Artist database

1934 April 10, Szeged - 1997 April 2, Budapest

By the late 1960s Zsolt Durkó had become in foreign countries the most frequently performed Hungarian contemporary composer.

He obtained his diplomas in composition at the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest under Ferenc Farkas; and subsequently in 1961-63 at the Academia di Santa Cecilia in Rome under Goffredo Petrassini. From 1963 he worked as as a free-lance composer. In addition, for six years he taught 20th century music composition at the Academy of Music. From 1982 to his death he worked for the Hungarian Radio as advisor on contemporary music. He was also active in public life: in 1987, he founded the Hungarian Music Society of performing artists and composers; Zsolt Durkó was a president of the society.

His career abroad began at the begining of the sixties, when he won the Premio d'Arti of the Accademia Santa Cecilia in Rome with his orchestral work entitled Episodi sul tema B-A-C-H (1963). His String Quartet No.1 achieved third prize at the Jeunnesses Musicales Composers' Competition held in Montreal, in 1967. His String Quartet No.2 was awarded second prize at the Béla Barók International Composers' Competeition in Budapest, in 1970. The recording of his orchestral work Fioriture was awarded the Special Citation International Koussevitzky Award on Record, in New York, in 1971; and his oratorio Burial Prayer was acclaimed as Distinguished Composition of the Year at the competition Tribune Internationale des Compositeurs held in Paris. His successes on abroad and in Hungary were demonstrated by the commissions he obtained from famous ensembles and institutions, such as the BBC, Fires of London, Philip Jones Brass Ensemble, the Nash Ensemble, Musica Viva Pragensis, the Koussevitzky Foundation, and the Hungarian State Opera.

His musical language is at the same time both Western European and Consciously Hungarian in flavour, and he is able to find a link between the traditional and the most contemporary of musical developments. This personal musical vernacular also finds its place in the greater scheme of contemporary music and is manifested in a remarkably rich oeuvre.

Prizes, awards:
1963 Premio d'Atri, Roma
1967 International Jeunesses Musicales Competition, Montreal, 3rd prize
1968, 1957 Erkel Award
1971 International Béla Bartók Competition, Budapest, 2nd prize
1971 Special Citation International Koussevitzky Award, New York
1975 "Distinguished Composition of the Year" at Unesco's International
Rostrum of Composers, Paris
1978 Kossuth Prize
1983 Merited Artist
1985, 1997 Bartók-Pásztory Award
1987 Excellent Artist
1997 Lajtha László Award
Prizes of public and music critics, Hungarian Radio (eight times)