János Rolla
Chamber Music Workshop
János Rolla
Kossuth Prize-winning Hungarian violinist,
concertmaster of the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra,
distinguished artist
The aim of the chamber music workshop is to preserve violinist János Rolla's teaching method and pass on his chamber music experience to young, talented chamber musicians.
Tutors
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Márta Gulyás is a Liszt Prize-winning pianist, head of department at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, and professor at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid.She studied in Budapest and then at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow under Dimitri Baskirov.
She is a regular guest at domestic and international chamber music festivals and a renowned master class instructor worldwide. She has made numerous radio and television recordings, and Hungaroton has released eight of her albums to date.
She is known as a profound chamber musician and a significant teacher of younger generations.
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Violinist Zoltán Tuska was born in 1967. He studied at the Academy of Music under József Szász, Béla Bánfalvi, and András Csontha, then continued his studies with Loránd Fenyves in Canada.In 1993, he became concertmaster of the Weiner–Szász Chamber Orchestra, then first violinist of the Danubius Quartet.
He is known as a soloist with several foreign ensembles and as a festival participant, and has held masterclasses in Bolzano.
In 2022, as a member of the Kodály String Quartet, he was awarded the Kossuth Prize in recognition of his decades of high-quality artistic work.
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Violinist János Selmeczi was born in Cluj-Napoca in 1953. He began his studies under Paula Kouba and László Koszta-Rab, then became a student of András Ágoston.He began his career as a member of the Marosvásárhely Philharmonic Orchestra, then moved to Hungary and became concertmaster of the Hungarian State Concert Orchestra.
He played for a long time in the Opera House orchestra, was a member of the Éder String Quartet, and worked in France from 1994 to 1997.
From 1998, he was concertmaster of the Budapest Festival Orchestra. In 2003, he was one of the winners of the Sándor Végh Competition.
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Gábor Takács-Nagy is a violinist and conductor, and one of the founders of the world-famous Takács Quartet.He began studying the violin at the age of eight and studied at the Academy of Music under masters such as Ferenc Rados and György Kurtág.
In 1992, he turned his attention to chamber music and conducting, founding the Takács Piano Trio and the Mikrokosmos String Quartet.
He has worked with numerous orchestras around the world and has been principal conductor of the MÁV Symphony Orchestra and the Verbier Festival, among others. He is a permanent guest conductor of the Budapest Festival Orchestra.
In 2024, he was awarded the Kossuth Prize.
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Gyula Stuller, violinist, was born in Budapest in 1962. He studied with Ferenc Halász and later with György Pauk in London, and further refined his playing at masterclasses given by, among others, Nathan Milstein and Sándor Végh.He is a prizewinner of numerous international competitions, including the first Prize at the Tibor Varga International Violin Competition in Sion. He subsequently worked for three years as assistant to Professor Tibor Varga and as concertmaster in his Chamber Orchestra in Detmold.
In 1990 he was appointed concertmaster of the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, a position he held until 2022.
He performs throughout Europe, and his regular chamber music partners include Imre Rohmann and Miklós Perényi.
He is also an outstanding teacher: from 1997 to 2003 he was a violin teacher at the Fribourg Conservatory, and in 2003 he began teaching in Sion as Tibor Varga’s successor. Since 2011 he has been a professor at the HEMU – Haute École de Musique Lausanne and Sion.
His artistry is characterized by technical precision and musical depth.
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He earned his degree in violin performance at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music as a student of Dénes Kovács, and subsequently served as concertmaster of the Hungarian State Symphony Orchestra for two years. A founding member of the Budapest Festival Orchestra (BFO), he participated in the orchestra's very first performances while still a student at the Academy. He won first prize at the Zathureczky Violin Competition in 1986 and the Hubay Violin Competition in 1988.
As a member of the Keller Quartet, he won first prize at two prestigious international competitions in 1990, in Évian and Reggio Emilia. Between 1987 and 2010, he performed with the quartet in the most renowned concert halls across Europe and the Americas. Their numerous recordings (released under Erato and ECM) garnered major international accolades, including the Midem Classical Award and the Diapason d’Or. He has frequently taught chamber music masterclasses abroad (such as at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival - Yale School of Music, and the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival) and has served as a jury member at domestic chamber music competitions. In 1995, he was awarded the Liszt Prize alongside the members of the quartet.
