sound appears distinctly, followed in 2016 by Dream Path with an irresistible layer added to it by the voice of Panni Kalmár. Now, with the arrival of the bassist Ádám Bögöthy and drummer László Csízi, a new pulsation moved into the rhythm section. The presence of László Csízi is unique. He can keep the rhythm with negligent looseness, however his cymbals can detach anytime from the body of the music and show the hidden features of the songs. For example, in Pearls Csízi opens with a strict tempo, and adds a fascinating shade, like a waving serpentine over János Ávéd and Szabolcs Oláh’s beautiful unisonos, or in the title song, where Csízi’s playing enhances the song’s hymnical character. János Ávéd brings his subdued, but beautifully focused style, with a strong emphasis on melodies. He and Szabolcs Oláh are speaking the same dialect of music, the album is full of their beautiful dialogues interrupted by Gábor Cseke’s monologues, while Ádám Bögöthy follows the music from a discrete distance. Crystal Brook is fragile, yet flows smoothly. The dream-like moods that emerged from well-developed melodies have always been characteristic of the guitarist’s music, but his compositions may never have been so crystal clear. It’s not necessary to be a jazz fan to enjoy this album, as while just listening to it, it’s easy to hear everything, what makes the jazz so special. szabolcsolahmusic.com  facebook.com/olahszabolcsquintet 

Drummer and composer Balázs Bágyi is one of the most respected musicians on the Hungarian jazz scene, working internationally, leading his own bands over the last two decades. Being a member of different bands he creates music almost in all genres, his unique melodic style of playing the drums gives a complex music experience. He has toured the USA several times, and he is the only Hungarian jazz musician who regularly plays in China. His previous quartet, existed from 2004 - 2011, was a very important band on the Hungarian ethno-jazz and world music scene. The music of his new quartet contains less of the folk background but sounds like today’s pure acoustic jazz based on post-bop elements. His partners are the best players of the young generation from Budapest, as saxophonist Soso Lakatos, who studied and got his diploma in Amsterdam, the classically trained Junior Prima awarded pianist Dezső Oláh (substituted by Balázs Horváth on this occasion), and Péter Oláh, one of the greatest bass players in Central Europe. During the recent years the band played at many European jazz festivals (Bansko Jazz festival, Nisville, Mosaic Jazz Fest Sibiu, Sarajevo Winter, Petrovac Jazz Festival, Skopje Summer Festival, Jazz Juniors Krakow), and performed at some famous jazz clubs as well (Agharta Jazz Club Prague, B-Flat Berlin). In 2016 their album Homage to Shakespeare featuring vocalist Kriszta Pocsai won Gramofon Award given by an international jury, then they were chosen for The group of the year by JazzMa.hu online magazine’s readers’ poll. The quartet plays original music composed by the bandleader who was chosen for The composer of the year on the same poll in 2016.

In 2015, three outstanding musicians in their thirties joined forces in the daring and genuine Catalan-Andalusian trio, M·A·P. Right from their start, they became on of the most sought-after trios in Spain. M·A·P takes us to imaginary places and times. Their music is a regenerative synthesis of genres and styles: popular, academic and free. Marked by the convergence of Mezquida’s musicality, Aurignac’s passion and intensity and Prats’ structured fantasy, the group presents powerful and always surprising live acts, approved by some quotes here: “The MAP Trio pulls everything out of its hat: hypnotic passages, torrential surges, a lyricism which at times verges on the sentimental, a bit of groove, rhythmic puzzles and a tapestry of oriental colours. And they play it all with a rare force, but without making it sound like a music competition”  Roger Roca, elPeriódico “The way they play is a discharge of pure jazz energy released with boldness, spirituality and never seen intensity in Spanish jazz for years. Their sound and live performance were the best news of the year, not only in Spanish jazz but also for the outside, because their own thing is cosmic music”  El Mundo “Their live act is freed from the chains of the studio to dive into different territories with abrasive density and intensity. Music that is unshackled but at the same time of demanding virtuosity, in a perfect balance of exploration and reproduction that at times verges on the impossible. And en route they draw a map of striking contrasts and great beauty”  El Club de Jazz M·A·P’s debut album was chosen as the best recording of 2016 in Spain. Marcio Mezquida is well-known to the audience of Opus, entering its stage four times already, in different formations like his solo concert, contributions in Giulia Valle’s groups or the memorable performance of the Joan Vidal Sextet. Ernesto Aurignac’s prolific creativity is reflected in the numerous groups led by him, from trio up to large orchestras. The multifaceted drummer, Ramon Prats worked with the likes of Lee Konitz, Axel Dörner, Agustí Fernández, Mats Gustafsson, Joe Morris, Albert Cirera, Jorrit Dijkstra, David Murray, Seamus Blake, Dave Kikoski, Esperanza Spalding, Guillermo Klein, Bob Mintzer, Greg Ward, Perico Sambeat, Deborah Carter, just to name a few.  marcomezquida.com ernestoaurignac.com ramonprats.cat 

