Dresch Mihály
saxophone, saxophone - tenor, saxophone - soprano, bass clarinet, recorder, fuhun
Place of Birth
Budapest
Date of Birth
1955
Orchestra
Web
10 July 1955 Budapest
Outstanding representative of Hungarian jazz music, excellent saxophone player with a unique music world based on Hungarian folk music and jazz.
He started to play music relatively late, at the age of seventeen – influenced by Johnny Griffin, he wanted to become a saxophone player. First he visited the pre-school of the Jazz Conservatory, later he was accepted to the Jazz Department of the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music, where he graduated in 1979.
In the beginning he was mainly interested in the classical American black jazz, the gospel and the spiritual. From the early ‘80s he regularly gave concerts with renowned Hungarian jazz musicians. He founded his first quartet in 1984, although the line-up of the band has changed frequently. His music partners were István Grencsó (wind instruments), Róbert Benkő (bass) and István Baló (drums) while making following albums: "Sóhajkeserű" (1985), "Hazafelé" (On the way home - 1987) and "Gondolatok a régiekről" (Thoughts on the old masters - 1990). He recorded his next CD, "Zeng a lélek" (The soul resounds - released in 1993) with Tamás Geröly (drums) and Félix Lajkó (violin). Two years later they released a new album together, titled "..Folyondár..." (...Convolvulus...), but a new member, Ferenc Kovács (violin, trumpet) took over Lajkó’s place. In 1998 the formation recorded its next album, "Révészem, révészem..." (My ferryman, my ferryman).
In 1998 István Baló started to play the drums in the quartet again and the young Mátyás Szandai become the new bass player. The first album of the new formation was released in England with the title Riding the Wind in 2000. One year later, it was followed by Quiet as it is and in 2002 by the Hungarian bebop. Latter album, which was recorded with the co-operation of Archie Shepp, raised huge international attention. Their next album (Straight music, 2004) won the title Best Hungarian Jazz Album of the Year at the voting of the Gramofon magazine.
Mihály Dresch recorded an album with Mihály Borbély in 2006 under the title "Te + Te" (You + You). Their last album, Árgyélus, was released in 2007.
Mihály Dresch has been invited to a number of prestigious festivals and jazz clubs. He performed at the Jazz & Wine Festival in Italy, the Festival Jazzcb in France, the Kalisz Festival in Poland, the Jazz Brugge Festival in Belgium, the London Jazz Festival, the JazzFest Wien, and in the New Morning Club in Paris. Throughout his career he’s performed and recorded albums with such famous artists as John Tchicai, Archie Shepp, Roscoe Mitchell, Chico Freeman, Lee Konitz, David Murray and Dewey Redman. Although Dresch has developed a totally unique world of music, he’s never seceded from mainstream jazz and still plays one or two eternal classics on his albums as well. His collaboration with the Csík Band has been ongoing for decades, and his joint performances with Mihály Borbély are legendary.
The Dresch Quartet’s collaboration with Chris Potter, one of the world’s most prominent tenor saxophonists, is not a recent development; since they first met in 2008, they have performed together on numerous occasions. First in August 2011 at the BJC, then in April 2012 on the stage of the Müpa Festival Theater, and in 2015 and 2016 on the Opus stage. The recording from Müpa, titled Zea, was released in 2017 by BMC Records. On this album, the Quartet could be heard in a revised lineup, featuring Miklós Lukács on cimbalom, and it also showcased Mihály Dresch’s self-designed instrument, the fuhun.
In 2022, in addition to numerous performances, he had the opportunity to perform with the Dresch Quartet—featuring cimbalom player Miklós Lukács, double bassist Marcell Gyányi, and drummer László Csízi—at the Budapest Spring Festival on May 8.
In 2025, he performed with a new group, the Alternative Folk Quartet, at the Salföldi Dalföld, a small festival in the Balaton Uplands.
Prizes:
2002 Award for Parallel Culture
2005 Jazz Musician of the Year (Gramofon Magazine)
2007 Ferenc Liszt Prize
2009 Award for Budapest
2011 Meritorious Artist
2014 Distinguished Artist
2018 Prima Award
2021 Fonó Lifetime Achievement Award
2022 Kossuth Prize
2025 György Vukán Jazz Composer Award (Bartók Radio Music Awards)
2026 Fonogram Lifetime Achievement Award
Outstanding representative of Hungarian jazz music, excellent saxophone player with a unique music world based on Hungarian folk music and jazz.
