Gyula Bánkövi was born in Dunaújváros in
1966. His introduction to the arts began at the
age of six when he took lessons in ballet, piano,
and then bassoon. By the age of 14, his interest in
the arts was temporarily halted; on deciding he
wanted to become a geologist, his focus turned
to unearthing the ‘hidden secrets of nature’.
By 16, he had rediscovered his love for the arts,
viewing it as the ‘eternal remedy for everything.’
His attention turned first to the curious world of
jazz, then to that of contemporary music. He ini
tially studied composition with Miklós Kocsár,
continuing it with Attila Bozay at the Liszt
Academy of Music in Budapest. He would continue to maintain a close affinity
to nature, as evidenced in his first successful composition entitled Hydrophony,
which expressed the eternal recurrence of water. His musical interests span a
wide range of genres and include compositions for larger chamber orchestras,
children’s choirs, brass bands, solo viola, percussion instruments, and elec
tronics alike. He has won numerous prizes at composition competitions,
including the Istvánffy Benedek Prize (2000), has proposed works three times
for the Rostrum of Composers in Amsterdam (2000), in Wien (2003), and in
Paris (2007), as well as for the Erkel Prize (2004), Artisjus Prize (2007), Lajtha
Prize (2010), and Bartók–Pásztory Award (2012). He has worked for the Bartók
Channel of Hungarian Radio as its editor since 1999. His work there includes
dealing with and popularizing contemporary Hungarian classical music, as
well as monitoring, selecting, and sourcing new music from around the world
and editing them into the broadcast. He is a passionate athlete with a particular
interest in swimming, as well as holding Hungarian national seniors’ medals
for running, cycling, and rowing.
ORCHESTRAL WORKS
Kiáltások/Exclamations, Op. 16 (2002), 2 mar., str. orch. Pub: Hangvarázs
SR: HSACD 32686
Sodrás/Current, Op. 17 (2002), pno., str. orch. Pub: Hangvarázs
Les fleurs du vent, Op. 21 (2005–2006), symph. orch. SR: HSACD 32686
Távoli ének/Distant Song, WoO. 8 (2005), solo voices, symph. orch.
Pub: Hangvarázs
Figures in a Landscape, Op. 29 (2009–2010), large orch. Pub: Hangvarázs
Vándorló terek/Itinerant Spaces, Op. 30 (2010), symph. orch. Pub: Hangvarázs
Passacaglia, Op. 38 (2013), pno., symph. orch. Pub: Hangvarázs
Zöldfény-udvarú éj/The Night of the Green Halo, Op. 42 (2015), large orch.
Pub: Hangvarázs
In the Fiber Field of the Setting Sun, Op. 60 (2020), str. orch., glasses, pot,
bucket Pub: Hangvarázs
Felnégyelt tájakon/In Quadruped Landscapes, Op. 63 (2020–2021), Bar,
symph. orch. Lib: János Sziveri Pub: Hangvarázs
Fénykráter/Light Crater, Op. 69 (2020–2021), pno., chr., large orch., glasses
Pub: Hangvarázs
CONCERTOS
Accord(ion) Concerto, Op. 18 (2002), acc., symph. orch. Pub: Hangvarázs
SR: HCD 23244
Angels without Faces – Viola Concerto, Op. 64 (2019–2021) Pub: Hangvarázs
Az angyal tekintete/The Angel’s Gaze – Organ Concerto, Op. 65 (2021)
Pub: Hangvarázs
CHAMBER WORKS
Két dal Puskin verseire/Two Songs to Pushkin’s Poems, Op. 1 (1987), S, pno.
Pub: Hangvarázs
Les souvenirs de Pierrot, Op. 2 (1988), tuba, pno. Pub: Hangvarázs
Struggle, Op. 4 (1991), perc. ens. (4 players) Pub: Hangvarázs
Duo Fantasia, Op. 6 (1994), vl., cimb. Pub: Hangvarázs
Hat rézmetszet/Brass Segments, Op. 7 (1993), brass quintet Pub: Hangvarázs
Dream and Reality, Op. 8 (1996), vl., pno. Pub: Hangvarázs
Eszmélet/Consciousness, Op. 10 (1997), Bar, fl., cl., hn., vl., vla., vlc.
Lib: Ferenc Szabó SR: HCD 23244 Pub: Hangvarázs
Emlékvirágok/The Flowers of the Memory, Op. 13 (2000), rec., harps.
Pub: Hangvarázs
Áttűnések/Dissoluzioni, Op. 19 (2003), 3 acc. Pub: Hangvarázs
Angeldance, Op. 23 (2005), fl. quartet Pub: Hangvarázs
I misteri delle montagne lontane, Op. 25 (2006), pno. 4 hands Pub: Hangvarázs
Al secco – al fresco, Op. 26 (2007), chbr. ens., cimb. Pub: Hangvarázs
Whisper of the Guardian Angels Abandoned, Op. 27 (2007), chbr. ens., acc.