Dzsindzsa’ music is largely based on the jazz avant-garde of 60s America, but also features elements of folk, bop, beat, funk, and even pop, due to the fact that the members are active not only in jazz but also in many genres of music. Their most characteristic feature is the grotesque-ironic tone and humour, paired with sophisticated musicality, virtuoso solos and excellent instrumentation. “The trio consisting of winds, bass and drums is perhaps the most traditional jazz form, suggesting the strictest rigidity on paper, both in terms of lineup and sound, but in reality offering exceptional freedom. The musicians from Dzsindzsa know exactly the secret to getting the most out of it: they play surprisingly short, but extraordinarily rich and dynamic pieces, bearing beside the traces of the classic jazz tradition of the sixties but plenty of others as well. The noble pub / cabaret tradition, elements of folk music, Balkan, Caribbean (calypso) themes, and sometimes the pounding of rockabilly harmoniously blend into the excitingly diverse fabric of the songs. (...) They play with their heart and soul and put so many tiny ideas into the joint work which would be enough for three discs. Dzsindzsa speaks the language of jazz so that they are not only punching the hearts of dedicated fans of the genre, but they can easily sweep off anyone’s feet with their witty improvisational style, subtle irony, sensitivity and sometimes punk-like crushing.”  as the Hungarian weekly Magyar Narancs was characterizing them. During their nearly 20-year-long existence they created a vast repertoire of originals, balancing unobtrusively between the extremes of totally free and hundred-percently composed forms. On their concerts they play their older pieces with the same surprising freshness as the songs from their most recent album, Ne aggódj (Don't Worry). They often invite guest soloists to their concerts, as this time the excellent trumpeter, Ádám Meggyes.

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.

“Andrew Robb and Marton Juhasz on bass and drums are all about close ensemble interaction, and sometimes it’s as if their sounds were coming out from the inside of Benzie’s piano... Benzie’s playing has a hushed yet yearning quality to it; an exquisite touch and elegant virtuosity make for a thoroughly engaging listen.” Jazzwise Winner of the BBC Scottish Young Jazz Musician of the Year at only 17, and Berklee College of Music’s prestigious Billboard Award, pianist/composer Alan Benzie is one of the UK’s most exciting talents. He is joined by friends and long time collaborators Andrew Robb on bass (BBC Scottish Young Jazz Musician of the Year 2009; Bass Europe Competition Winner 2018) and Márton Juhász on drums (Foundation for Hungarian Percussion Culture Award 2010; “Drummer of the Year” 2014 and 2015, JazzMa reader’s poll). Their debut album, Traveller’s Tales and 2018 release Little Mysteries have both garnered glowing reviews, with the latter also winning Best Album in the 2018 Scottish Jazz Awards. They have been delighting audiences throughout the UK and Europe over the last few years, including at London International Jazz Festival and United Europe Jazz Festival, as well as being the featured artists on BBC Radio 3’s “Jazz Line-Up”, Austrian National Radio and BBC Scotland’s “The Jazz House” and “Jazz Nights”. The music is rooted in European and American jazz, but is influenced by impressionist piano music and film music, and Benzie’s love of Japanese animation gives a visual, storytelling quality. From sensitive, magical textures to virtuosic explosions of energy, the trio are both sophisticated and accessible, with the warmth, empathy and interplay that can only be achieved through great friendship and years of making music together. alanbenzie.com martonjuhasz.com andrewrobbmusic.com facebook.com/alanbenziemusic 

