Jury

Zsolt Szatmári

My first studies in music were on the violin, an instrument I began learning at the age of eight in the State Music School in Sátoraljaújhely. In tandem with this, at the age of ten in the same school I started playing the clarinet, which I continued in the clarinet programme of the Bela Bartók Conservatory in Miskolc. My teacher at the conservatory was Andras Horn. In Miskolc I had regular opportunities to hear concerts by the Miskolc Symphony Orchestra, as a consequence of which I decided to aim for a career playing in a symphony orchestra. Another inspiration was the extremely rich musical life of the Miskolc Conservatory, through which I had opportunities early on to experience the success and pleasure of giving concerts and making chamber music.

In 1986 I won first prize and the Art Foundation’s Special Prize in the Hans Richter National Conservatory Woodwind Competition in Győr, thus enabling me to be admitted to the clarinet programme Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music (then a College now a University), in the class of Professor Béla Kovacs. At the Conservatory, for both orchestral practise and chamber music I frequented classes of Professor András Mihaly, whose teaching had a decisive effect on the formation of my approach to music.

In 1988 in the Hungarian Radio Nationwide Woodwind Competition, I won a special prize for my performance of Kamilló Lendvay’s solo clarinet piece: Tiszteletem Mr. Goodman [Good day, Mr. Goodman]. In 1990 I came first and won the top prize (a professional Buffet Crampon instrument) in the international Young Artist Competition organized by the International Clarinet Association, in Québec, Canada.

In my final year at university, I was awarded a Yamaha Scholarship. In 1991 I graduated with honours as a chamber clarinettist and conservatory teacher. In the same year I was admitted to the Hungarian State Opera House Orchestra, with a scholarship as first clarinet, to replace clarinettist Kálmán Berkes, who had just been offered a contract in Japan. At the same time, I became a member of the Budapest Wind Ensemble, whose artistic director was also Kálmán Berkes.

After a brief period in the Hungarian State Opera House, between 1992 and 2000 I continued my career in the Budapest Festival Orchestra, again as a solo clarinettist. During my work there I had the opportunity to perform with many conductors and soloists in the vanguard of the international music scene. To mention just the most memorable, these included Sir Georg Solti, Zoltán Kocsis, and Yehudi Menuhin. As a musician on tour in the Budapest Festival Orchestra, I performed in concert halls where Hungarian orchestras had never yet played: we appeared several times in Los Angeles in the Hollywood Bowl, in the Royal Albert Hall in London, and in Carnegie Hall in New York. The chamber music series organized by Zoltan Kocsis with the Festival Orchestra prompted me to think about chamber music in an entirely new way, and the impact of this can be felt in my pedagogical work. As a result of the close working relationship formed during my years in the Budapest Festival Orchestra, in 2000 Zoltan Kocsis invited me to be the first clarinettist in the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra, and from 2003 the soloist.

In 2002, members of the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra elected me Artist of the Year in a secret ballot. Alongside my orchestral work, I have many times had the opportunity to perform as a soloist, including concerts with the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra among others, the Budapest Festival Orchestra, the Ferenc Erkel Chamber Orchestra, the Salieri Chamber Orchestra, the Óbuda Danubia Orchestra, the Pannon Philharmonic Orchestra, the Szeged Symphony Orchestra, the Miskolc Symphony Orchestra, the Hungarian National Philharmonic, and the Liszt Academy Symphony Orchestra.

As a chamber musician I have played in concerts with the Budapest Wind Ensemble, and other chamber formations, in the US, Israel, Europe and Japan in various international festivals and concert tours. My chamber music partners have included Zoltán Kocsis, Miklós Perényi, Péter Frankl, Jenő Jandó, Kálmán Berkes, Barnabás Kelemen, and many outstanding musicians in the Hungarian and international music scenes.

As an orchestral musician I have worked with world-famous conductors and soloists such as Sir Georg Solti and Yehudi Menuhin mentioned above, and just to mention the most outstanding: Charles Dutoit, Eliahu Inbal, Ádám Fischer, Ivan Fischer, Péter Eötvös, Ken- Ichiro Kobayashi, Bertrand de Billy, Matthias Bamert, Pinchas Steinberg, Carlo Montanaro, Michail Pletnyev, Alexander Sladkovsky, Kurt Sanderling, Michel Stern, Dmitri Kitayenko, Gérard Korsten, and soloists including Dezsó Ránki, András Schiff, Jen Jandó, Barnabas Kelemen, Kristof Baráti, István Várdai, Joshua Bell, Miklós Perényi, Emmanuel Pahud, Arkadi Volodos, Denis Matsuev, Boris Berezovsky, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Hilary Hahn, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Vladimir Spivakov, Yuri Basmet, Salvatore Accardo, Isaac Stern, Marta Argerich, Yuja Wang, Mischa Maisky, Péter Frankl, György Pauk, Eva Marton, Ildikó Komlósi, Helen Donath, László Polgár, and Andrea Rost.

I have been teaching at the Liszt Academy of Music since 1993, firstly as a teaching assistant to Professor Béla Kovács. Then as a senior lecturer. then as an associate professor, then as a professor, and currently head of Head of Woodwind and Brass Department.

Since 2008 I have been leader of the clarinet programme at the Liszt Academy. I obtained my doctoral degree (DLA) in 2013. Since 2016 I have also worked as programme leader for classical saxophone, until a teacher is appointed for saxophone as a first instrument. In spring 2019 I successfully met the requirements of the habilitation procedure. I consider it one of the greatest benefits of my career to be able to pass on directly to the next generation of musicians the experience I gained as an orchestral and chamber musician.

As a university lecturer I have given, and continue to give, many master classes in the most famous music faculties and universities in the US, Europe, Israel, Japan, and Iceland.

I regularly take part in clarinet and chamber music competitions in Hungary and abroad as a member of the jury, or as the chair of the jury.