János Sebestyén (2 March 19314 February 2012) was a Hungarian

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

harpsichordist A harpsichordist is a person who plays the harpsichord. Harpsichordists may play as soloists, as accompanists, as chamber musicians, or as members of an orchestra, or some combination of these roles. Solo harpsichordists may play unaccompanied son ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

and

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Biography

János Sebestyén was born in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, where both of his parents were prominent musicians and educators. His father, Sándor Sebestyén (1891-1962), studied cello with

Adolf Schiffer Adolf Schiffer (1873–1950) was a Hungarian-born Czech cellist and teacher of Jewish heritage, who for many years served as professor in cello at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest. He is best remembered as being the link between two g ...

and

Arnold Földesy Arnold may refer to: People * Arnold (given name), a masculine given name * Arnold (surname), a German and English surname Places Australia * Arnold, Victoria, a small town in the Australian state of Victoria Canada * Arnold, Nova Scotia Uni ...

and was the author of several pedagogical works. His mother, Rózsi Mannaberg (1895-1986), studied piano with Arnold Székely and

Wilhelm Backhaus Wilhelm Backhaus ('Bachaus' on some record labels) (26 March 1884 – 5 July 1969) was a German pianist and pedagogue. He was particularly well known for his interpretations of Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Chopin and Brahms. He was also much ...

. His formal musical education began in 1946 at the State Music Secondary School as a student of pianist István Antal, organist János Hammerschlag and composer

Ervin Major Ervin may refer to: *Ervin (given name) *Ervin (surname) *Ervin Township, Howard County, Indiana, one of eleven townships in Howard County, Indiana, USA See also * Justice Ervin (disambiguation) * Earvin * Ervine * Erving (disambiguation) * Erwan ...

. He continued his studies with organist Ferenc Gergely and composer Ferenc Szabó at the

Franz Liszt Academy of Music The Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music ( hu, Liszt Ferenc Zeneművészeti Egyetem, often abbreviated as ''Zeneakadémia'', "Liszt Academy") is a music university and a concert hall in Budapest, Hungary, founded on November 14, 1875. It is home to the ...

and graduated there with an organ diploma in 1955. He later attended the harpsichord class of

Zuzana Růžičková Zuzana Růžičková () (14 January 1927 – 27 September 2017) was a Czech harpsichordist. An interpreter of classical and baroque music, Růžičková was the first harpsichordist to record Johann Sebastian Bach's complete works for keyboard, ...

in Prague. His concert tours as organ and harpsichord soloist took him to Russia, India, the Philippines, Taiwan, Japan, the United States and nearly every country in Europe. In 1970 he established the first harpsichord class at the

. He was invited to serve on juries for organ and harpsichord competitions in France, the Czech Republic, Poland, Italy and Switzerland. In Hungary he served as President of the Jury for the International Liszt Organ Competition in 1983, 1988 and 1993, and at the 1st International Harpsichord Competition, Budapest, in 2000. From 1950 on, he worked for

Hungarian Radio Hungarian may refer to: * Hungary, a country in Central Europe * Kingdom of Hungary, state of Hungary, existing between 1000 and 1946 * Hungarians, ethnic groups in Hungary * Hungarian algorithm, a polynomial time algorithm for solving the assignm ...

in various capacities, serving as senior music producer between 1969 and 1994, and from 1962 until 2007 he contributed a regular series of programs documenting culture, politics and history. During his last years he contributed a monthly program to Hungarian Catholic Radio.

Awards

* Erkel Prize, 1967 (Hungary) * Liszt Prize, 1974 (Hungary) * Artist of Merit, 1982 (Hungary) *

Grand Prix du Disque Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and commu ...

for the

Hungaroton Hungaroton is the oldest record and music publisher company in Hungary. Hungaroton was founded in 1951, when its only competitors in the Hungarian music market were record labels like Melodiya, Supraphon and from other socialist countries. Pre ...

publication ''Bartók Record Archives'', 1982 (France) * Cavalier of the Italian Republic, 1984 (Italy) * Grande Comendador of the Henrique Infante State Order, 1996 (Portugal) * Officer of the Isabella la Católica Order, 1999 (Spain) * Cavalier of the

Order of the Southern Cross Emperor Pedro I of Brazil founded the National Order of the Southern Cross ( pt, Ordem Nacional do Cruzeiro do Sul) as a Brazilian order of chivalry on 1 December 1822. The order aimed to commemorate the independence of Brazil (7 September 1822) ...

