Dennis Báthory-Kitsz (born March 14, 1949, in Plainfield, New Jersey) (pseudonyms: Dennis Bathory, Dennis Kitsz, Dennis J. Kitsz, Dennis Bathory Kitsz, Kalvos Gesamte, Grey Shadé, D.B. Cowell, Brady Kynans, Kalvos Zondrios, Báthory Dénes, Orra Maussade, Don Johnson, Kerry Merritt, Calvin Dion, Enimtu Bemanyna) is a Hungarian-American author and composer. Aside from music, he was an author during the first generation of personal computers (1979–85), and interviewed Bill Gates. His career in technology is evident in over 600 articles and books on the subject. He was involved in the post-Fluxus art movement (1973–78), and was also director of Vermont's Alliance of Independent Country Stores (2001–2010). Since 2010 he has been adjunct professor composition, theory, and music technology at Johnson State College. Báthory lives in Northfield, Vermont. He claims to be a descendant of the Báthory family, a prominent central European clan during the Middle Ages but no proof of this can be found.

Music and works

A prolific composer, Báthory-Kitsz has more than 1,100 compositions, sound installations, and electronic works for all manner of vocal and instrumental combinations. His compositions include sound sculpture, solo and chamber music for the instruments of classical music, electronic music, stage shows, orchestral pieces, dance music, opera, interactive multimedia, sound installations, and performance art events. He has also designed and built new musical instruments. Over the years he has earned 28 ASCAP Awards for his works. Báthory has advocated what he calls contemporary "non-pop" music, and the performance of contemporary classical music (new music) in preference to the music of composers of past eras. He offers his compositions to be downloaded and played for free, but does not release them into the public domain and takes royalties for public performance as usual. His organ work Yer Attention, Please has been performed by Kevin Bowyer. His Dashuki Music Theatre has performed at Charlotte Moorman's Annual Avant Garde Festival of New York. Although primarily self-taught, Clarence Barlow was his only composition teacher.

Kalvos & Damian

Dennis Báthory-Kitsz is known for co-founding and co-hosting Kalvos & Damian New Music Bazaar with the composer David Gunn. Kalvos & Damian's New Music Bazaar was an ASCAP/Deems Taylor Award-winning radio/web program that ran 537 shows from 1995-2005.

Ought-One festival

Dennis Báthory-Kitsz also founded and organized the Ought-One festival.

We Are All Mozart

The We Are All Mozart project (WAAM) demanded a finished commissioned composition each day in year 2007. Not a complete success the project received a 100 commissions which Dennis Báthory-Kitsz completed.

Erzsébet: The Opera

In 1987 Dennis Bathory-Kitsz was planning to write an opera about Elizabeth Bathory, a Hungarian ruler which considered to be the most profiled female serial killer in all of history. Bathory-Kitsz created the "Erzsébet: The Opera" website in 1996, which was featured at Microsoft's old home page; it received millions of hits in one week. People submitted articles, artwork and novels for the website. The first article on Erzsébet: The Opera was published in "Requiem" in France in 1998. In 2001 a team from The Travel Channel found the website and sent Dennis Bathory-Kitsz to Cachtice in Slovakia for a show called "World’s Bloodiest Dungeons". A clip of the makings of the opera behind the scenes was on "Deadly Women" a show aired in 2004 on The Discovery Channel. The entire opera was produced by the composer in 2011.

Publications

Books

Scores

Discography

Interviews, articles, and reviews

Selected list of compositions

For a full list of compositions, please see here.