János Ferencsik (18 January 190712 June 1984) was a Hungarian conductor. Ferencsik was born in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

; he actively played music even as a very young boy. He took violin lessons and taught himself to play the organ. He studied at the National

Conservatory of Music A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger i ...

in Budapest, where his major subjects were organ performance and composition. He joined the Budapest State Opera at the age of twenty, where he was engaged as a rehearsal coach. In this capacity he took part in the Bayreuth Festival in 1930-31. At Bayreuth, he assisted Arturo Toscanini, an experience which was to be of decisive importance for the remainder of his career. Between the two world wars, he studied in Budapest under such conductors as Arturo Toscanini,

Bruno Walter Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a German-born conductor, pianist and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French citizen in 1938, and settled in the U ...

Felix Weingartner Paul Felix Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg (2 June 1863 – 7 May 1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist. Life and career Weingartner was born in Zara, Dalmatia, Austria-Hungary (now Zadar, Croatia), to Austrian parents. ...

and

Wilhelm Furtwängler Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler ( , , ; 25 January 188630 November 1954) was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. He was a major ...

. Ferencsik's international career began in 1937. By the end of the 1930s, he became one of the Hungarian Opera's leading conductors. He conducted the farewell concert of Béla Bartók and

Ditta Pásztory-Bartók Ditta Pásztory-Bartók (31 October 190321 November 1982) was a Hungarian pianist and the second wife of the composer Béla Bartók. She was the dedicatee of a number of his works, including '' Out of Doors'' and the Third Piano Concerto. Biograp ...

in 1940 in Budapest, just before Bartók had left the continent. His artistic career came to full fruition after 1945, as he was appointed General Music Director of the

Budapest Opera The Hungarian State Opera House ( hu, Magyar Állami Operaház) is a neo-Renaissance opera house located in central Budapest, on Andrássy út. Originally known as the Hungarian Royal Opera House, it was designed by Miklós Ybl, a major figure of ...

, Principal Conductor of the

Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra The Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra ( hu, Nemzeti Filharmonikus Zenekar; formerly, the Hungarian State Symphony Orchestra, hu, Magyar Állami Hangversenyzenekar) is one of the most prestigious symphony orchestras in Hungary. Based in t ...

in Budapest and, from 1960 until 1967, and the Conductor Chairman of the

Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra The Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra ( Hungarian: ''Budapesti Filharmóniai Társaság Zenekara'') is Hungary's oldest extant orchestra. It was founded in 1853 by Ferenc Erkel under the auspices of the Budapest Philharmonic Society. For many years i ...

. From 1948 until 1950, Ferencsik was principal guest conductor of the

Vienna State Opera The Vienna State Opera (, ) is an opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by August ...

, he was guest conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, "COAST ORCHESTRA BEGINS 44TH YEAR; Los Angeles Philharmonic Led by Zubin Mehta Ninth Conductor Since '19" November 16, 1962, ''The New York Times''
/ref> and toured widely abroad, conducting on every continent with the exception of Africa, Ferencsik was a friend of Hungarian composers

László Lajtha László Lajtha (; 30 June 1892 – 16 February 1963) was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist and conductor. Career Born to Ida Wiesel, a Transsylvanian-Hungarian and Pál Lajtha, an owner of a leather factory. The father Pál had ambit ...

, Béla Bartók and

Zoltán Kodály Zoltán Kodály (; hu, Kodály Zoltán, ; 16 December 1882 – 6 March 1967) was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is well known internationally as the creator of the Kodály method of music edu ...

and was known for his interpretations of their works. Among his many recordings are two of Kodály's '' Székelyfonó''. Notable students include Alexander Raichev.

Media

Bartók: Divertimento, Hungarian State Orchestra, 1984.

References

Sources

* Liner note with recording of Beethoven's Symphonies Nos 1 and 7, Hungarian Philharmonic Orchestra, on LaserLight 15 904. * Szabolcsi Bence - Tóth Aladár: ''Zenei lexikon'', Zeneműkiadó Vállalat, 1965. I. k. 616. o. "Ferencsik János" * VÁRNAI PÉTER: Interview with János Ferencsik, ZENEMŰKIADÓ BUDAPEST 1972

External links

Biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...

allmusic.com; accessed 6 November 2016.
Obituary
nytimes.com; accessed 6 November 2016.
František Sláma archive
frantisekslama.com; accessed 6 November 2016. Hungarian conductors (music) Male conductors (music) Musicians from Budapest 1907 births 1984 deaths 20th-century conductors (music) Artists of Merit of the Hungarian People's Republic Burials at Farkasréti Cemetery 20th-century Hungarian male musicians {{hungary-conductor-stub