Pub: Hangvarázs
4X4, Op. 31 (2010), tr., hn., trb., tuba Pub: Hangvarázs
5X5, Op. 34 (2011), wind quintet Pub: Hangvarázs
Light Flowers, Op. 35 (2013), chbr. ens. Pub: Hangvarázs
Minutes voltes, Op. 36 (2013), S, chbr. ens. Lib: Sándor Weöres Pub: Hang
varázs
White Angels, Op. 39 (2013), str. quartet Pub: Hangvarázs
Tactus Articulatus, Op. 40 (2013), str. quartet, db. Pub: Hangvarázs
Invisible Footsteps, Op. 41 (2015), vla. quintet Pub: Hangvarázs
Bridges, Op. 45 (2015), perc. ens. (6 players) Pub: Hangvarázs
Táncoló kövek/Dancing Stones, Op. 47 (2016), mar., cl., vl. Pub: Hangvarázs
Crystal of the wind, Op. 48 (2016), vla., fl., vibr., ob., vlc. Pub: Hangvarázs
Szivárvány árnyékban/L’arc-en-ciel en ombre, Op. 54 (2017), fl., ens.
Pub: Hangvarázs
Tört üvegcipők tánca/Dancing of the Broken Glass Shoes, Op. 53 (2018),
guitar quartet Pub: Hangvarázs
En arrière des nuages rouges, Op. 55 (2018), harp, acc., tuba Pub: Hangvarázs
A Félhetetlen/Fable (in Hungarian), Op. 56 (2018–2019), story-teller, pno.,
perc., vl., cl., trb. Lib: Composer
Vízjelek/Watermarks, Op. 57 (2019), vibr., vlc. Pub: Hangvarázs
Kic-kac fakukac, Op. 61 (2020), S, cl., pno. Lib: Composer Pub: Hangvarázs
Jégbe zárt fájdalom/Suffering Enclosed in Ice, Op. 66 (2021), vlc., pno.
Pub: Hangvarázs
Görbülő ritmusok/Excurved Rhythms, Op. 67 (2021), tuba, perc. Pub: Hang
varázs
Monochrome Variations, Op. 68 (2021), sax., pno. Pub: Hangvarázs
CHORAL WORKS
Storm and Tree, WoO. 2 (1988), SATB Lib: Endre Ady Pub: Hangvarázs
Feje-nagy/Big-Head, WoO. 3 (1994), children’s chr. Lib: József Konczek,
Ferenc Buda, Sándor Csoóri Pub: Hangvarázs
Hét-pupu zivatar, WoO. 5 (2000), children’s chr. Lib: Sándor Weöres
Pub: Hangvarázs
Miserere, Op. 14 (2001), CT, 2 T, B Pub: Hangvarázs
Ave Maria, No. 1, WoO. 6 (2003), SATB Pub: Hangvarázs
Magnificat, WoO. 9 (2008), female chr. Pub: Hangvarázs
Négyes-hatos, WoO. 11 (2012), girls’/children’s chr., 2 mar., db., tram bell
Lib: Virág Erdős Pub: UMP EMB
Capriccio senza parole, Op. 37 (2013), girls’ chr. Pub: Hangvarázs
Ének a hegyekből/Singing from the Mountains, Op. 41 (2014), girls’/children’s
chr. Pub: Hangvarázs
Spleen, Op. 42 (2014), SATB Lib: Charles Baudelaire Pub: Hangvarázs
Balass-álom, WoO. 12 (2015), SATB Lib: Bálint Balassi
Ave Maria, No. 2, Op. 51 (2017), girls’ chr., vlc. Pub: Hangvarázs SR: Angelica
Foundation
Siralmas nékem, WoO. 13 (2019), SATB Lib: Bálint Balassi Pub: Hangvarázs
Missa Carpathica, Op. 62 (2020), SATB, S
SOLO WORKS
Sonata, WoO. 1 (1988), vla. Pub: Hangvarázs
Gli ultimi sospiri degli alberi, Op. 11 (1997), fl. Pub: Hangvarázs
Lebegés/Floating, Op. 20 (2004–2005), acc. Pub: Hangvarázs
Corale – In memoriam Luciano Berio, Op. 33 (2011), pno. Pub: Hangvarázs
Re-pet-ív, Op. 46 (2015), fl. Pub: Hangvarázs
Dream in the Dream, Op. 49 (2017), fl. Pub: Hangvarázs
Délaissement, Op. 50 (2017), fl. Pub: Hangvarázs
ELECTROACOUSTIC WORKS
Hydrophonie (Tape-Music), Op. 3 (1991)
Pictures from the Past (Tape-Music), Op. 5 (1992)
A Lélek hangja/The Sound of the Soul – Sound Poem on the Basis of Fragments
of Zemplén (Tape-music), Op. 9 (1996)
Silver-Winged Butterflies, Op. 12 (1999), fl., vlc., electronics Pub: Hangvarázs
SR: HCD 23244
Porte de l’enfer, Op. 15 (2001–2003), str. quartet, electronics SR: HCD 23244
Pub: Hangvarázs
Lángrózsák/Flame-Roses, WoO. 7 (2004), cl., electronics
Orpheus – Ballet (Tape-Music), Op. 22 (2005), electronics SR: BR0049
Lux aeterna – In memoriam Béla Bartók, Op. 24 (2006), SATB, electronics
Pub: Hangvarázs SR: HSACD 32686
Les fleuves de l’obscurité, Op. 28 (2008), str. quartet, electronics SR: HSACD
32686 Pub: Hangvarázs
Painted by the Time, Op. 32 (2010), chbr. ens., electronics Pub: Hangvarázs
A mennybe-vitt lány, Op. 52 (2017), S, cl., vl., electronics Lib: Folk Texts
Pub: Hangvarázs
Akkumulátor-saláta/Accumulator-salade, Op. 58 (2018), cl., electronics
Pub: Hangvarázs
Ripped Rhythms, Op. 59 (2019–2020), bs., electronics Pub: Hangvarázs
