Artist database

Kornél Fekete-Kovács was born in 1970 in Kiskunhalas, Hungary. He studied at the Jazz Department of the Ferenc Liszt Music Academy. He is in great demand as a musician, and has worked on more than a hundred discs as a soloist or a session musician. As an arranger he is very much present in the contemporary, jazz and pop music scene in Hungary.

Of the many bands he played in earlier, Brass Age, the Kálmán Oláh Sextet, the Blacksmith Workshop should be mentioned in any case, whereas he continues to play in the László Dés Septet. He is the founder of the Budapest Jazz Orchestra, where from 1998 to 2005 he was artistic director and soloist. Since 2005 he has been the leader of the Modern Art Orchestra, and in 2006 he formed the Kornél Fekete-Kovács Quintet.

During his career he has played in renowned international bands such as the IASJ Big Band (Copenhagen), the EBU Big Band (Amsterdam-Budapest), Brande International Music Workshop Orchestra (Denmark), the UMO Jazz Orchestra (Finland), the Central European Jazz Connection and the Finnish-Hungarian Jazz Workshop.

As a composer, in addition to many short compositions he wrote the Budapest Jazz Suite, which BMC Records released on CD performed by the Budapest Jazz Orchestra. The UMO Jazz Orchestra also premiered it in Helsinki, conducted by the composer. His second full length piece written for big band was The Wayfarer, which was premiered in 2002 by the EBU Jazz Orchestra. The work was recorded by the Budapest Jazz Orchestra with David Liebman as featured soloist. (Human circle - The Wayfarer, BMC CD 088). His next major work was the Timpani Concerto, written jointly with Béla Zsoldos, followed by the suite Dedications of 2005, and Christmas Diary, which provided the material for the debut record by the Modern Art Orchestra in 2006. His most recent concert-length piece The Oak and the Bee was premiered by Wallace Roney and the Modern Art Orchestra in 2006 at the MOL Budapest Jazz Festival.

He has played at a great many festivals in Hungary and abroad with Dave Liebman, Johnny Griffin, Bob Mintzer, Peter Erskine, Gary Willis, Wallace Roney, Julian Joseph, Herbie Mann, Marilyn Mazur, Kyle Gregory, Ray Anderson, Butch Lacy, Mario Gonzi, etc.

Since 1995 he has been teaching at the jazz department of the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music. He was awarded the Artisjus Music Foundation Prize three times (2000, 2004 and 2022), as well as the eMeRTon Prize - Composer of the Year (2002).

Awards:
Liszt Award

Current performances of Kornél Fekete-Kovács
Koncertkalendárium (www.muzsikalendarium.hu)