Balázs Havasi
| Balázs Havasi | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | HAVASI |
| Born |
18 September 1975 (age 41) Hungary |
| Genres | Solo piano, world classical music, Drum & Piano project |
| Occupation(s) | Pianist, composer |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Website | www |
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Balázs Havasi (born 18 September 1975) is a Hungarian pianist and composer. As a contemporary composer he has launched four completely different musical projects, including compositions for a symphony orchestra, rock drums and piano. Havasi wrote a song for singer Tracey Thorn and gave a speech at the TED Global conference about his efforts in musical innovation. He is known for his fondness of Asian culture and martial arts, which he practiced for years. Havasi’s works became known to millions within a short time.
Havasi first played the piano at the age of four. In 1996, at the age of 21, he was already a teacher at Weiner Leó Conservatory. He then went on to study at Franz Liszt Academy of Music, one of the most prestigious musical universities in the world. His professors included then rector Sándor Falvai and Jenő Jandó, a pianist who contributed to more than 200 recordings of classical music. During his years at the Academy of Music, Havasi won first prize at a piano competition of Yamaha Foundation of Europe.
It was during his years at the Academy of Music that Havasi’s ability to impress the non-musical audience first became apparent. This realisation led EMI to offer the young artist a five-year exclusive record contract right after graduation. Havasi, who had only been familiar with classical music before, made his first contact with the concepts of marketing, communication and mass media. While the artistic views of the record company mismatched the artist’s long-term ambitions as a composer, Havasi later drew on his communication experiences acquired in that period to popularise his own music. During the term of his EMI contract, he produced two soundtrack albums. On the day of expiry, Havasi did not extend the contract but established his own record company to create the musical world he had always longed for.
Between 2005 and 2008 Havasi published four solo piano albums in a row (Piano, Seven, Infinity and RED), each produced as a composer. The musical themes of the four records prepared the grounds for an independent, novel musical world. His own works clearly reflect his nearly 25 years of studies in classical music, while showing signs of present-day soundtrack, repetitive and new age effects. This new musical style brought him an unexpected overnight success and started his international career.
Havasi founded the band The Unbending Trees with singer-lyricist Kristóf Hajós in 2006. With English lyrics written and sung by Hajós, the sophisticated solo piano pieces of Havasi have resulted in a special musical world where Central European sounds merge with a little melancholy, perhaps akin to the style of Leonard Cohen, Scott Walker or Antony and the Johnsons. The band was offered its first record contract by British record publisher and producer Ben Watt, and soon released its first album called Chemically Happy (Is The New Sad).
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