Szilárd Mezei

A couple years ago I came across this post. It was the first time I had heard of Szilárd Mezei. Nád/Reed is an incredible album, and after many listens it is still powerful each time I play it. Mezei's compositions and arrangements are vibrant. Sometimes the themes are full of pathos, and other times they are kinetic and mysterious. With the 14-piece ensemble, Mezei often divides the players and has them playing contrasting themes simultaneously.

I've recently been hunting down more recordings of Mezei's music. They are consistently exciting and beautiful both in terms of composition and improvisation. One thing that always strikes me about Mezei's music is how charged with emotion and feeling it is. His music exudes character and richness, akin to the music of Mingus. As one reviewer put it, Mezei's music is a revelation.

Here's a piece from his 2010 album Tönk (though it was recorded by his octet in 2007). It has the awesome title "Female Boxing." I love the boldness and punchiness of the theme. Once the theme drops out, the rhythm section still maintains the punchiness as the other instrumentalists flutter around. In the latter half there is wonderful interplay between Mezei on viola (or Albert Márkos on cello?) and Gergely Ittzés on flute. On a side note, check out the gorgeous cover art on the album.



Credit must go to Mezei's musical collaborators who bring his music to life, such as his dynamite rhythm section of Ervin Malina on bass and István Csik on drums. Csik in particular is phenomenal every time I hear him on recording.

Here's a video of Mezei's International Ensemble performing in Serbia in 2004. It's a great example of the beauty of Mezei's compositions/arrangements being further enhanced by the arresting saxophone solo of Matthias Schubert.



One collaboration I would love to see in the future is between Joe Morris and Mezei. I think their musics compliment each other very well, and Morris already has a penchant for making amazing music with violinist Mat Maneri. It would be awesome to combine their rhythm sections, too. Let's take Morris' bassist and Mezei's drummer. So here's what I would like to see: Szilárd Mezei (viola), Joe Morris (guitar), Timo Shanko (bass), and István Csik (drums).

According to Mezei's website his quintet will go on a US tour some time in 2011. I can't wait to get more details about that. Maybe my dream quartet will make an appearance in Boston on this tour!