Bánkövi Bence
cello
Bence Bánkövi was born in Budapest in 1996 into a family of musicians. At the Béla Bartók Conservatory, he studied under Rezső Pertorini and later Ágnes Kállay. In 2016 he was admitted to the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, where he earned a master’s degree with honors in classical cello in 2022 under the guidance of cellist Csaba Onczay. He subsequently continued his doctoral studies in cello at the same institution.
As a soloist, he has performed on numerous occasions in concert halls across the country, at the Young Artists’ Podium Concerts, the Academy of Music’s Talent Day, Kaposfest and the Vigadó, and has collaborated with renowned orchestras such as the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Duna Symphony Orchestra, the National Philharmonic Orchestra, the Szeged Symphony Orchestra and the Savaria Symphony Orchestra.
He has participated in both domestic and international competitions; as a sophomore, he was awarded the Tamás Vásáry Scholarship, and in 2017 he placed second at the David Popper International Cello Competition in Várpalota. In 2018, he placed fourth at the Krzysztof Penderecki International Cello Competition. He is a special prize winner of the Kocsis-Hauser Foundation’s Chamber Music Competition. He has participated in numerous masterclasses led by Miklós Perényi, István Várdai, László Fenyő, Wolfgang Emmanuel Schmidt, Steven Isserlis, Marcio Carneiro and Matias Oliviera di Pinto. He is a founding member of the Virtuosos Chamber Orchestra, with which he has participated in numerous international tours, including in Ireland and Canada.
Composer Pál Rózsa dedicated his cello concerto, composed in 2022, to him, and he premiered it with the Szeged Symphony Orchestra. A radio recording was made of another piece, also composed for him by Pál Rózsa and titled B. B., which bears his initials.
He currently owns an English master cello made in 1832 by Bernard Julius Fendt.
As a soloist, he has performed on numerous occasions in concert halls across the country, at the Young Artists’ Podium Concerts, the Academy of Music’s Talent Day, Kaposfest and the Vigadó, and has collaborated with renowned orchestras such as the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Duna Symphony Orchestra, the National Philharmonic Orchestra, the Szeged Symphony Orchestra and the Savaria Symphony Orchestra.
He has participated in both domestic and international competitions; as a sophomore, he was awarded the Tamás Vásáry Scholarship, and in 2017 he placed second at the David Popper International Cello Competition in Várpalota. In 2018, he placed fourth at the Krzysztof Penderecki International Cello Competition. He is a special prize winner of the Kocsis-Hauser Foundation’s Chamber Music Competition. He has participated in numerous masterclasses led by Miklós Perényi, István Várdai, László Fenyő, Wolfgang Emmanuel Schmidt, Steven Isserlis, Marcio Carneiro and Matias Oliviera di Pinto. He is a founding member of the Virtuosos Chamber Orchestra, with which he has participated in numerous international tours, including in Ireland and Canada.
Composer Pál Rózsa dedicated his cello concerto, composed in 2022, to him, and he premiered it with the Szeged Symphony Orchestra. A radio recording was made of another piece, also composed for him by Pál Rózsa and titled B. B., which bears his initials.
He currently owns an English master cello made in 1832 by Bernard Julius Fendt.
| Year | Title | Publisher | Code | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Enchanted by The Masters | Hungaroton | HCD 32921 |
Own |