JÁNOS SEBESTYÉN
NEWS
On November 18, János Sebestyén was awarded the title Ufficiale Order of Merit of the Italian Republic at the Budapest residence of Italian ambassador Giovan Battista Verderame. As with the Farewell for Swedish Ambassador Staffan Carlsson on September 16, it was also a day or mourning, this time for the loss of 18 Italian soldiers killed in Iraq on November 12. The musical program, offered by flutist Zoltán Gyöngyössy and pianists István Lantos and Sebestyén, paid tribute to the soldiers with Albinoni's Adagio and Chopin Preludes. Italian-Hungarian friendship was symbolized with Bartók's transcription of a Toccata by Della Ciaja. Works by Nino Rota, Scarlatti, Donizetti, Bartók, Kodály, Weiner and an improvisation on Leoncavallo's Mattinata were also included. Further information about Sebestyén's award and his musical ties to Italy can be found in an interview from the newsletter Musical Notes.
János Sebestyén presented a series of organ recitals in Taiwan from October 23-27. The program included works by Mozart, Beethoven, Bellini, Liszt, Kodály, Bartók and Laurentaci, as well as old Hungarian dances and improvisations on Hungarian and Taiwanese themes. The first concert, in the city of Tainan, commemorated the 47th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution. Recitals followed in the cities of Kaohsiung and Taipei. Sándor Mátyus, representative of the Hungarian Trade Office in Taiwan, organized this series of concerts.
HUNGAROTON has published a new CD, Music for Two Organs from the 18th & 19th Centuries (HCD 32167), featuring János Sebestyén and Miklós Spányi. The program of rarities by Bonazzi, Clementi, Cramer, Giordani, Giussani, and Steibelt was recorded in June 2002 at the Lutheran Church in Tordas, Hungary with Spányi playing the church's historic Szalay organ. The CD is available worldwide from Qualiton Imports.
On September 27, János Sebestyén and Ágnes Várallyay gave a recital of four-hand and solo piano works in Sárospatak, Hungary. The concert took place in a gallery featuring works by the famous Hungarian graphic artist János Kass. The program featured delicate and colorful works by Liszt, Mozart, Debussy, Albeniz, Kodály, Mosonyi, Mompou, Mussorgsky, Bartók and Ravel.
On September 16, a Musical Farewell was presented to Swedish Ambassador Staffan Carlsson by pianists István Lantos and János Sebestyén, soprano Laura Faragó, tenor Ernő Tálas and flutist Zoltán Gyöngyössy. Ambassador Carlsson is departing Budapest after five years of service. During his younger years, he assisted his father, a Pastor at Jakob's Church in Stockholm, where the world famous Eric Ericson was chorus master and Anders Bondeman was organist. The Farewell was also a memorial for Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh, who was slain just six days earlier. The Bartók Memorial House provided the hall and numerous ambassadors and statesmen were in attendance.
For the third consecutive year, Ágnes Várallyay and János Sebestyén offered a harpsichord masterclass at the Music Festival in Siófok, Hungary. The course took place August 8-17.
In conjunction with the Siófok Music Festival, János Sebestyén presented an organ recital at the Roman Catholic Church on July 26. Flutist Zoltán Gyöngyössy also took part.
On July 12, Eszter Perényi and János Sebestyén presented a duo recital of works for violin and organ at the Matthias Church in Budapest. The program included works by Bach, Handel, Valerj, Veracini and Lucchesi, as well as improvisations on themes by Bach and Vivaldi.
István Lantos and János Sebestyén opened the 2003 Balatonlelle Organ Festival on July 6. Opera singers Júlia Vajda and Ernő Tálas also performed and Swedish ambassador Staffan Carlsson made remarks.
István Lantos and János Sebestyén gave four-hand organ recitals and lectures in Zagreb, Croatia on June 22 and in Pula, Croatia on June 24.
On May 27, János Sebestyén joined Hédi Salánki and Ágnes Várallyay for a performance of Padre Antonio Soler's six concertos for two harpsichords. The concert took place at the Old Liszt Academy in Budapest. Salánki, professor at the University of West Florida in Pensacola, also lead a masterclass the following day for students at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music.
On March 25, János Sebestyén arranged a musical afternoon for Monsignor Karl-Josef Rauber, who is leaving for Brussels after serving as Nuncius in Budapest for the past five and a half years. Pianist István Lantos performed an improvisation on Liszt's Les Preludes and joined Sebestyén in four-hand works by Mozart and Weiner.
On February 12 and 13, János Sebestyén joined Luigi Celeghin, Rudolf Kelber and the Coro della Fondazione Teatro Massimo de Palermo for concerts at the Church of San Pietro in Trapani, Sicily. The concerts celebrated the recently completed restoration of the church's organ, which was severely damaged during World War II. Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, his staff and invited guests attended the first performance. This unique organ, completed in 1842 by Francesco La Grassa, consists of 3292 pipes operated from three independent consoles. Detailed information can be found at the website for the firm that completed the restoration, Inzoli Cav. Pacifico & Figli di Bonizzi F.lli. In addition to Bach and Bruckner, the program included rarely heard works by Ferdinando Provesi, Carlo Goeury, Pietro Valle, Mariano Müller, Carlo Fumagalli and Padre Davide da Bergamo.
President Ciampi and János Sebestyén (above).
Luigi Celeghin and Sebestyén at the La Grassa organ (left).
On October 22, János Sebestyén was the soloist for a solemn evening at the Hungarian Embassy in Tokyo, marking the occasion of the October 23 Hungarian Revolution. The program included piano works by Mozart, Haydn, Bartók, Dohnányi, Kodály and Kozaburo Y. Hirai, as well as improvisations on Hungarian and Japanese themes.
View more photos from Tokyo...
In the resort town of Balatonlelle, the summer organ series enjoyed its 15th season under the artistic advisorship of János Sebestyén. For the second time, the opening concert of the series celebrated Swedish-Hungarian friendship with Swedish organ music, as well as songs performed by Ernő Tálas, former member of the Royal Stockholm Opera House. Swedish ambassador Staffan Carlsson made introductory remarks.
The Music Festival in Siofók, capital of Lake Balaton, which has offered masterclasses in piano and organ since 1994, now includes a course for harpsichord with instruction provided by Professors Ágnes Várallyay and János Sebestyén. Other faculty members this year included organists Gábor Lehotka, József Kárpáti, János Pálúr and Miklós Teleki; organ builder István Varadi; and pianists István Lantos, Balázs Szokolay, István Gulyás, and Imre Rohmann. Participants included the young Hungarian-Swedish medical doctor Dávid Molnár and retired Swiss ambassador Paul Wipfli, who previously served in Budpaest, Santiago, Tashkent and Belgrade. There were 38 participants: twenty pianists, nine organists and nine harpsichordists. The course took place August 10-18.
Under the sponsorship of László Szűcs, mayor of Balatonlelle, and Dr. István Szomolányi, a new series of open-air concerts began in the Roman-style Caesar wine cellar operated by Iván Gyarmathy. Famous Hungarian singers Ildikó Cserna and Laura Faragó took part in this series, and a harpsichord, heard for the first time in Balatonlelle, was transported from the masterclass in Siofók. Ágnes Várallyay played old Hungarian music and accompanied the songs while the audience enjoyed fine wine. 2003 will see nine organ recitals and four Caesar concerts in the "music city" Balatonlelle.
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