THE GREAT LISZT MARATHON by János Balázs

Three concerts. A single day. A single performer. A single oeuvre.

Sunday, 8 November, 11 am, 3 pm and 7 pm – Liszt Academy

The Great Liszt Marathon is a true world sensation, as János Balázs will perform Liszt’s 19 Hungarian Rhapsodies, 12 Transcendental Études and 6 Paganini Études, several other significant Liszt compositions and the peak of his oeuvre: his Sonata in B minor. The commitment of pianist János Balázs is nothing less than to create a musical experience that is unique and unrepeatable through the oeuvre of the greatest musical artist of the Hungarian nation.

In the interpretation of Liszt’s oeuvre, it is not a mere set of sheet music, but an imprint of the entire human existence: from the youthful, virtuoso fire to the transcendent depths, from the rhapsodies of the Hungarian soul to the philosophical quest of later years. The marathon within the framework of the Cziffra Festival “squeezes” this infinite universe into one monumental day, which, according to János Balázs’s credo, is much more than a technical feat: it is a real spiritual initiation, during which the performer and the audience can walk together through the life-changing stages of Liszt’s life path. The concert stream conquers the most exhausting and, at the same time, the most beautiful peaks of piano literature. Already the diversity of the works in the opening – from the dramatic Dante Sonata and poetic Funerailles to the sparkling opera paraphrases and the Spanish folk music motifs – mobilises all the hidden reserves of the instrument, and later the 12 Transcendental and 6 Paganini Études will prove that challenging technical limits in Liszt’s oeuvre are always ennobled with deep spiritual content. At the end of the journey, after the flowing melodic stream of the 19 Hungarian Rhapsodies, the large-scale Sonata in B minor brings tranquility, opening new doors for the audience. This day is an exceptional occasion for the most dedicated music lovers and discoverers to find answers to the eternal whys of the passion for piano playing in the interpretation of János Balázs. Also, for a concert, we pay tribute together to the spiritual legacy of György Cziffra, whose art launched not only János Balázs, but countless other artists as well on the path to musical fulfilment.