Szilvia Bognár, soloist in countless productions, is one of the most sought-after singers of Hungarian folk and world music. She appeared with famous artists like Márta Sebestyén, Andrea Rost or Ferenc Sebő, András Lovasi, András Berecz. So far, she has made six albums with her own compositions, ranging from Renaissance chants through children’s songs to progressive world music. On the repertoire of her new world music formation, the Szilvia Bognár Sextet, Hungarian, Gypsy, Bulgarian and Greek songs are played in an unconventional line-up and arrangement, as three worlds meet in the program – folk music, jazz and North Indian classical music. Preserving the essentially acoustic sound and the natural quality of traditional performance, they sail safely through a variety of different styles of music and traditional melodies.

You just have to say it, and in this case, it’s no exaggeration: there has never been an album like Wünschen (Wishing). Something comparable? No way! The compelling strength of this cycle of songs lies in the unity of its contradictions, expressed in the subject matter and the choice of musical resources. This is an album as all-encompassing as life itself, and as colorful and unpredictable as a Coen brothers film. Erik Leuthäuser is a young singer from Berlin. The various histories and origins of the songs on Leuthäuser’s album tell a lot about the man himself. He reinterprets some of the songs, such as Friedrich Hollaender’s Wenn ich mir was wünschen dürfte (If I could make a wish). Others are musical versions of poems and songs, as is the case with a piece from Dorothea “Dota” Kehr. We have jazz standards from Wayne Shorter and Duke Ellington supplemented with Leuthäuser’s German texts. And then there are Erik Leuthäuser’s own compositions. Some of the pieces on the album are familiar, having already been recorded at one time or another. Yet Leuthäuser’s interpretations are by no means cover versions; rather he appropriates the pieces and makes them his own. When Erik sings these pieces, they sound as if they belong exclusively to Leuthäuser and his listeners. In the end, it doesn’t really matter where the pieces came from or how Leuthäuser happened upon them; now they simply belong to him: "It’s all very personal. I’m not concerned about the stylistics or a particular target audience. I have simply tied all my musical ideas together and created music out of them." A major reason why this musical portrait is so multi-faceted lies in Leuthäuser’s fellow musicians‘ ability to immerse themselves in the singer’s musical language. The brothers Bernhard and Peter Meyer on guitar and bass are melting all influences of jazz-improvisation, experimental sounds, prog and indie rock, eletronic and Neue Musik together creating a unique and unheard style, that makes them remarkable voices of a new generation of jazz musicians. As a result they have been nominated two times for the Echo Jazz (the German Grammy for jazz). Joining them is the drummer Andi Haberl, known as the drummer from The Notwist. Coming from a jazz background, he has a technical mastery the likes of which is rarely seen. But this is coupled with a true playfulness and love of experimentation which is what really defines Haberl’s style.

It's really unnecessary to introduce the participants of tonight's concert, as each of them has been on the stage of Opus several times, both as leaders and members of different groups. Their current performance, however, is really unique because they join each other for the first time in the present quartet lineup. It is actually a next link in a strong chain of three different duos. Veronika Harcsa and Albert Márkos have been creative partners for many years in experimental, alternative productions. Peter and Bernhard Meyer are not only brothers, but also their closest colleagues, and Veronika gave one of her most memorable duo concerts in Berlin with Peter Meyer. facebook.com/harcsaveronika meyer-music.de 

The distinctive vocal style of Shirley Horn was already nearly fully formed on Loads of Love, one of the singer’s earliest recordings. The album, arranged and conducted by Jimmy Jones, was released by Mercury Records in 1963, and featured a nice list of prestigious musicians, such as Gerry Mulligan, Kenny Burrell, Al Cohn, or Hank Jones.