, 2000 (Brazil) * Officer of the Royal Order of the Nordic Star, 2000 (Sweden) * Officer's Cross, 2000 (Hungary) * Ufficiale of the Italian Republic, 2003 (Italy)

Publications

* ''Rózsa Miklós: Életem történeteiből'' (

Miklós Rózsa Miklós Rózsa (; April 18, 1907 – July 27, 1995) was a Hungarian-American composer trained in Germany (1925–1931) and active in France (1931–1935), the United Kingdom (1935–1940), and the United States (1940–1995), with extensi ...

: Stories From My Life), Zeneműkiadó, Budapest, 1980; * ''Azok a rádiós évtizedek... / ...és azok a rádiós évek'' (Those Radio Decades... / ...Those Radio Years), co-authored with Jenő Randé, Ajtósi Dürer Kiadó, Budapest, 1995;

Recordings

János Sebestyén's discography spans most of the keyboard repertoire, from works by

renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

composer Valentin Bakfark through those by contemporary composers including Frank Martin and

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith (; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advocate of the ''Ne ...

. More than 80 LP and CD recordings have been published by various labels including Angelicum, Ariston,

Balkanton Balkanton ( bg, Балкантон) was a state-owned record manufacturing company in Bulgaria founded in 1952. Many of the produced records were, or still are available in the countries of the former Soviet Bloc. Balkanton's plant in Sofia was ...

, BAM, Il Canale, CBS Italiana, Fonit Cetra,

Naxos Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best abr ...

Supraphon Supraphon Music Publishing is a Czech record label, oriented mainly towards publishing classical music and popular music, with an emphasis on Czech and Slovak composers. History The Supraphon name was first registered as a trademark in 1932. T ...

, and Vox. Highlights: *

: Organ Sonatas Nos. 1 and 3 – Angelicum LPA 5963 *

J. S. Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

: Concertos after

Alessandro Marcello Alessandro Ignazio Marcello (; 1 February 1673 – 19 June 1747) was an Italian nobleman and composer. Biography Born in Venice, Marcello was the son of a senator, and as a nobleman, enjoyed a comfortable life that gave him the freedom to ...

Georg Philipp Telemann Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hildesh ...

, etc. – Angelicum STA 9015 * ''Melodie di Natale'' (

Domenico Zipoli Domenico Zipoli (1688-1726) was a composer from the Baroque period. He worked and died in Córdoba, Argentina, Córdoba, in the Viceroyalty of Peru, Spanish Empire, (presently in Argentina). He became a Jesuit in order to work in the Reduction ...

Girolamo Frescobaldi Girolamo Alessandro Frescobaldi (; also Gerolamo, Girolimo, and Geronimo Alissandro; September 15831 March 1643) was an Italian composer and virtuoso keyboard player. Born in the Duchy of Ferrara, he was one of the most important composers of k ...

, etc.) – Angelicum STA 9018 *

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

: Six

Esterházy The House of Esterházy, also spelled Eszterházy (), is a Hungarian noble family with origins in the Middle Ages. From the 17th century, the Esterházys were the greatest landowner magnates of the Kingdom of Hungary, during the time that it ...

Sonatas – BAM LD 6000 * Andrea Lucchesi: Twelve Organ Sonatas – IL Canale FC U09-10 *

: Harpsichord Toccatas – CBS Italiana/Odissea S 54079 *

Bernardo Pasquini Bernardo Pasquini (Massa e Cozzile, 7 December 1637Rome, 21 November 1710) was an Italian composer of operas, oratorios, cantatas and keyboard music. A renowned virtuoso keyboard player in his day, he was one of the most important Italian compose ...

