Founded: Budapest, Hungary

The Budapest Strings began its career as a septet formed by seniors at the Franz Liszt Music Academy in Budapest. From this it developed into a 16-string ensemble playing the established orchestra repertoire with a particular emphasis on the works of their countrymen, notably Weiner and Béla Bartók. In 1982 the Budapest Strings won the International Chamber Orchestra Competition in Belgrade and for the three years following, the group was greatly assisted in its career development by sponsorship from the New York Soros Foundation. To this day, the members of the ensemble continue to play chamber music with one another and are much involved in teaching young players. Soloists who have appeared with the ensemble include Peter Frankl, Stefan Vlader, Irene Grafenauer, and Mate Bereva, among others.

The Budapest Strings has joined that group of long-established Hungarian ensembles which has attained the highest standards of professional excellence. It now occupies a prestigious position in the international world of music. The group has its own concert series in Budapest, originally in the city’s Vigadó Redout and now in the city’s leading concert hall at the Liszt Ferenc Music Academy, where it performs a series of five concerts every season. Every year in July, the ensemble presents its own Festival in Fertod at the Castle Eszterházy, the place where Haydn lived and composed for many years.

In addition, the Budapest Strings has toured extensively throughout the years. Most recently, in 2000 it , toured Spain (playing 5 concerts, each featuring all 6 Brandenburg concerti), Germany (twice), and Austria. In 2001 the ensemble returned to Austria and also performed in Italy, Belgium (twice at the Flanders Festival), and Croatia. In 2002, in addition to its USA tour (the fourth in 6 years), the Budapest Strings appeared in Switzerland and Austria, and had several tours in European countries in 2003.

The Budapest Strings has recorded for Hungaroton, Delta Music, Laserlight, Nuova Era, and Naxos. It has signed an exclusive recording contract with the German company Capriccio, where it has recorded three CD’s including CD’s devoted entirely to works by English and American composers.

Source: Da-Camera Website
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (May 2005)

Budapest Strings: Short History | Recordings

Links to other Sites

The Budapest Strings (Da-Camera)
Ensemble Music-Budapest Strings With Frederic Chiu

Budapest Strings - Biography (AMG)

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