Pax et Bonum Kamarakórus
Orchestra, choir, ensemble
The Pax et Bonum Chamber Choir was founded in 2008 as the PROtestant Youth Chamber Choir by teachers and students of the Lutheran Choir School in Fót, under the leadership of Nóra Abaffy and later József Opitz. In 2012, as the number of members increased, the choir, which now unites Protestant and Catholic young people, took the name Pax et Bonum Chamber Choir in the spirit of ecumenism. In September 2020, Boldizsár Kiss took over the leadership of the choir from Zsuzsa Németh and Viola Thurnay.
Since their foundation, they have performed at several Alma Mater Doctoral Concerts, as well as at the congresses of the Department of Sacred Music and at the Music Academy's Building Graduation Festival. During the 2012 Spring Festival they were featured in flash mobs in several parts of Budapest. They have toured Slovenia, Transylvania and Germany. They have performed at St. Stephen's Basilica, other churches, the Music Academy, the House of Music and the Budapest Music Center. In the centenary Year of György Ligeti's birth, they performed at the Ligeti 100 Festival, which featured International artists at the Budapest Music Center.
Their repertoire ranges from early music and Renaissance vocal polyphony to contemporary works, with a special emphasis on Protestant church music. They have performed Handel's Messiah on several occasions, and a DVD recording of their concert at the Reformed Church in Kálvin Square was made. They have also premiered works by a lot of young Hungarian composers. They have been working in close collaboration with composer Máté Balogh for years. In addition to several premieres, the coir presented the choral works of Máté Balogh in a series of four concerts in he autumn of 2024.
They won the first prize in the chamber choir category at the 9th Hungarian Zoltán Kodály Choir Competition, held between 18 and 20 November 2022, and the grand prize among the category winners. In 2024, at the 6th International Ave Verum Choir Competiton in Baden bei Wien, Austria, the choir won the Audience Award and Boldizsár Kiss, the choirmaster, was given the Choirmasters' Special Award. In June 2024, they participated in the King's Singers Masterclass organized by the House of Music Hungary, where they were selected from more than 30 choirs.
Since their foundation, they have performed at several Alma Mater Doctoral Concerts, as well as at the congresses of the Department of Sacred Music and at the Music Academy's Building Graduation Festival. During the 2012 Spring Festival they were featured in flash mobs in several parts of Budapest. They have toured Slovenia, Transylvania and Germany. They have performed at St. Stephen's Basilica, other churches, the Music Academy, the House of Music and the Budapest Music Center. In the centenary Year of György Ligeti's birth, they performed at the Ligeti 100 Festival, which featured International artists at the Budapest Music Center.
Their repertoire ranges from early music and Renaissance vocal polyphony to contemporary works, with a special emphasis on Protestant church music. They have performed Handel's Messiah on several occasions, and a DVD recording of their concert at the Reformed Church in Kálvin Square was made. They have also premiered works by a lot of young Hungarian composers. They have been working in close collaboration with composer Máté Balogh for years. In addition to several premieres, the coir presented the choral works of Máté Balogh in a series of four concerts in he autumn of 2024.
They won the first prize in the chamber choir category at the 9th Hungarian Zoltán Kodály Choir Competition, held between 18 and 20 November 2022, and the grand prize among the category winners. In 2024, at the 6th International Ave Verum Choir Competiton in Baden bei Wien, Austria, the choir won the Audience Award and Boldizsár Kiss, the choirmaster, was given the Choirmasters' Special Award. In June 2024, they participated in the King's Singers Masterclass organized by the House of Music Hungary, where they were selected from more than 30 choirs.