Zoltán Göncz

Zoltán Göncz (born July 23, 1958 in Budapest) is a Hungarian composer who often applies archaic forms (canon, passacaglia) and complex structures in his compositions.

He graduated from the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music in 1980. He was music editor at the National Philharmonic Agency between 1983 and 1997, then worked in the same capacity with the musical ensembles of the Hungarian Radio from 1997 to 2008. Since 2008 he has been employed by the John Wesley Theological College.

He has dealt intensively with musicology for decades.

Awards, distinctions: For his strenuous work in the field of familiarizing and propagating contemporary Hungarian music he was recompensed with the Artisjus-Prize twice (1994, 2006). For his outstanding achievements in international Bach research and the book entitled Bach testamentuma [Bach’s Testament] he has been decorated with the Silver Cross of Distinction of the Hungarian Republic in 2009.

Works, completions

• “…i rinoceronti del nero cosmo…” – omaggio a Dino Buzzati – for brass quintet (1985–86)
• Great canon (Canon perpetuus per tonos et semitonium in contrario motu) – for orchestra (1987–88)
• J. S. Bach: Fantasia and Fugue in C minor BWV 562 (completion: 1989) (see external links)
• J. S. Bach: Contrapunctus XIV (Quadruple fugue) from The Art of Fugue (reconstruction and completion: 1990–92) (the score published by Carus-Verlag [CV 18.018] in 2006) (see external links)
• Whirl, Palimpsest, Pentium – 3 algorithmic studies for 2 pianos (1996) (see external links)
• Canon gradus a 12 (per tonos, in contrario motu, per arsin et thesin) ad honorem J. S. – for mixed choir to a poem “Ten stairs” by Sándor Weöres (2005)
• J. S. Bach: O Traurigkeit, o Herzeleid! – chorale prelude (fragment from the Orgelbüchlein – BWV Anhang 200) (completion: 2011) (see external links)

Publications

• "The Permutational Matrix in J. S. Bach’s Art of Fugue," Studia Musicologica Vol. 33, 1991, 109–119.
• "Reconstruction of the Final Contrapunctus of The Art of Fugue," International Journal of Musicology Vol. 5, 1997, 25–93. ISBN 3-631-49809-8; Vol. 6, 1998, 103–119. ISBN 3-631-33413-3 (in Hungarian: "A fúga művészete zárócontrapunctusának rekonstrukciója," Bach Tanulmányok 2, 1993)
• Bach testamentuma [Bach’s testament], Budapest, Gramofon könyvek, 2009 ISBN 978-963-86157-5-6
• "The Sacred Codes of the Six-Part Ricercar," Bach. The Journal of the Riemenschneider Bach Institute Vol. 42/1 (2011), 46–69. (see external links) (in Hungarian: "A hatszólamú ricercar szakrális kódjai," Magyar Zene 2011/1, 17–37.)

External links

• J. S. Bach: Fugue in C minor BWV 562:2 (score)
• J. S. Bach: Fugue in C minor BWV 562:2 (notes and graphic chart)
• J. S. Bach: Fugue in C minor BWV 562:2 (YouTube)
• J. S. Bach: Contrapunctus XIV (reconstructed quadruple fugue from the Art of Fugue) – Carus-Verlag
• J. S. Bach: Contrapunctus XIV (YouTube) – part 1
• J. S. Bach: Contrapunctus XIV (YouTube) – part 2
• J. S. Bach: O Traurigkeit, o Herzeleid! – completed chorale prelude BWV Anh. 200 (YouTube)
• Zoltán Göncz: Three Algo-Rhytmic Studies (YouTube)
• János Malina: The Ultimate Fugue, The Hungarian Quarterly, Winter 2007
• Zoltán Göncz: The Sacred Codes of the Six-Part Ricercar, Bach Studies 11 (2011) – online version of the Hungarian Bach Society