: Organ Works – Fonit Cetra/Italia ITL 70062 * ''Harpsichord Recital'' (

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...

, Frank Martin, Emil Petrovics) – Hungaroton LPX 1181 *

Jean-Philippe Rameau Jean-Philippe Rameau (; – ) was a French composer and music theory, music theorist. Regarded as one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the 18th century, he replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of Fr ...

Pieces de Clavecin en Concerts Piece or Pieces (not to be confused with peace) may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * Piece (chess), pieces deployed on a chessboard for playing the game of chess * Pieces (video game), ''Pieces'' (video game), a 1994 puzzle game f ...

– with flautist Lóránt Kovács and cellist László Mező – Hungaroton SLPX 11453 * Joseph Haydn: Five Divertimenti – with members of the

Tátrai Quartet The Tátrai Quartet was a Hungarian classical string quartet founded in 1946. For the half-century after World War II it was one of the foremost string quartets in Hungary, specializing in Haydn and Bartók, whose complete quartets it recorded for ...

– Hungaroton SLPX 11458 *

Arcangelo Corelli Arcangelo Corelli (, also , , ; 17 February 1653 – 8 January 1713) was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque era. His music was key in the development of the modern genres of sonata and concerto, in establishing the preeminence of ...

: Violin Sonatas – with violinist

Dénes Kovács Dénes Kovács (18 April 1930 – 11 or 14 February 2005) was a Hungarian classical violinist and academic teacher, described as "pre-eminent among Hungarian violinists". He won the Carl Flesch International Violin Competition in 1955. In his care ...

– Hungaroton SLPX 11514-15 * ''Harpsichord Concertos'' (

Domenico Cimarosa Domenico Cimarosa (; 17 December 1749 – 11 January 1801) was an Italian composer of the Neapolitan school and of the Classical period. He wrote more than eighty operas, the best known of which is ''Il matrimonio segreto'' (1792); most of his ...

Carlos Seixas José António Carlos de Seixas (; 11 June 1704 – 25 August 1742) was a pre-eminent Portuguese composer of the 18th century. An accomplished virtuoso of both the organ and the harpsichord, Seixas succeeded his father as the organist for Old Cat ...

) – led by János Rolla – Hungaroton SLPX 12392 *

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

: Violin Sonatas – with violinist

György Pauk György Pauk (born 26 October 1936) is a Hungarian violinist, chamber musician and music pedagogue. Biography Pauk was born in Budapest, (Hungary), and entered the Franz Liszt Academy of Music at age nine. He began his studies as Imre Waldbauer' ...

– Hungaroton SLPD 12657-58 *

Johann Adolph Hasse Johann Adolph Hasse (baptised 25 March 1699 – 16 December 1783) was an 18th-century German composer, singer and teacher of music. Immensely popular in his time, Hasse was best known for his prolific operatic output, though he also composed a co ...

: Six Organ Concertos – Hungaroton HCD 31738 * ''Music for Two Organs'' (

Daniel Steibelt Daniel Gottlieb Steibelt (October 22, 1765) was a German pianist and composer. His main works were composed in Paris and in London, and he died in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Biography Steibelt was born in Berlin, and studied music with Johann K ...

Muzio Clementi Muzio Filippo Vincenzo Francesco Saverio Clementi (23 January 1752 – 10 March 1832) was an Italian composer, virtuoso pianist, pedagogue, conductor, music publisher, editor, and piano manufacturer, who was mostly active in England. Encourag ...

, etc.) – with organist Miklós Spányi – Hungaroton HCD 32167 * W. A. Mozart: Organ Works – Naxos 8.550514 *

: Inventions and Sinfonias – Naxos 8.550679 * Various Composers: Organ Meditation – Naxos 8.550791 *

João de Sousa Carvalho João de Sousa Carvalho (22 February 1745c. 1798) was the foremost Portuguese composer of his generation. Born in Estremoz, he studied music from 1753 at the Colégio dos Santos Reis in Vila Viçosa, then from 1761 at the Conservatório di San ...

