Szabolcs Esztényi

Polish composer, pianist, improviser and teacher of Hungarian origin, born on December 20, 1939 in Budapest. He has been living in Poland since 1969. He studied piano with Margerita Trombini-Kazuro and composition with Witold Rudziński at the State Higher School of Music in Warsaw, graduating with honors.

After graduation, he remained permanently in Poland. He has performed as a pianist and improviser on many concert stages in Poland and abroad. As a composer and performer of his own works, he has performed at, among others: Warsaw Spring, Poznań Spring, Warsaw Music Meetings, as well as internationally at Budapesti Zenei Hetek, Donaueschinger Musiktage, Festiwalu Pianistycznym w Bergamo-Brescia, Festival d’été de Lanaudière w Quebec, Nordiske Musikdage and Rencontres Internationales de Musique Contemporaine de Metz.

He has performed with outstanding Polish soloists, incl. Jerzy Artysz, Andrzej Hiolski, Jadwiga Rappé and the Wilanów Quartet. He has performed many world premieres of works by Polish composers. Since 1972, he has been teaching piano improvisation at the Academies of Music in Warsaw and Łódź. From 1998 he has been a professor of musical arts.