Jenő Takács (25 September 1902 – 14 November 2005) was a Hungarian composer and pianist.

Life and work

Born in Cinfalva on 25 September 1902, he studied at the Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna with Joseph Marx in composition and Paul Weingarten in piano until 1926 at the University of Vienna counterpoint with Hans Gál and musicology with Guido Adler. Since 1920, he had already undertaken tours through Germany, Hungary and Yugoslavia. In 1926 he made acquaintance with Béla Bartók; from which a lively contact arose until Bartók's emigration to the United States in 1940. He was a professor of piano at the conservatory of Cairo, Egypt from 1927 to 1932, where he made Arab and Egyptian Music the subject of his research. He knew Egon Wellesz, Curt Sachs, Erich Moritz von Hornbostel and Paul Hindemith. In the years 1932 to 1934 he was a professor of piano and composition at the University of the Philippines, Conservatory of Music. He gave concerts in Japan, China and Hong Kong. Due to a new professorship in piano at the conservatory in Cairo in 1938, he made his first trip to the United States. In 1939, he moved to Sopron in Hungary, however the German authorities made his life difficult. In the years 1942 to 1948, he was director of the Conservatory in Pécs, Hungary. In 1943, he married Eva Pasteiner. At that time, he learned from Zoltán Kodály, Ernö Dohnányi, Sándor Weöres, Darius Milhaud and Yehudi Menuhin. From 1948-49, he left then the communist-ruled Hungary and settled down in Grundlsee after stays in Austria, Switzerland and Italy. In the years 1949 to 1952, he conducted concert tours in Europe and America and was visiting professor at the conservatories of Geneva and Lausanne. In addition, he was professor of piano and composition at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. In 1970, after his retirement in Cincinnati, he moved back to Siegendorf, where he remained until his death. On the occasion of his 100th birthday his works were performed in about 200 concerts. He died in Eisenstadt in 2005 at the age of 103.

Awards

List of works

(incomplete, taken from the German page)

Piano or solo piano works

Musica Biologica

Chamber music works

Orchestral works

Symphonic works

Vocal music

Church choir, organ and orchestra works