Béla Szakcsi Lakatos, Jr is undoubtedly one of the most outstanding pianists on the Hungarian jazz scene, well-known for his sophisticated and elegant performances with exquisitely improvised talented musicians. With his trio he has performed with many prominent European and American jazz musicians, like Tony Lakatos, Rick Margitza, Jean Toussaint, Palle Daniellson, Ed Thigpen, Ravi Coltrane, Jack DeJohnette, John Patitucci, Lew Taback or Martin Drew.

This time, however, he enters the stage of Opus not with his trio, but with a brand new quintet. As Béla is teaching in two different institutions as a jazz instructor, during his orchestral practice courses he has been playing with a number of talented young artists. For some of them he felt the urge to give a chance for introducing them to Hungarian audiences as well, especially that, as pupils of the Snétberger Music Talent Center, they have been performing abroad already several times with Ferenc Snétberger.

The backbone of the quintet’s program is based on compositions by Béla Szakcsi Lakatos, Jr. These, thanks to the the extended new lineup with vocals and bass clarinet, with their frequent dynamic changes and a performance sometimes resembling to classical music, gain completely new colours in the presentation of the quintet.

The talented, 19-year-old vocalist, Diana Danyi is pupil since 5 years at the Snétberger Music Talent Center. One of the first students of the same institution was Elemér Fehér, the excellent clarinetist, who has since bacame a tutor in the Center. Both his clarinet playing and his compositions are characterized by improvisations rooted in classical music and by the free passages between different styles. Bass player Géza Jónás entered the Snétberger Music Talent Center in 2013, and as member of the János Egri Jr Quartet he won in May the special prize of the International Student Jazz Competition in Târgu Mureş. He also performed with renowned Hungarian artists such as Róbert Szakcsi Lakatos or Nikoletta Szőke. The youngest member of the band is the 15-year-old drummer, Máté Éles, who has been a student of the Snétberger Music Talent Center for 3 years, and who has a love for jazz since his childhood, brought from the family home.