Sándor Mester Guitar Concert Series

„... I am free, as when the phoenix can fly from its dark prison.”

György Cziffra: Ágyúk és virágok (Cannons and Flowers)

Mester Sándor MS3
In recent years, Sándor Mester (also known as MS3) has given concerts in Slovakia, many towns in Romania, Morocco, Italy, USA , Israel and Bulgaria. He toured for one year in Portugal, studing the works of the renowned Fado guitar artist Carlos Paredes (Fado is Portugal’s most popular musical genre), whose pieces are now part of his concert repertoire. In addition to Paredes’ works, Sándor Mester plays sonatas by the noted Portuguese Baroque composer Carlos Seixas. He has given concerts on the island of Madeira, where he also played for a live broadcast on the local television station (RTP Madeira). Several films have been made about Sándor Mester’s music and his life.

In addition to playing in concert halls, MS3 has mostly played in the churches, community centers and schools of villages and small towns. In all, approximately 30,000 people have attended his concerts – of these, nearly 5,000 have been schoolchildren.

In March 2011, he plans a series of 30 concerts throughout Hungary, mostly in schools and community halls of small towns and villages, but also in a number of cities. His concerts will feature classical works, and Mester will also highlight the historic role of Gypsies in the classical music of Hungary and of Europe.

Did you know?

The renowned Gypsy musician Aladár Rácz was lauded by Saint-Saëns as „the Franz Liszt of the hammered dulcimer.” And Yehudi Menuhin, on his trips to Budapest, always paid a visit to Aladár Rácz.
Igor Stravinsky, the greatest Russian composer of the 20th century, dedicated his “Waltz and Polka”, “Renard” and „Ragtime” works to Aladár Rácz. “Ragtime", written for 11 instruments, features the dulcimer.





World-famous pianist György Cziffra, who was of Gypsy descent, was awarded the French Legion of Honor and, in 1993, the Middle Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary. Cziffra performed in the world’s greatest concert halls, in the Brahmssaal of Vienna, in Paris, in London’s Royal Albert Hall, and at Carnegie Hall in New York City.



Gypsies were among the Hungarian patriots who fought in the 1848-49 revolution and freedom fight against Habsburg rule. Numerous famous doctors, lawyers, teachers, poets and painters have been Gypsies. And they are among the most highly recognized musicians in the world, including in the field of classical music.

The concert series is supported by OSF Open Society Foundations.