Magyar News, 2000. szeptember-2001. augusztus (11. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2001-06-01 / 10. szám
____ _ Concert by Partium Christian University Choir Fairfield, CT, April 21, 2001 Photos: Zoli Kakas, Tibor Adamkovics. Joseph F. Balogh An unusual name of a place always has to be cleared up. Partium is a latin word, so it is difficult to find its place among Hungarian names. Partium is part of the Tisza region that was connected to Transylvania. It is the North-Western corner of it. The major city is Nagyvárad, called Oradea under Romanian rule. In this city a decade ago a college was founded by the reformed Church of the region. This was expanded recently into the Partium Hungarian Christian University with a new ecumenical character. 653 students take courses with a teaching staff of 110. Among others it has a music department, and the students of this department payed a visit to our area as the first stop on their tour of the United States. Organizing was done by Reverend Béla Póznán, Father Louis Pintye, and was supported by many other churches and local Hungarian organizations. The choir arrived on a Friday evening and the members were taken to the hosting families for the night. Next day, despite the jet-lag the choir was practicing and performed in the middle of the afternoon. It took place in the newly renovated St. Emery R.C. Church in Fairfield, Connecticut. The program included a selection of classical religious pieces, also Conductor Sándor Berkesi pieces from Hungarian composers as Kodály, Bartók, Liszt and Mohay. The performance of the Choir was outstanding. The quality of the trained voices was just mezmerizing. The knowledge of music and of discipline shined through all their singing. It was interesting to compare it to the style that we are used to seeing around here. The expression of the compositions and the deep response it brought out in the audience really made it a festive experience. The choir was led by conductor Sándor Berkesi whom we already met. In the 1960s Sándor Berkesi visited us with the “Kántus Choir” of the Debrecen Kollégium, and then they performed in the Klein Memorial Hall. He received many awards in Hungary and in many other European countries. He teaches in Debrecen and at the Partium University. Naturally “official” visits like this have to be accompanied by other people too. István Tolnay, Chief Superintendent of the Reformed Church Educational Department represented the academic features of the choir. Two bishops, Reverend László Tőkés, Front row.Fr. Louis Pintye, Mr. István Tolnay, Bishop László Tőkés, Rev. Béla Póznán and Bishop József Templi The audience waiting for the concert in the newly renovated Saint Emery s Roman Catholic Church in Fairfield, Conn
