Huszár Lajos
Composer
Place of Birth
Szeged
Date of Birth
1948
26 September 1948 Szeged
He took interest in music at a very young age, so his parents had him enrolled in the music school of Hódmezővásárhely. As piano pupil he became interested in composing, too.
He received the first important advices regarding professional music from Béla Steiner, who was director of the music school at that time and composed music himself as well. In 1963 he became pupil of István Vántus in the Music Conservatory of Szeged. From 1963 he continued his studies at the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music Budapest with Endre Szervánszky and Zsolt Durkó.
He obtained his composing degree in 1973 and the same year he became teacher of the Music Conservatory of Szeged. In 1975 he spent a half year in Rome where he was pupil of Goffredo Petrassi at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia.
In the first decade of his career he composed works under the influence of the contemporary Hungarian and Polish avant-garde. Naturally, the experiences in Rome broadened his horizon. The best works in this era are his compositions written on two larger chamber orchestras (Musica per dieci, Musica concertante), the 69th psalm for voice and piano, the Scherzo and adagio for chamber orchestra and the Brass Quintet.
In the early ’80s he has started to get interested in music traditions and the relation of tradition and modernism. From this time on his ideal and main aim has been synthesis, i.e. composing works that include various elements of tonal tradition and new music in a logic unity. This new direction of his interest was certainly not independent from the fact that he has started to get to know works by Góreczki, Pärt and Kancseli. From the works written in the ’80s, the above mentioned aim was most successfully realized by three compositions: A magány dalai (Songs of solitude), Concerto rustico and Chamber concert.
His first period in Szeged lasted until 1984. Afterwards, five years of „wandering” had followed, while he was répétiteur of the University of Theater, taught in the Secondary School for Music in Békéscsaba and gave lectures at the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music. Finally, in 1989 he decided returning to Szeged. He became lecturer, reader and then university professor at the Szeged Conservatory (currently: SZTE Music Academy).
He composed his opera „A csend” (The silence) in the ’90s. The lyrics were written by László Darvasi based upon a tale by Béla Balázs. With this composition he won third prize at the millennial opera competition of the Hungarian State Opera House. Regarding other works of this period we can say that the number of vocal and religion-inspired composition has increased. He has been composing church choral works since his younger years. His growing interest in Christian themes and emotional atmosphere has become more and more significant recently, which also appears in such compositions as the organ work Libera me, the Icons (dedicated to the memory of Pilinszky) and the Passion.
Since 2011 Lajos Huszár has been a full member of Hungarian Academy of Arts.
His activity as composer was awarded with the Erkel Prize (1994), the Bartók-Pásztory Award (2003) and the Artisjus Prize (2007).
He took interest in music at a very young age, so his parents had him enrolled in the music school of Hódmezővásárhely. As piano pupil he became interested in composing, too.
He received the first important advices regarding professional music from Béla Steiner, who was director of the music school at that time and composed music himself as well. In 1963 he became pupil of István Vántus in the Music Conservatory of Szeged. From 1963 he continued his studies at the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music Budapest with Endre Szervánszky and Zsolt Durkó.
He obtained his composing degree in 1973 and the same year he became teacher of the Music Conservatory of Szeged. In 1975 he spent a half year in Rome where he was pupil of Goffredo Petrassi at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia.
In the first decade of his career he composed works under the influence of the contemporary Hungarian and Polish avant-garde. Naturally, the experiences in Rome broadened his horizon. The best works in this era are his compositions written on two larger chamber orchestras (Musica per dieci, Musica concertante), the 69th psalm for voice and piano, the Scherzo and adagio for chamber orchestra and the Brass Quintet.
In the early ’80s he has started to get interested in music traditions and the relation of tradition and modernism. From this time on his ideal and main aim has been synthesis, i.e. composing works that include various elements of tonal tradition and new music in a logic unity. This new direction of his interest was certainly not independent from the fact that he has started to get to know works by Góreczki, Pärt and Kancseli. From the works written in the ’80s, the above mentioned aim was most successfully realized by three compositions: A magány dalai (Songs of solitude), Concerto rustico and Chamber concert.
His first period in Szeged lasted until 1984. Afterwards, five years of „wandering” had followed, while he was répétiteur of the University of Theater, taught in the Secondary School for Music in Békéscsaba and gave lectures at the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music. Finally, in 1989 he decided returning to Szeged. He became lecturer, reader and then university professor at the Szeged Conservatory (currently: SZTE Music Academy).
He composed his opera „A csend” (The silence) in the ’90s. The lyrics were written by László Darvasi based upon a tale by Béla Balázs. With this composition he won third prize at the millennial opera competition of the Hungarian State Opera House. Regarding other works of this period we can say that the number of vocal and religion-inspired composition has increased. He has been composing church choral works since his younger years. His growing interest in Christian themes and emotional atmosphere has become more and more significant recently, which also appears in such compositions as the organ work Libera me, the Icons (dedicated to the memory of Pilinszky) and the Passion.
Since 2011 Lajos Huszár has been a full member of Hungarian Academy of Arts.
His activity as composer was awarded with the Erkel Prize (1994), the Bartók-Pásztory Award (2003) and the Artisjus Prize (2007).