“Mangy chamber punk jazz” Andreas Felber, Der Standard Are these guys playing jazz counteracted by rock elements, or is it the other way around? Aren’t we rather listening to a rock band infiltrated by jazz? Indeed the tractor this mini-orchestra is firing up defies any purity requirements in jazz, indie, rock’n’roll etc. Pure anarchy: a bassless jazz trio, a rock band minus a singer. But is it really that simple? Edi Nulz allows the bass clarinet to be a solo instrument, a vocalist and a bass instrument, all at once. From time to time the guitar, too, indulges in low- frequency joys. The drums rumble in an expertly slipshod way, adding the finishing touches to this musical alloy of grandiose grotesque and gleeful nonsense. Edi Nulz walks the line between musical amalgam and bastard, often throwing the beat only to find back to track at one fell swoop or with a little sleight of hand. Last but not least, their devil-may-care handling of styles and effects means these guys are having the time of their lives – which also holds true for their audiences. Thus each Edi Nulz concert turns into a joyful tightrope walk between insanity and precision, precision and frenzy or frenzy and tennis. Grand audio drama, baby.  Back in February 2016, the trio had already rolled over the audience of Opus, now it’s time again for the next craze, especially with the band presenting their frenetic album, El Perro Grande (The Big Dog), released last year. edi-nulz.com     El Perro Grande by Edi Nulz

Junior Prima and Montreux prize-winner singer Nikoletta Szőke is one of Hungary’s most popular jazz vocalists. Beside her numerous concerts and festival apparances in her home country, she has performed in New York, Tokyo, Brussels, Copenhagen, London and Berlin, with such artists as Michel Legrand, Bobby McFerrin, Kurt Elling or Gregory Hutchinson. She has released seven solo albums so far. Moonglow, her most recent one was produced by Grammy Award winner Helik Hadar. Nikoletta’s musicians are among the finest ones of the country. In the spring of 2017, Nikoletta released her first song in Hungarian, entitled Az út hadd vigyen (Let the road take you). Since then she publishes new songs regularly, like most recently, Ha valaha szerettél (If you ever loved me) which already has over 35,000 views. 

The Rákfogó group is over forty years old. This statement is true, even though that the original Béla Szakcsi Lakatos - Gyula Babos - Mihály Ráduly - Jackie Orszáczky - Imre Kőszegi line-up operated only for a short time, between 1972 and 1974. However, the influence of this Hungarian jazz-rock flagship lasted for decades and had a decisive influence not only on the career of the members of the legendary line-up but also on the development of the whole Hungarian jazz life. Although György Orbán, unlike Orszáczky, plays double bass instead of electric bass, the band didn’t change their course to a more classical jazz sound. Just on the contrary, while Szakcsi is still playing exclusively on Fender Rhodes and the guitar of the recently departed Gyula Babos resembled the original sound, both the brilliant young guitarist Márton Fenyvesi, as the trumpeter Kornél Fekete-Kovács use a lot of electronic effects making it even more up-to-date. Imre Kőszegi’s drumming breaks with the tradition of bebop, making his play more colorful and original, especially by using cymbals and accessories specially made for this project. This all makes clear that Rákfogó is by no means a tribute band, and while the repertoire may include pieces by the original line-up, they – just like like some standards by Davis, Coltrane or Zawinul – appear in a new, revised form, evoking the experimental, form-breaking, freedom-craving spirit of the founders. 

O-Janà (from the word Janara – “witch” in Neapolitan) is a duo that brings together singer Ludovica Manzo and electronic musician/pianist Alessandra Bossa, two composers and improvisers with different backgrounds. The combination of these two artists, each charged with spontaneity, curiosity and audacity, is exciting and the result of it is a music which moves from electronics through songwriting to free-improvisation.Their album Inland Images is a label-free journey between icy abstraction and vibrant pulsation through boundless territories, where song, melody and chamber music find a place along with neoclassical and jazz nuances. The entire album is a life story lived by the artists who have established a dialogue from very distant places and latitudes, and this is why it is a work of contemporary and international breath. Massimiliano Milesi’s OOFTH project, which was released on the AUAND label this year, is inspired by the surreal and paradoxical atmospheres that permeate the novel The Ifth of Oofth by the science fiction writer Walter Tevis. The original compositions of the leader often refer to the soundtracks of cinematic science fiction: as in Tevis’ story, the temporal flow becomes sometimes ambiguous and muddy, ferrying the sound images from one situation to another. The sidereal atmospheres generated by the electronic instruments suggest the sense of disorientation, experienced by the protagonists of the Tevis story.  NEW ITALIAN JAZZ GENERATION   –   Presented in collaboration with I-Jazz association

