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The Passionate PianistEndre Hegedus |
Beside numerous concert tours in Hungary and abroad, Mr. Hegedus regularly performs live studio concerts and makes master tapes for the Hungarian State Radio. He performed in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechoslovakia, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Italy, Japan, Yugoslavia, Norway, Poland, Rumania, the former Soviet Union, South Korea, Switzerland and the United States. In 1986, the year of the Liszt Centenary he was awarded the Memorial Plaque of the International Liszt Society and the Ministry of Culture of Hungary for his outstanding interpretations of Liszt’s oeuvre in Hungary and abroad. Between 1989 and 1992 he was a visiting professor of solo piano at the Sapporo State University in Japan, returning to Hungary in the summer of 1992. He is invited back to Japan by the highly regarded International Christian University and Toho Music University yearly for extended concert and teaching tours. He also regularly teaches in the Music School Network of Yamaha. From 1995 Mr. Hegedus has been invited to give lectures in US (e.g. University of Utah, Birgham Young University, (Provo), Weber State University, (Ogden)).
Mr. Hegedus has made altogether 23 CD recordings: on HUNGAROTON label the complete set of Liszt’s transcriptions of Wagner’s Tannhäuser, HCD 12797, all Liszt fantasies on Bellini’s operas, HCD 31299 (This CD was awarded the INTERNATIONAL LISZT GRAND PRIX DU DISQUE in Budapest), Liszt’s fantasies on themes by Donizetti, HCD 31547, Schumann’s Carnival op. 9 and Piano Quintet HCD 31560, Chopin’s Piano works recorded live in 1995, HCD 31700, Wagner-Liszt: the complete transcriptions and fantasies in a double album. In April 1999 a live concert recording has been published by the Studio Liszt Productions and by the Hungaroton containing the Symphonic Etudes by Schumann, the B minor sonata and the Liebestraum No. 3 by Liszt HCD 31870. “Golden Clouds” – a selection of 20th century songs by Hungarian composers: with Jutta Bokor soprano HCD 32017. On MARCO POLO label the complete piano sonatas by Nikolai Miaskovsky are available on three CDs (8.223156, 8.223178, 8.223469) as well as Joseph Holbrook’s Piano Quartet and Piano Quintet, 8.223736. On his own limited company’s label, the STUDIO LISZT PRODUCTIONS, the following CD albums were published: Schubert: Piano 4 hands compositions – with Katalin Hegedus HEG 102, Brahms: Piano concertos Nos 1 and 2 in live performance, with Tamas Vasary conducting HEG 103-104, Beethoven: Pathetique, Moonlight and Appassionata Sonatas – live performances HEG 105, Liszt: Via Crucis – for 4 hands with Katalin Hegedus and with 14 short meditations by Balazs Barsi HEG 106, Liszt: Piano compositions HEG 107, Chopin: Piano compositions HEG 109. P. Vladigerov: Virtuoso violin-piano works with Edua Zadory HCD 32301 (2006). In December 2006 also a Mozart 4 hands sonatas CD has been published with Endre and Katalin Hegedus HEG 110.
The total number of Endre Hegedus’ public concerts and performances exceeds 2300. He has appeared on television almost 120 times and took part in broadcast on more than 350 occasions. In May 2000 and also in 2002 he took part of the Canberra International Chamber Music Festival in Australia. On August 12, 2000 he gave a piano recital from Liszt and Wagner-Liszt compositions in Bayreuth, Germany during the Bayreuther Festspiele - December 15, 2000 Mr. Hegedus played a recital in the big hall of the Conservatorio G. Verdi in Milan, Italy. In May 2002 he made his debut in Seoul, South Korea as well. March 15, 2000 the artist received the FRANZ LISZT PRIZE awarded by the Hungarian Ministry of Culture. In December 2001 Mr. Hegedus received the PRO URBE PRIZE from the City Hall of his native town, Hodmezovasarhely, in March 2002 he and his wife received the KULTURA 22 PRIZE from the Budapest 22nd District City Hall. In October 2004 an interview-book (with his Chopin CD included) has been published in Hungary and was sold out in 3 months. In December 2004 from the hands of Mr. Ferenc Madl he received the MEDAL OF MERIT OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE HUNGARIAN REPUBLIC – for his worldwide concert-activity and for his abilities to create harmony between music and it’s audience. On February 22, 2005 he performed on the same evening the piano concertos by Grieg and by Tchaikovsky in the newly opened National Concert Hall of Budapest, before a sold-out hall (1700 seats). The solo and orchestral performances with him became regular in the National Concert Hall: he performed and other 4 occasions in March, October, 2005 followed by more events in February and in October 2006 - always with an extraordinary, warm success. Endre Hegedus is married; his wife Katalin Hegedus is also a pianist and choir conductor. Mr. Hegedus speaks fluent English, German and Italian -- and also Japanese.
"The Drawing Room of Muckross House, Killarney is an exquisitely intimate venue in which to experience music, especially when the performer is as articulate, sincere, musical, and technically exciting as the Hungarian virtuoso, Endre Hegedus. A professor at the Liszt Academy in Budapest, he is an artist whose recordings I will seek out in the future. His spoken introductions revealed scholarship about, enormous love of, and reverence for the music he was about to perform. All these qualities were evident in his playing. The recital advertising promised to “display the tender Chopin and the brilliant Liszt” and this is partly what we got… but not all. We also got musicianship of an uncommonly high order, effortless virtuosity, deep understanding of the music and, above all, shining honesty and devotion to the text. Two early Nocturnes and the ‘Heroic’ Polonaise in A flat framed Chopin’s mighty Sonata No 3 in B minor. The explosive opening to the latter and the wonderfully tender contrast of the second subject prepared us for the masterly interpretation that followed. While Hegedus is a player of enormous power, his loudest playing never sounds rough or unpleasantly aggressive. His quiet, legato playing is liquid and colour-filled and he understands rubato. Thus, he involved his listeners in the magic he found in the music, nowhere more than in the devilish, brilliant Rondo finale. As lovely as the Chopin was, Liszt’s music was mind-blowing. Making light of technical difficulties, he displayed exquisite colouring in, especially, Mefisto Waltz No 1 but even better was to come--- transcriptions by Liszt from the operas Norma and Tannhauser. Changing the piano into an orchestra, Hegedus allowed us hear flutes, clarinets, cellos, and trombones, as well as an heroic baritone and a magnificent timpanist in his playing…. stunning. " wrote Dr. Declan Townsend after the concert. |
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Endre Hegedus, the passionate pianist, is well known in international concert life. During his years of study at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest his professors were Istvan Antal, Zoltan Kocsis, Ferenc Rados, Andras Schiff and Anna Hajdu. He graduated as a pianist in 1980. From that time on he has been a soloist of the National Philharmonic Society of Hungary. He frequently attended the master classes of Bruno Leonardo Gelber and Tamas Vasary.
Endre Hegedus has won numerous awards at international piano competitions. The most important ones include: Rachmaninov Competition —Morcone, Italy— first prize (1987); Rina Sala Gallo Competition — Monza, Italy — first prize (1982); Sydney Competition for Young Prize-Winner Pianists — Australia— second prize and the jury’s special prize for the best chamber music performance (1981); Dino Ciani Competition — La Scala of Milan, Italy— second prize (1980) (the first prize was not awarded); Athenaeum Competition — Athens, Greece— second prize (1978) (the first prize was not awarded).
Hungarian television companies have made 12 television films of his recitals and transmitted them on various occasions. He also made three TV films on live performances of Liszt’s opera fantasies under his own copyright (Studio Liszt Productions). The total timing of this concert films: 18 hours. 