Tanchaz Talk Interviews

Recorded live in Chicago after the 2nd annual “Magyar Szabadegyetem” (Hungarian Open or Free University), Kalman gives the highlights from this groundbreaking event, including recorded clips from presentations, concerts, and interviews.  Highlighted participants: - Anna DeCheke Qualls (Washington DC) - Tomohiko Yamaguchi (Japan/Kansas) - Drusza Band (Hungary/Kentucky) - Sydney Jozsa and Trena Hoeb...

Recorded in a Subaru during a wintery drive on Ontario’s highways, Gabor and Attila join Kalman on the road to discuss a wide array of topics. Gabor is one of the main figures in Canada’s Hungarian folk dance scene, and Attila is one of North America’s top Hungarian folk musicians. Interview highlights: - the early days of Tanchaz in Hungary and Canada - the magic of Gyimes - tips for longevity pl...

Tanchaz Talk Interview’s Master Class series episodes comprehensively explore the complex mysteries of Hungarian folk music with Soma Salamon (Doctor of Liberal Arts), a Research Fellow at the Institute of Musicology in Budapest, Program Editor of traditional music genres at the House of Music (Hungary), and one of Hungary’s most in-demand folk musicians and teachers.  This episode, recorded...

Celebrate the 50th birthday of the Tanchaz movement by enjoying some of the best moments of Tanchaz Talk Interviews episodes together with never-before released Hungarian folk music.  This episode replays some of the more memorable, inspirational, and insightful Tanchaz Talk Interviews clips with:  -  Steve Kotansky  -  Kalman Dreisziger  -  Peter Levai  - &...

Zina Bozzay bridges together Hungarian villages and people around the world as she researches, teaches, performs, and arranges traditional Hungarian folk songs. She was born in San Francisco and lives in Budapest, was educated at the prestigious Oberlin Conservatory of Music, and spearheads multiple international projects including offering classes and presentations with thousands of participants...

Peter Levai is a professor and department head at the Hungarian Dance Academy’s Master of Arts folkdance education program, a highly experienced and widely published  researcher and instructor, and a former legendary folkdancer with the Hungarian State, Kodaly Chamber, and Budapest Dance Ensembles.   Interview highlights:   - the importance of living (and dancing!) authentically &nb...

Tanchaz Talk Interview’s Master Class series episodes comprehensively explore the complex mysteries of Hungarian folk music with Soma Salamon, Lecturer at the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest and one of Hungary’s most in-demand folk musicians and teachers. This episode examines the life and work of Béla Bartók, including:   - Bartók’s prolific research journeys  - his brilliant methods...

Sylvie Paquette-Fritsch is one of the beating hearts of the Quebec-Ontario Hungarian community and a singer, musician, dancer, and co-founder of the Gyanta Hungarian Folk Band, with a wide spectrum of professional experience ranging from farming to IT. Interview highlights: - insights gained from traveling the world - tips on maintaining Hungarian identity in children when your spouse isn’t Hungar...

Zsigmond “Zsigi” Vucic was born in Switzerland and now lives in the Gyimes valley of Transylvania. He is a passionate collector, presenter and producer of Hungarian folk music as well as a successful project manager in the international business world.  Interview highlights: - Zsigi’s unusual journey from the Swiss Alps to Transylvania’s Carpathian Mountains; - what’s it like living in the my...

Tanchaz Talk Interview’s Master Class series episodes comprehensively explore the complex mysteries of Hungarian folk music with Soma Salamon, Lecturer at the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest and one of Hungary’s most in-demand folk musicians and teachers. This episode examines the beginnings of Hungarian folk music research, including:   - peeling off the layers of ethnomusicology;  -...

Lili Fundak-Kaszai is one of Hungary’s most creative, enterprising, and highly acclaimed folk dancers and singers.  She co-directs the prolific Angyalföldi Vadrozsa Ensemble, is a former winner of the Fölszállott a Páva nationally televised folk competition, and is a brilliant singer who has performed widely with the world music sensation Besh o droM and the internationally-known Zagyva Folk...

Raif Hyseni is one of the most well-known Albanian musicians in the world, a highly respected folk music teacher, and the accordionist, arranger and bandleader for his wife, the legendary singer Merita Halili. Interview highlights:  - how the plight of Albanians in Kosovo, Raif's home, resembles that of the Hungarians in Transylvania;  - the cultural richness of Yugoslavia and Raif’s ini...