The progressive  / experimental / crossover jazz trio, Hobby Horse, is a figurehead of the rapidly developing new Italian jazz scene, but equally comfortable playing underground rock venues and dance clubs. During the eight years of their intense activity, they released six albums and did innumerous concerts throughout Europe and North America. Hobby Horse’s music is a wildly unpredictable mix of styles, a melting pot of musical languages ranging from slam poetry to techno to psychedelic bossanova, prog rock, hip-hop and chamber music. Passing from hypnotic drones to violent explosions of noise, they manage to maintain an underlying sense of balance, shared exploration and discovery, sculpting their sets into an overarching form which maintains artistic coherence despite (or perhaps due to) the drastic contrasts it contains. hobbyhorse3.com  Helm by Hobby Horse NEW ITALIAN JAZZ GENERATION   –   Presented in collaboration with I-Jazz association

Singer Tamás Berki and pianist Péter Sárik have been playing together for several years in various formations and in duo since 2012. Their performances full of humour, joy, playfulness and energy are very popular. Their album Minden délibáb received the Phonogram Prize in the category of “Jazz Album of the Year” in 2015. Their concert repertoire consists of old and new Berki-compositions as well as jazz-evergreens, performed in a special way, they call “auditive theatre”. 

After completing the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music, guitarist Csaba Czirják studied at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. Following his return to Hungary he soon became well-known by his versatility in different genres and lineups. The music of the Csaba Czirják Trio, founded in 2017,  provides a wide space for interaction between instruments, giving the complex harmony structures of the guitar, in collaboration with the rhythmic concept of bass and drums. The communication between the instruments, close to mind-reading – a key feature of jazz improvisation –, creates an exciting sound experience in such a minimal set-up of instruments. Markoláb, the trio’s 2017 debut was followed recently by their sophomore album, Emma, with seven original compositions on it. The present concert, featuring as special guest one of the most versatile and exciting musical personalities of the younger Hungarion jazz generation, Áron Tálas, builds its program mostly on the new album’s pieces. 

“There is an angel, Sonifer, who stitches beadwork from the twelve colours of the rainbow.From the beads gathered during the day, he makes the day’s series at twilight, then repeating it he stitches his lace all night.When it is done, he touches a few links of the chain with his finger: at dawn these are gleaming, one after the other, as he gazes at the finished garland” The twelve colors - the sounds of the chromatic scale.The sequence of colours - the reticulum.The gaze on the chain - time.The gleaming beads - the sounds to be heard. This is reticular music. Dániel Váczi is one of the most versatile musicians in the Hungarian musical scene. He develops a family of musical instruments and logical games, and as a musician he roams in the boundaries of jazz and classical / contemporary classical music, and writes music for the organ of Müpa. As a musical theorist, he developed a new musical system called reticular. He has recently been a fellow at the iASK Collegium Sonorum Music Center in Kőszeg, later becoming a creative colleague there. The Dániel Multet Váczi is an expanded version of his trio founded in 2001. In their program, the reticulum concept, operating under strict rules, is combined with free improvisation. The band’s debut album was released at the end of 2018 by Future Music Records. https://danielvaczi.bandcamp.com

“The Quartet of Zsolt Bende presents a contemporary version of what is still best described as straight ahead jazz. This album imparts a cogent revision of the idiom - unpretentious musical stories delivered with drive and potency, immediately capturing the imagination of the listener. The original compositions are inspired by hard-earned life experiences of travel and change, but somehow they also manage to communicate an unspoken truth - that none of those things would mean much without persistence. The balanced composure of the bandleader's guitar playing sets the tone for the session. His cool-headed yet powerful ardour suffuses through the quartet, a group re-formed in 2016 after a long period of practice and introspection for Bende. The state-of the art technology of the studio captures every nuance. Bende was raised in Tirgu Mures/Romania, fell in love with jazz in Budapest, and soon found himself in Boston at Berklee, graduating with a distinction. Since then he has steadily worked the European jazz circuit, touring and teaching most extensively in the UK. His presence is now having a fitting impact on the Hungarian jazz scene. In the full-blooded pianist József Balázs, versatile bassist György Orbán, and tasteful drummer Elemér Balázs, Bende has found the perfect interflow of empathy and contrast in which to weave his fluent melodies with an easy charm that makes you feel you are listening to a new story told by an old friend.” wrote Kornél Zipernovszky about Cycle of Change, the tecent album of Zsolt Bende Quartet. 

