Passing through

• august 30, 2010 monday 19:00
• Uránia Movie Theatre

     
László Dés                                          Dorottya Udvaros



guest: Tamás Somló


The Jewish Summer Festival is launching a special life-time achievement series this year, focusing on Hungarian composers and artists who have been playing a pivotal role in the Hungarian musical and cultural scene. Such an emblematic figure is László Dés.
For those of us in their 40s and 50s, László Dés’s record entitled „Passing Through” with Dorottya Udvaros reached legendary status. The true essence of its greatness is made visible by the fact that the works of art created by László Dés and Géza Bereményi have withstood the hardships of time and remained as popular as ever.
Dorottya Udvaros received her degree in the performing arts of the theatre in 1978 from the University of Theatre and Film Arts. She started working for the Szigliget Theatre the same year where she spent 3 years, later working for the National Theatre. In 1982 she became a founding member of the Katona József Theatre. In 1994 she became a member of the Új Színház (New Theatre) and of the Bárka Theatre in 1997. She has returned to the National Theatre in 2002.

On stage she performed the biggest drama roles, from Warrene to Elmira and from Martha to Iokaste, including Cressida, Ranevskaya, Princess Amalfi and Lola Blau, Lulu and Natalja Ivanovna. On the big screen she performed in the movie entitled Nyugalom (Piece of mind), it’s theatrical production, in Magyar szépség (Hungarian Beauty), Csajok (Chicks), Straciatella, A nagy postarablás (The big postal highjack), Találkozás Vénusszal (Meeting Venus), Banánhéjkeringő (Banana peel Waltz), Elveszett illúziók (Lost illusions), Érzékek iskolája (School of passion), Miss Arizona (Miss Arizona), Csók (Kiss), Anyu (Mom), Hajnali háztetők (Rooftops at dawn), Te rongyos élet! (What a lousy life!) and Ripacsok (Tramps).
Dés László works continuously as a performer and composer, grating his talents to several Hungarian films (A Miniszter félrelép – The Minister cheats, Samba, Kalózok – Pirates, Üvegtigris – Glass Tiger, Sose halunk meg – We’ll never die), contemporary musical pieces (Akasztottak – Hanged), musicals (A dzsungel könyve – The Book of the Jungle) and pop music for the band Jazz+Az.
His understanding of Jazz is intensified in his popular pieces making this lighter genre a little more elevated. He is capable of adding just a tad of the jazzy tunes into his songs meant for the mainstream, without falling into the trap of turning his songs too complicate academically.
As he became more and more renown as a composer for films, musicals and songs, he never forgot his instruments. In 1993 he continued his carrier as a solo artist performing pieces from contemporary composers in symphonic and chamber ensembles. His signature instrument is the soprano saxophone, with its „subjective sound”, his improvisatory playing makes him instantly recognizable. László Dés is truly one of the few who is acknowledged by the profession, the critics and the audience as well. Presumably with good reason.

In 2003 he established a new Jazz band, the members being: Elemér Balázs drummer, András Dés on the percussions, Péter Glaser on the double bass, József Balázs behind the piano, Gábor Balázs on the guitar, Kornél Fekete Kovács as trumpetist and László Dés on the sax. They tour the country with their album entitled Utcazene (Street Music).
His newest production is the Contemporary Gregorian, made into an album at the end of 2005. Members of the ensemble are László Dés playing the saxophone, József Balázs on the piano, Elemér Balázs on drums, Mátyás Szandai on the double bass and the Voces Ensemble conducted by Zoltán Mizsei. The vocal pieces collected from European musical history range from single-scale 7th century Gregorian songs through multi-scale middle-age organs, all the way to the 16th century renaissance motetta. Next to the Gregorian tunes the works of Perotinus, Stoltzer, Festa, Gibbons and Lassus are played, upon which the Jazz Quarter, as a continuation of those, reflects with free improvisations, preserving specific elements of the original (such as rhythm, tone, harmonic structure, etc.). This subjective musical association set in the present makes the Gregorian and Renaissance pieces contemporary.