Peter Arendas is a Doctor of Liberal Arts, a professor in the Folk Strings Program at Budapest’s Liszt Academy of Music, one of Hungary’s most in-demand kontra (viola) players, and has been a bedrock for Tanchaz-related programming for decades (including as musical director of the annual Táncháztalálkozó).  Interview highlights:  - loving what you do, and doing what you love;  - man...

Mateusz Etynkowski lives in Zakopane (Poland), grew up in Toronto (Canada), and has been at the forefront of the Carpathian folk music and dance revival scene for decades. Interview highlights: - delving into the music and dance of Carpathian Mountain regions, from Poland’s Podhale to Transylvania’s Gyimes; - the good and bad of the “Polish Tanchaz” movement; - the miracle of music and child devel...

Eva & Andras Kovesdy of Melbourne, Australia have been central leaders of the Australian-Hungarian community for decades.   In this interview, we go deep into the Land Down Under and uncover the vibrant Hungarian folk life on the continent.   Interview highlights:    - development of Hungarian performing groups in Australia;   - overview of the continent’s Hungari...

Mark Marczyk is the violin-playing frontman of the world-famous Lemon Bucket Orkestra, one of the key creative figures in Toronto's performing arts scene, and a pivotal builder and connector of folk music communities.   Interview highlights:    - the journey from captaining the Canadian junior rugby team to ringleading a Juno-nominated band;   - his life-altering Tanchaz experi...

Levente Fazakas is widely regarded as Transylvania’s top Tanchaz violinist, and is the musical director of the Háromszék Dance Ensemble and popular Heveder band.  Interview highlights: - secrets to success in winning a prímás competition; - the unique camaraderie between Transylvanian musicians; - how to unleash the full potential of students; - Prince Charles’ favorite Transylvanian men’s da...

Walt Mahovlich is a key figure in North America for the preservation and performance of music from the Carpathian Basin and South Slavic nations.     Interview highlights:    - growing up in the Hungarian city of Cleveland;   - the functional role of “nota”;   - the Harmonia Band and how to craft an evocative and emotional experience for American audiences;...

Colleen Bertsch has a Ph. D. in Ethnomusicology with a focus on Transylvanian music, and is the lead violinist of Szaszka.  Interview highlights:      - transitioning from the traditional classical to the village folk world;  - what it takes to be an ethnomusicologist; - travel adventures in Transylvania on a Fulbright scholarship; and  - the time a group of musi...

Lajos “Lecsó” Miklos has been one of the driving forces in Vancouver’s Hungarian folk dance and music community since the 1980’s. Interview highlights:  - the typical upbringing of a folk dancer in the diaspora;  - the pattern of community rifts developing and resolving;  - the early struggles of creating a Tanchaz culture in Western Canada;  - and the game-changing impact of T...

Levente Székely has ascended to the highest levels of his craft, both as a Hungarian diplomat (holding the rank of Ambassador) and a musician (as a violinist for the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble).  Interview highlights:     - growing up in the oppressive Ceausescu regime;  - secret spies and the birth of the Transylvanian Tanchaz;   - tips for diplomatic success; and...

Steve Kotansky has been a prolific folk dance teacher, performer and researcher for five decades, and has probably taught more Hungarian dancing to non-Hungarians in the U.S. than anyone else.  Interview highlights:   - what makes Hungarian dancing so special;  - insights from the masters;  - teaching from the ground-up rather than from the head-down;  - fortuitous missed train connections; and  -...

Soma Salamon is an ethnomusicologist, university lecturer, and folk musician in Hungary. Interview highlights: - how the town of Tordas became the Hollywood of the Tanchaz movement; - coming up as the son of Village Intelligencia and confronting the Balkan Family Model; - teaching ethnomusicology and folk music at the Liszt Academy, Kodaly Institute, and beyond; and - how North America is living t...

Kalman Dreisziger is a leading Hungarian folk dance expert, author, and organizer, as well as a now-retired creative director in the advertising industries of Toronto and Montreal.  Interview highlights: - the earth-shattering experience of witnessing his first Tanchaz; - his involvement in the evolution of presenting folk dance on stage; - brief overview of Hungarian folk dance history;&nbsp...