JÁNOS BALÁZS
Artistic Director of György Cziffra Festival
János Balázs has been a part of Hungarian concert life since the age of 16 when he won the Franz Liszt International Piano Competition. Before graduating from the Liszt Academy, he triumphed in five other major competitions, including the Cziffra Piano Competition in Senlis. He received numerous accolades, including the Prima Prize, the Gramophone Prize and the Bartók Radio Music Prize. Among his international awards are the “ECHO Rising Star” Artist of the Season” Award, the Young Steinway Artist title and Poland’s accolade for his performance of Frederic Chopin’s complete works.
In recent years, he has performed in many major concert halls around the world, such as the Konzerthaus in Vienna, the Barbican Centre in London, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Cadogan Hall in London, the Cité de la Musique in Paris, the Town Hall and Symphony Hall in Birmingham, the Megaron in Athens, the Cologne Philharmonic, the Palau de la Musica Catalana in Barcelona, the Konserthuset in Stockholm, the Konzerthaus Dortmund, the Philharmonie Luxembourg and the Bozar in Brussels. In Hungary, he is a regular and popular guest of the Grand Hall of the Liszt Academy and the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall in Müpa, and countless sold-out concerts all over the country are linked to his name.
He has worked with such renowned artists and conductors as Iván Fischer, Peter Eötvös, Mikko Franck, Charles Dutoit, Pinchas Steinberg, Mischa Maisky, Tamás Vásáry, José Cura, Vadim Repin, Stéphane Denève, Jukka Iisakkila, Roger Bausier, David Mathues, Gábor Takács-Nagy or András Keller. He is an associate professor at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, mentor of the National Talent Centre and founder and artistic director of the György Cziffra Festival. He is the artistic director of the 2021 International György Cziffra Memorial Year, a series of event that has positioned the legendary pianist’ achievements in the international spotlight.
His repertoire includes more than 40 piano concertos, which he has performed with orchestras such as the Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Brussels Philharmonics, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Stavanger Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Dortmund Philharmonic, the Aspen Philharmonic Orchestra, the Nagoya Symphonic Orchestra and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France.
In connection with Rachmaninoff’s 150th birth year, Balázs twice performed all of the composer’s piano concertos with the National Philharmonic Orchestra and the Concerto Budapest, which garnered the celebration of an euphoric audience and professional success.
Peter Eötvös dedicated his only piano concerto “Cziffra Psodia” to János Balázs, which premiered on an international tour at the world’s most renowned festivals and concert halls under the composer’s baton. In addition, Balázs is dedicated to the production of works by Hungarian contemporary composers. The performance and recording of all of László Dubrovay’s piano works stand out from these.
Reviewers highlight the subtlety of his playing style, the enchanting diversity of his piano’s timbre, the boundlessness of his dynamic scale, and his impressive improvisational and technical ability. More than ten thousand people have attended his free-of-charge classical music educational concerts for children, and since 2016, he has given several unique open-air piano evenings outside the Basilica in Budapest, proving that classical music can provide a lasting experience for thousands. He has been a corresponding member of the Hungarian Academy of Arts since 2021, and since 2023, he has been the youngest academician elected as a full member of the institution.
He is a permanent member of the jury of the International Liszt Piano Competition, the Long-Thibaud Piano Competition, the Senlis Cziffra Piano Competition and the Virtuosos talent show, and he has more than 15 solo, orchestral, and chamber albums to his credit.
Read more about János Balázs: https://www.balazsjanos.com/en/home/