Raised in Israel, Omer Klein studied with Danilo Pérez at Boston’s New England Conservatory, and then with Fred Hersch in New York. Soon becoming a key player of that city’s jazz scene, Klein now lives in Germany. In 2018, his Sleepwalkers album won the ECHO Award, which is often called the German Grammy Award. “Klein shows with his speed, touch, refinement, and creativity, that he belongs to the small group of master pianists,” wrote the critic of Süddeutsche Zeitung. The New York Times called him a “borderless” musician, and the Westdeutsche Zeitung described him as “astonishing.” Since the internationally praised record, Fearless Friday (2015), his trio has become one of the most sought-after jazz bands.

Zita Gereben, one of the outstanding singers of the young generation, was first recognized as the vocalist of pop groups like Emil.RuleZ and the Gringo Star. However, Zita’s musical career is much more diverse. A large number of successful club concerts and festivals are proving her routine to adapt her velvety voice in a wide range of genres. On their third album, My Festival, Zita Gereben and her group are blending acoustic sound with electronic dance music, jazz, R'n'B and funk, resulting in an exciting pop music, where, like on the various stages in a festival, everyone can find the genre he likes the best. The diversity of songs, however, reflects a unified style that is sophisticatedly mixed with the melodic world so typical of Zita.

The Párniczky Quartet forged a unique signature sound that originates in jazz, contemporary classical and Hungarian folk music. The band was formed in 2016 with the aim of playing adaptations of Béla Bartók’s pieces, as well as of getting inspired in their improvisations by Bartók’s artistic world. As Raphaël Benoit from Citizen Jazz put it: „Bartók’s music is airy and creates a characteristic space. And this musical space is what the Párniczky Quartet can grasp, and give back freely and perfectly. Mastery and fresh impetus for Bartók's repertoire.”  András Párniczky and his bandmates, Péter Bede and István Baló, played with Nigun, the guitarist’s other group, more than 300 gigs around the world, including venues like the New York Guggenheim Museum, Brussels Bravo Art Festival, Athens Technopolis Jazz Festival or Klezmor Festival Vienna. Marcell Gyányi, one of the most respected young representatives of his instrument not only in Hungary but also in Europe, joined them recently on double bass. Their first album, Bartók Electrified, mentioned by W. Royal Stokes (Jazz Times, The Washington Post) as one of the notable releases of 2018, was released on BMC Records. „Bartók Electrified is a consistent, great continuation of the outstanding composer of modern music.”  wrote Mathias Bäumel in JazzZeitung about the album. Its repertoire was performed with the collaboration of Frank Möbus and Daniel Erdmann at the MÜPa, while recently the quartet has been touring with Carlos Bica and Dejan Terzic.  parniczkyandras.hu facebook.com/Parniczky.Quartet 

Details soon!

Jorge Torrecillas Ensamble, established in mid-2011, was born with the aim to create original compositions by experimenting with new timbral and rhythmic possibilities of established patterns from contemporary jazz, avant-garde, new music and collective improvisation. Counterpoint, polytonality and polymodality play important role in these compositions along with elements of serial music. Although these features may be more typical in contemporary music, the Ensamble effortlessly combines them with jazz ‘grooves’. A lot of free improvisation allows the musicians further means of artistic creation, based on their intuition and skills.  After the 2013 self-produced release of their debut, Indigo, they toured intensively in Argentina and Uruguay, while their 2017 sophomore album, Una búsqueda infinita issued on Discordian Records, Barcelona, brought them the possibility to play already on the European continent as well.