Association

The New Hungarian Music Association (UMZE) is the spiritual heir of the original Association that was founded by Bartók and Kodály in 1911. As well as keeping twentieth-century works that have already become classics at the heart of its repertoire, its mission is to perform the latest pieces by contemporary Hungarian and foreign composers alike.The Association was refounded in 2005 by 17 major artists and performers from the world of Hungarian music. András Batta, Gábor Csalog, László Dobszay, Péter Eötvös, Zoltán Jeney, András Keller, Brigitta Kovács, György Kurtág, György Ligeti, Miklós Perényi, Ferenc Rados, Zoltán Rácz, Béla Simon, András Szőllősy, László Tihanyi, László Vidovszky and András Wilheim. Following its foundation, the Association immediately supported the UMZE Chamber Ensemble, formed by Zoltán Rácz, the artistic director of the Amadinda Percussion Group, and the music historian András Wilheim in 1997, and it has always guaranteed financing for the Ensemble’s concerts. The chairman of the Association is the composer Balázs Horváth, the vice-chairs being László Tihanyi and Béla Simon.