Happy Wednesday / Vidám szerda

It sure feels like this is the beginning of the season already, however my debut with the Györ Philharmonic is really the last concert of my summer. Check out the program of the 2018 European Clarinet Festival here:
http://www.clarinetfestgyor2018.com

I had a great time in Portland, OR with Three Leg Torso and the Portland Festival Symphony playing at beautiful city parks for big crowds in the first two weeks of August. After returning to Hungary I’ve had some time off at the famous Lake Balaton. Of course, I used the time to do some composing and arranging. I am working on my new orchestral piece for the Hungarian Radio symphony for March 2019 called Gloomy Sunday Variations, and on arrangements of Debussy’s Faun and Ravel’s Pavane for flute, clarinet, harp and string quartet. I am looking forward to starting the 18-19 season in Huntsville in about three weeks, and in Hungary with the Radio Symphony at the end of September. I will keep you posted, thanks for reading!

Hiába még nyár, de már szezonkezdés érzésem van az e heti koncertemmel kapcsolatban. Az Európai Klarinétfesztivál (program a fenti linken) gála koncertje ma este egyben a debütálásom is a Győri Filharmonikusok élén.
Augusztus első két hetében remek hangulatú koncertjeim voltak a Portland Festival Symphony élén a Three Leg Torso nevű world music csapat közreműködésével a város parkjaiban, szép számú közönség előtt. Ezután nyaraltam a Balatonnál egy kicsit. A fürdés és a Vajda család szokásos éves összejövetele mellé persze befért némi komponálás és hangszerelés is. A Rádiózenekar jövő évi koncertjére írom a Szomorú Vasárnap Variációkat, illetve a Ravel Pavane és a Debussy Faun kamarazenei átiratait is készítem. Kb. 3 hét múlva kezdem a 18-19-es szezont Huntsville-ben, majd a Rádiózenekarral itthon szeptember végén. Többet hamarosan itt! Kellemes nyár végét mindenkinek!

Le Lanaudière. Portland Festival Symphony. Sziget: Island of Freedom.

On July 9, after about 8 years, I conducted the Lanaudière Festival Orchestra again. It was great to return to conduct these amazing musicians, to collaborate with Alain Lefèvre on the piano
http://wikipedia.org
and to enjoy the ambiance of the amphitheater in Joliette, Quebec. Our program was the opening performance of the Lanaudière Festival 2016, an exciting mix of pieces by Tchaikovsky and Respighi.
http://lanaudiere.org
The rehearsals were held downtown Montréal, which gave me a chance to enjoy the Montréal Jazz Festival programs every evening and also to revisit some of my favorite places in one of my favorite cities ever.

After enjoying a brief family vacation my summer season continues with free park concerts in Portland Oregon. Lajos Balogh and I share the concerts this year starting today at Cathedral Park. Tomorrow (Sunday) there will be an all brass program presented at Laurelhurst Park. More symphonic and string concerts to come next weekend and the weekend after. Check out this year’s programs!
http://portlandfestivalsymphony.org

Based on popular demand Armel Opera Festival is presenting a fun 2 hour program every day at the famous Sziget Festival again this year. Scenes from Mozart’s The Magic Flute (staging by Róbert Alföldi), contemporary music improvisation with audience participation, symphonic world music with Hungarian stars, and a live crash course in orchestra conducting will be on the menu. Come and join us in August!
http://szigetfestival.com