Mark the second day of this year’s three-day Castle Garden Festival in your diary.On Saturday, Balázs Szabó’s Band will be taking over the main stage. For this special occasion – their first open-air concert in Budapest – they’re preparing a mix of brand-new material and long-standing audience favourites.
Founded by Balázs Szabó in 2009, this award-winning ensemble is one of the most distinctive acts on the Hungarian music scene. Drawing from Hungarian folk music, the band blends chanson, pop, rock, funk and chamber music into a genre-defying, boundary-pushing style. Their characteristic sound and lyrics have made them a dash of unique colour on the Hungarian pop scene. In addition to their original lyrics and the influence of folk music, the Fonogram Award-winning band places strong emphasis on the tradition of setting poetry to music. Over the years, they have dedicated full albums to songs woven from the poems of János Pilinszky and Miklós Radnóti; one of their best-known adaptations being “Bájoló”. Szabó has also set verses to music by Endre Ady, Gyula Juhász, Ferenc Szemlér, György Faludy and Krisztián Grecsó – and has even performed live literary concerts with the latter two authors.
In recent years, Balázs Szabó’s Band has gone from strength to strength with their richly arranged songs that strike a delicate balance between genres. The latest testament to this is their album Keringés, released at the end of last year. Their latest offering is a long-awaited sixth studio record featuring twelve tracks written and composed by Balázs Szabó, with guest appearances by acclaimed poet Krisztián Grecsó and Kossuth and WOMEX Lifetime Award-winning singer Mónika Lakatos.
Band members:
Balázs Szabó – guitar, violin, vocals, kaval
Sebestyén Harangozó – guitar
Mátyás Ölveti – cello
Soma Acsády – bass guitar
László Ferencz – drums
