Lakatos set to seduce Taipei

By Vico Lee
STAFF REPORTER
Friday, Feb 28, 2003, Page 17

Roby Lakatos and his ensemble has, in the past two years, found themselves in great demand in Asia, especially Korea and Japan. Despite their busy touring schedule, the seven musicians will manage to stop by Taipei for a concert Sunday.

The 38-year-old violinist is a seventh-generation direct descendant of the legendary Hungarian gypsy violinist Janos Bihari (1764-1827). Dubbed "King of the Gypsy Violinists" and "Hungarian Orpheus" by the likes of Franz Liszt and Ludwig van Beethoven, Bihari shaped the development of violin music at his time and his descendents went on to influence Gypsy violin music through the centuries.

Being into such a musical family meant that Lakatos had an early start in music. At the age of five he was already studying under the late master gypsy violinist Sandor Lakatos -- an uncle -- and his father, jazz saxophone player Tony Lakatos. At nine, he gave his first public concert. Although Lakatos learned music mainly in his family, he also studied classical violin at the Bela Bartok Conservatory in Budapest, where he won the first prize in 1984.

Lakatos' and his ensemble preserve the rich cultural mix which is Hungarian gypsy music. PHOTO COURTESY OF DADA

Lakatos his ensemble performed at Belgium's famous jazz club Les

Ateliers Brussels from 1986 to 1996, steadily building up a reputation for astounding violin technique. Sir Yehudi Menuhin was a frequent guest at his shows.

As Lakatos' popularity has grown, his fans have not had the chance to see him perform at such intimate venues, as demand to see him perform keeps his schedule packed with some of the world's biggest venues. Lakatos has performed at the Ludwigsburg and Schleswig-Holstein Festivals, at London's Elizabeth Concert Hall and at New York's Central Park with the Orchestre National de Radio France and Dresden Philharmonic.

Lakatos' visit to Taiwan was in 1999 as part of his Asian debut. His concert transformed the rather solemn National Concert Hall into a relaxing cabaret. What amazed the audience in particular were his strumming, pizzicato and playful effects, all achieved seemingly without effort. Lakatos' appeal lies his ability to interpret, arrange and compose music of various genres in his own particular style. His repertoire includes Hungarian folk songs, classical numbers, jazz compositions, Moorish melodies as well as Italian operas. Lakatos' signature fusing of different styles has been viewed as quintessentially gypsy, while his unconventional performing style won him the nickname "devil's fiddler."

In classical music, he has collaborated with the young Russian violinist Vadim Repin. He also worked with the late French jazz violinist Stepane Grappelli, to whose inspiration he attributed his improvisational skills. Lakatos has also worked with Argentine clarinet player Giora Feidman, American jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, and jazz trumpeter Randy Brecker.

Deutsche Grammophon signed him on after listening to just one performance back in 1998. The next year, Zubin Mehta invited him as a guest performer in the production of Fledermaus at the Bayerische Staatsoper Munich after hearing Lakatos' performance for the first time. Lakatos' first recording was 1991's In Gypsy Style, though he did not make many recordings until after he joined Deutsche Grammophon. 1998's Lakatos is composed of arrangements of works by Brahms, Khachaturian, Russian folksongs and his own compositions. It also features the theme from Schindler's List by John Williams, which was wildly popular when he performed it last time in Taipei. It won the prestigious German Echo-Klassik Award in 1999.

His second CD Live from Budapest, released in 1999, secured his status as a violin virtuoso. The performance combines jazz, gypsy idioms, contemporary and classical styles with much interesting improvisation.

If Lakatos' concert on Sunday is going to be like his last in Taipei,

audiences can expect a breathtaking evening followed by several standing ovations. The show not only went very well with the audience but received rave reviews here. "Lakatos strums the violin with his left hand with devilish savvy. This skill was enough to make classical violinists gasp and make their jaws drop," said Music Monthly. (音樂月刊) "His breathtaking skills and unbelievable pace, made well-worn tunes sound spanking new," said classical music critic Guo Chi-hao (郭志浩).

Lakatos the six musicians in his ensemble will perform tracks from their latest album -- As Times Goes By, which was released last August. Tracks on this selection of movie themes encompasses many decades. They include all-time favorites like the theme from Casablanca, The Godfather, Fiddler on the Roof, Once Upon a Time in America, The Third Man, and more recent movies like Chocolat.

At Sunday's concert, Lakatos will be performing with Kalman Cseki on piano. Cseki was Lakatos' friend from youth, when Sandor and Tony Lakatos worked with Ceski family members. Like Lakatos, Ceski carries on the gypsy music tradition in his family. Apart from piano, he also plays the cymbalon, a traditional instrument.

Although the concert is titled I'm Very Ugly, But I'm Also Very Good, (我很醜可是我很厲害) in Chinese, apparently to emphasize Lakatos' artistry with violin, he has proved a charismatic performer on stage and an approachable artist backstage. No matter how you judge Lakatos' looks, you can be certain of an enjoyable evening of music.

What: Lakatos -- I'm Very Ugly, But I'm Also Very Good
When and Where: Sunday 7:30pm at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Taipei
Tickets: NT$400 to NT$1,500 from ERA ticketing outlets