The composer, violist, bassist and improviser Mezei Szilárd (b. 1974, Serbia), member of the Hungarian ethnic minority in Serbia, studied violin in Senta and Subotica. He studied composition at the Faculty of Music in Belgrade with Zoran Erić.

His main creative impulse stems from the link between improvisation and composition, incorporating elements of jazz and authentic folk music. He is also active as an author of music for more than 60 theatre plays (including the collaboration with Josef Nadj). Mezei won the most prestigeous theatre award in Serbia, the Sterija Award, two times, and he also won other important recognitions for his theatre music (e.g. Joakim Vujić Award). He released more than 60 albums (CD, LP) on international labels such as Leo Records, Not Two, Creative Sources, Aural Terrains, Red Toucan, Ayler Records, Slam Productions, No Business, FMR, AUT Records, Odradek Records. He has collaborated with world famous musicians/improvisers. His name appears in more than 500 registered pieces for various ensembles. His texts on music were published in several magazines in ex-Yugoslavia and in Hungary.

Mezei Szilárd has so far organised and led a large number of creative workshops for improvised music, in Serbia and abroad. He is a member of the Composers Association of Serbia and Sokoj and he has worked as a freelance artist since 2006. He is a member of STIM (since 2018). He is a leader and member of many ensembles, working with world renowned artists such as Evelyn Glennie, Michael Jefry Stevens, Nicola Guazzaloca and many more.

About the piece

Most of the time I do not provide any commentary of my works, only, if necessary, from the aspect of musical technique, but never from the aspect of idea, intention and similar. I simply do not believe that a piece needs to be explained by its composer. Music is an explanation in itself. If a music critic has something to say about it, that is fine, but I think that a composer should not explain his work. The work should explain itself.

The piece Hep 32 S-O for oboe and bassoon solo and string orchestra was written in 2021.