Gergely Kesselyákconductor, stage director, festival director
One of the founders of Bartók+ International Opera Festival, from 2011 its festival director.
He was born in Budapest in 1971. He graduated from Piarist Secondary Schoolof Budapest in 1989, and obtained his degree in conducting at Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music as a student of Ervin Lukács in 1995.
During his years as an undergraduate he took part in Yuri Simonov’s Master classes twice.
He won third price at the Arturo Toscanini International Conducting Competition in Parma (1994) and at the Hungarian Television International Conductors’ Competition in Budapest (1995).
Since 1993 he has regularly conducted the leading symphony orchestras in Hungary: the National Philharmonic Orchestra, the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra, the Symphony Orchestra of the Hungarian Radio and Television, the Matáv Symphony Orchestra and the MÁV Symphony Orchestra.
Between 1995 and 1997 he was the the leader of the Hungarian Youth Radio Orchestra.
In 1997 he founded the opera division of the Miskolc National Theatre and was its music director until 2002.
In 2001 he was the founder music director of the Bartók+ International Opera Festival, a position he held for three years.
From 1994 he was guest conductor, from 2001 conductor-in-residence of the Hungarian State Opera.
In 2004 he was appointed artistic director of the BudaFest Summer Opera and Ballet Festival where he worked for four years.
From 2005 to 2012 he was artistic director of the Szeged Open-Air Festival.
Between 2005 and 2006 he held the position of music director at the Hungarian State Opera.
Since 1993 he has conducted more than one hundred performances in ten different music theatres (Hungarian State Opera House, Budapest Operetta and Musical Theatre, Hungarian Opera of Cluj-Napoca, National Theatre of Szeged, National Theatre of Miskolc, Csokonai National Theatre in Debrecen, Szigliget Theatre in Szolnok, Petőfi Theatre in Veszprém, National Theatre of Győr, National Theatre of Pécs).
Since 2011 he has been Director of the Bartók+ Opera Festival.
In 2013 he founded the Bartók+ Opera Composition Competition.
He has worked as a guest conductor in several countries (Ukraine, Romania, Austria, Italy, France, Spain, Egypt, Japan, Chile, Peru, Oman, China).
Since 2001 he has been active as a stage director, as well, and has staged Verdi's Rigoletto, Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore, Bartók's Duke Bluebeard's Castle, Puccini’s Turandot and Verdi’s Nabucco.
The production of Don Giovanni directed by him ran for 8 years at the Hungarian State Opera House.
In 2005 he was awarded the Liszt Prize. In 2012 he became a Meritorious Artist.
Performances at the Opera Festival:
13 and 15 and 17. 06. 2016.
» Bizet: Carmen