: Harpsichord Works – Portugalsom 860006 *

: Concertos for Two, Three, and Four Harpsichords – with harpsichordist

et al. – Supraphon 1110 4391-92 * ''Polish Renaissance Music for Harpsichord and Organ'' ( Jakob Polak,

Wojciech Długoraj Wojciech Długoraj (c. 1557 - after 1619), also called Wiecesław Długoraj, Adalbert Długoraj and Gostinensis, was a Polish Renaissance composer and lutenist. Biography His birthplace is unknown, with Polish Gostyń and Ukrainian Gostynets ...

etc.) – Vox/Candide CE 31019 * ''Hungarian Dances for Harpsichord'' ( Valentin Bakfark, Johann Babnik, etc.) – Vox/Candide CE 31032 *

: Six Concertos after

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread a ...

– Vox/Turnabout TV-S 34287 * ''Harpsichord Concertos'' (

Johann Georg Albrechtsberger Johann Georg Albrechtsberger (3 February 1736 – 7 March 1809) was an Austrian composer, organist, and music theorist, and one of the teachers of Ludwig van Beethoven. He was a friend of Haydn and Mozart. Biography Albrechtsberger was born at Kl ...

Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (2 November 1739 – 24 October 1799) was an Austrian composer, violinist, and silvologist. He was a friend of both Haydn and Mozart. (webpage has a translation button) Life 1739–1764 Dittersdorf was born in ...

, etc.) – led by

Vilmos Tátrai Vilmos Tátrai (7 October 1912 – 2 February 1999) was a Hungarian classical violinist and the founder of the Tátrai Quartet. Life Tátrai was born in Kispest, now 19th district of Budapest. A professor at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music, he f ...

– Vox/Turnabout TV-S 34325 *

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

: Complete Organ Works – Vox Box SVBX 5328-29 János Sebestyén participated in many recordings for

. Highlights: *

: Six Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord – with violinist

* János Decsényi: Divertimento for Harpsichord and Chamber Orchestra – conducted by György Lehel *

Ferenc Farkas Ferenc Farkas (; 15 December 1905 – 10 October 2000) was a Hungarian composer. Biography Born into a musical family (his father played the cimbalom and his mother played the piano) in Nagykanizsa, Farkas began his musical studies in Budape ...

: Concertino for Harpsichord and Strings – conducted by György Lehel * Frank Martin: Concerto for Harpsichord and Small Orchestra – conducted by György Lehel * W. A. Mozart: Three Concertos after

Johann Christian Bach Johann Christian Bach (September 5, 1735 – January 1, 1782) was a German composer of the Classical period (music), Classical era, the eighteenth child of Johann Sebastian Bach, and the youngest of his eleven sons. After living in Italy for ...

– with members of the

Francis Poulenc Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (; 7 January 189930 January 1963) was a French composer and pianist. His compositions include songs, solo piano works, chamber music, choral pieces, operas, ballets, and orchestral concert music. Among the best-kno ...

Concert champêtre ''Concert champêtre'' (, ''Pastoral Concerto''), FP 49, is a harpsichord concerto by Francis Poulenc, which also exists in a version for piano solo with very slight changes in the solo part. It was written in 1927–28 for the harpsichordist ...

– conducted by Tamás Bolberitz

References

External links

* * Sebestyén János (orgonaművész)
Sebestyén János első aranykora

Sebestyén János – csembalóművész

Elhunyt Sebestyén János csembaló- és orgonaművész

The harpsichordist János Sebestyén has died

János Sebestyén: A Musical Silk Route in Budapest

Egy rádiós élete a diktatúra éveiben
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sebestyen, Janos Hungarian harpsichordists Hungarian classical pianists Male classical pianists Hungarian classical organists Male classical organists Musicians from Budapest 1931 births 2012 deaths Hungarian Roman Catholics Recipients of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Artists of Merit of the Hungarian People's Republic 20th-century classical pianists 20th-century Hungarian male musicians