What do you think how did the career and life changed of the iconic bands and singers of the beat-ages of Hungary? This retrospective collection presents where they are after 40 years of the revolution of the Hungarian music. Although this ages are not only about the beat but in the Hungarian music of the 60s and 70s we can feel the beat…everywhere. Let’s see who became what!
Illés Ensemble
One of the biggest Hungarian rock/beat band (1960-1973), and was one of the biggest groups of the 1960s and early 1970s rock boom in Hungary. The band is often compared to the Beatles as regards the time period of its activity, its artistic and cultural influence and continuing popularity.
Maybe the most popular song of the Illés is this, Az utcán. The question of the song is the next; “I wonder, where do I go?”
The two Kossuth Prize awarded front singers of the band was Levente Szörényi and János Bródy. Interesting what the Facebook tells about their life today. Click to the singer’s name to check it out! Both of them kept the singer career. Although the Illés Ensemble came apart the musician couple worked together on great projects, for example they wrote the best Hungarian rock-opera István, a király and after 50 years the Illés Ensemble had anniversary concert too.
Zsuzsa Koncz
Probably she was the first Hungarian pop singer ever. Her lyrics were mostly written by János Bródy and sometimes highly critical of the country’s pre-1990 political system. She was discovered in 1962 by the Ki Mit Tud? talent show, the “Hungary’s Got Talent” of the ‘60s.
Her singer career is still goes on in Hungary, check her Facebook profile (click here), or have a look at her concert.
Edda Művek
The Edda Művek is one of the most successful Hungarian rock band formed in 1973. The word “Művek” (works) symbolizes the band originally starting its career in Miskolc, an industrial city also called “Steel City”. The Edda’s melodic rock tunes was not politically fulfilled, they singed about social and emotional life of youth, love, anxiety and alienation.
However, interesting and unexpected turn from the rock star of the 1970’s Attila Pataky, he made a (mulatós) “gypsy pop music” record.
LGT – Locomotiv GT
The rock, jazz-rock band formed in 1971. The LGT collected highly talented musicians such as Gábor Presser, Béla Radics, Zorán, Károly Freinreisz. All of them had a well-known and successful personal career also. Anyway, back in the 70s the band had international success also. In May 1972 they were invited, as the only continental European band, to the Great Western Express Festival in Lincoln, England, where they performed alongside bands and artists like Genesis and Joe Cocker.
The LGT hold its farewell convert on the 14th May 1992. Surprisingly after concert the Locomotive has not stopped, they had an unexpected new record in 1997. On the world-famous Sziget Festival they performed in 2007 for about 40.000 visitors.
Gábor Presszer
He might be one of the most iconic and most influential person of the Hungarian pop music. For sure on the piano he is! He played in the two most well-known band, the LGT and the Omega also. He had plenty solo records and also wrote several musicals, the most successful is the “A padlás” (The Loft).
As a Kossuth Prize awarded singer, songwriter and musician nowadays he is the musical director of the Vígszínház of Budapest. He is still on the stage too, in coproduction with newer bands and the musicians of the young generation too.
Tamás Cseh
He was the creator of the Hungarian “citizen song” style. To talk about things, thoughts and life around us, it was his ars poetica. We could say that the Hungarian Bob Dylan was Tamás Cseh. His profession was teacher but he became a singer and actor instead by the times.
He made a connection between generations by singing about the problems of the society and human being in his songs. He died in 2009 in cancer, but until his death he was an active singer, songwriter and actor. After his death many young Hungarian musician and band made covers of his songs for example the Budapest Bár covered one of the most popular song of Tamás Cseh.
Kati Kovács
In 1965, when she won the Ki Mit Tud talnet show of Hungary, she has been chosen for the Vioce of the year too. Already in the 70s she recorded long plays, and had international career. She is one of the few Hungarian singers who reached international success. She held concerts on 5 continents of the world and singed on 6 languages.
She never stopped singing. She performed on the 20th Jubilee Sziget Festival in 2012. She was the member of the international jure of the Eurovision Competition in 2014.
Muzsikás Folk Ensemble
The Hungarian folk movement also started this ages. Sometime of the pop and beat bands also used folk tunes for base in their music, but the most popular folk band is the Muzsikás, formed in 1973. The Muzsikás ensemble plays orinal and pure folk music from Hungary and Transylvania. The group’s collaboration with the noted singer Márta Sebestyén has produced a string of highly regarded recordings. The Kossuth Prize Awarded diva sings in the Oscar awarded movie The English Patient.
The Ensemble is still keeping the tradition and play the “same folk tunes” without personal changes in the last 40 years.
via: wikipedia.com
photo: hotdog.hu