In 2002, his recording of Bartók’s 44 Duos with András Keller was released by ECM. That same year, he became the first violinist (primarius) of the Pulzus String Quartet, a position he held for 16 years. Since 2012, he has been the concertmaster of the Budapest Strings Chamber Orchestra. He rejoined the Budapest Festival Orchestra in 2010, and from 2018 to 2026, he served as the artistic director and concertmaster of the BFO’s Concertino series. Since 2024, he has been a guest lecturer at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music.
The János Rolla Chamber Music Workshop
Violinist János Rolla was a founding member and concertmaster of the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra and a teacher in the chamber music department of the Franz Liszt Academy of Music.
The János Rolla Chamber Music Foundation was established by the artist's wife, violinist Zsuzsa Weisz, a former member of the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, with the aim of preserving János Rolla's professional legacy and continuing Rolla-style chamber music training within the framework of the workshop.
The artist, who passed away in 2023, was a founding member and concertmaster of the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra and a teacher at the Chamber Music Department of the Franz Liszt Academy of Music. The foundation was established by his wife, violinist Zsuzsa Weisz, a former member of the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra.
The program is supported by world-renowned pianist András Schiff.
The mentoring program is not a master class, but a long-term training series consisting of several stages. The first 3-5 days of intensive training are followed by a month of independent work and then another 3-5 days of training. The material is selected jointly by the teachers and mentees.
The teachers of the János Rolla Chamber Orchestra Foundation are internationally renowned artists in the field of chamber music. In the first season, 2025/26, the mentors will be pianist Márta Gulyás, violinist János Selmeczi, violinist Gyula Stuller, violinist Gábor Takács-Nagy, and violinist Zoltán Tuska.
Chamber ensembles that have graduated from the Academy of Music and are already working together are eligible to apply for the training.
Applications will be followed by auditions.
Ensembles will be accepted into the training program based on the decision of the teaching jury.
The training will take place at the Óbudai Társaskör.
Ensembles participating in the training program will have two opportunities to perform on stage at the Óbudai Társaskör Chamber Hall.
Dates
János Pilz
November 24-26, 2026
Gyula Stuller
February 2, 4, 5, 2027
April 6, 8, 9, 2027
Márta Gulyás
February 26, 2027 10:00 AM–4:00 PM February 27, 2027 4:00 PM–10:00 PM February 28, 2027 from 11:00 AM
Gábor Takács-Nagy
December 16-17, 2026 (fully booked)
Zoltan Tuska
March 8, 2027, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM March 9, 2027, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM March 10, 2027, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
István Várdai
March 22, 23, 24, 2027
March 24 evening: concert with the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra | only for cellists (!)
Application form 2026/2027
Please attach the professional background of the ensemble or chamber group and the professional CVs of its members to the application form.
Tuition fees are as follows:
2-day participation: (2x120 minutes) - 267 EUR / ensemble
3-day participation: (3x120 minutes) - 400 EUR / ensemble
Application fee: 30 EUR / ensemble to be paid during the application process in order to finalize the submission.
Márta Gulyás &
Mathew Svec - clarinet | Spencer Adler - cello | Miyuki Murata - piano
Our foundation's namesake:
János Rolla
(Kőtelek, September 30, 1944 – December 7, 2023)
Kossuth Prize-winning Hungarian violinist,
concertmaster of the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra,
distinguished artist, founder of the Zemplén Arts Days.
He studied under Mária Zipernovszky at the Béla Bartók Secondary School of Music and under Dénes Kovács at the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest. From 1963 to 1979, he was concertmaster of the Ferenc Liszt Chamber Orchestra, and since 1979 he has also been its artistic director.
He became famous primarily as a chamber musician. His partners included Maurice André, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Alexander Schneider, Henryk Szeryng, Isaac Stern, Tamás Vásáry, and Sir András Schiff.
His ars poetica: training orchestral musicians is only possible through regular rehearsals, and he applied this principle to the Ferenc Liszt Chamber Orchestra as well.