He started to play music relatively late, at the age of seventeen – influenced by Johnny Griffin, he wanted to become a saxophone player. First he visited the pre-school of the Jazz Conservatory, later he was accepted to the Jazz Department of the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music, where he graduated in 1979.
In the beginning he was mainly interested in the classical American black jazz, the gospel and the spiritual. From the early ‘80s he regularly gave concerts with renowned Hungarian jazz musicians. He founded his first quartet in 1984, although the line-up of the band has changed frequently. His music partners were István Grencsó (wind instruments), Róbert Benkő (bass) and István Baló (drums) while making following albums: "Sóhajkeserű" (1985), "Hazafelé" (On the way home - 1987) and "Gondolatok a régiekről" (Thoughts on the old masters - 1990). He recorded his next CD, "Zeng a lélek" (The soul resounds - released in 1993) with Tamás Geröly (drums) and Félix Lajkó (violin). Two years later they released a new album together, titled "..Folyondár..." (...Convolvulus...), but a new member, Ferenc Kovács (violin, trumpet) took over Lajkó’s place. In 1998 the formation recorded its next album, "Révészem, révészem..." (My ferryman, my ferryman).
In 1998 István Baló started to play the drums in the quartet again and the young Mátyás Szandai become the new bass player. The first album of the new formation was released in England with the title Riding the Wind in 2000. One year later, it was followed by Quiet as it is and in 2002 by the Hungarian bebop. Latter album, which was recorded with the co-operation of Archie Shepp, raised huge international attention. Their next album (Straight music, 2004) won the title Best Hungarian Jazz Album of the Year at the voting of the Gramofon magazine.
Mihály Dresch recorded an album with Mihály Borbély in 2006 under the title "Te + Te" (You + You). Their last album, Árgyélus, was released in 2007.
Mihály Dresch has been invited to a number of prestigious festivals and jazz clubs. He performed at the Jazz & Wine Festival in Italy, the Festival Jazzcb in France, the Kalisz Festival in Poland, the Jazz Brugge Festival in Belgium, the London Jazz Festival, the JazzFest Wien, and in the New Morning Club in Paris. Throughout his career he’s performed and recorded albums with such famous artists as John Tchicai, Archie Shepp, Roscoe Mitchell, Chico Freeman, Lee Konitz, David Murray and Dewey Redman. Although Dresch has developed a totally unique world of music, he’s never seceded from mainstream jazz and still plays one or two eternal classics on his albums as well. His collaboration with the Csík Band has been ongoing for decades, and his joint performances with Mihály Borbély are legendary.
The Dresch Quartet’s collaboration with Chris Potter, one of the world’s most prominent tenor saxophonists, is not a recent development; since they first met in 2008, they have performed together on numerous occasions. First in August 2011 at the BJC, then in April 2012 on the stage of the Müpa Festival Theater, and in 2015 and 2016 on the Opus stage. The recording from Müpa, titled Zea, was released in 2017 by BMC Records. On this album, the Quartet could be heard in a revised lineup, featuring Miklós Lukács on cimbalom, and it also showcased Mihály Dresch’s self-designed instrument, the fuhun.
In 2022, in addition to numerous performances, he had the opportunity to perform with the Dresch Quartet—featuring cimbalom player Miklós Lukács, double bassist Marcell Gyányi, and drummer László Csízi—at the Budapest Spring Festival on May 8.
In 2025, he performed with a new group, the Alternative Folk Quartet, at the Salföldi Dalföld, a small festival in the Balaton Uplands.
Prizes:
2002 Award for Parallel Culture
2005 Jazz Musician of the Year (Gramofon Magazine)
2007 Ferenc Liszt Prize
2009 Award for Budapest
2011 Meritorious Artist
2014 Distinguished Artist
2018 Prima Award
2021 Fonó Lifetime Achievement Award
2022 Kossuth Prize
2025 György Vukán Jazz Composer Award (Bartók Radio Music Awards)
2026 Fonogram Lifetime Achievement Award