Balázs Elemér Quintet - Remembering 80/81 (2026) [Hi-Res]

As a drummer and composer, Elemér Balázs is a defining figure on the Hungarian jazz scene, whose unmistakable drumming can be heard on nearly a hundred albums. In 2000, he founded and has since led one of Hungary's most popular jazz bands, the Elemér Balázs Group. He has played with many of the greats of Hungarian jazz, including Dezső Lakatos Ablakos, Gyula Babos, László Dés, Gábor Gadó, Aladár Pege, Ferenc Snétberger, Béla Szakcsi Lakatos, and György Vukán, and has also achieved success as a member of such bands as Trio Midnight, No-Spa, the József Balázs Quintet, and the Szakcsi Jr. Trio. In his quintet, formed with outstanding colleagues, he pays tribute to the pioneer of free jazz, Ornette Coleman. “I have wanted to make an album like this for a long time, and I felt that Coleman's works provided the perfect basis for it. In free jazz, freedom is the main goal, but that doesn't mean you can play haphazardly. Our goal was to convey our message in an honest, deep, and systematic way – that's the most important thing for us and for the audience, too.”

Kristóf Bacsó - saxophone
Zoltán Zana - saxophone
Márton Fenyvesi - guitar
Krisztián „Pecek” Lakatos - double bass
Elemér Balázs - drums