When the lilting notes of cello filled the air...

Silence reigned inside the Deshmukh auditorium of India International Centre. But the sounds of silence were broken soon enough when Virag Kiss’ fingers expertly flitted across the piano keys. The lilting notes complemented by Sandor Dezso’s cello strings.

The mood had been set for an evening of western classical music where the two Hungarian artistes had struck the right chords to enthral the City’s music buffs.

Performing in several European and Asian countries, the duo were presenting a concert in India for the first time. The event was organised by the Delhi Music Society in association with Balassi Institute, Hungarian Information and Cultural Centre. In the hour-long programme, both Virag and Sandor presented mesmerising renditions from the works of popular music maestros like Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Deszo, Kodaly and others.

They started with David Popper’s Hungarian Rhapsody which was followed by Beethoven’s Sonata in C-Major, considered to be one of the notable piano sonatas that Beethoven ever composed. With the mellow sound of piano and the calm tones of cello, the duo spread a kind of mysticism in the air with their music. 

It continued further with Mendelssohn’s composition Song without Words, Saint Saens’s Swan from the ‘Carnival of the Animals’ and Zoltan Kodaly’s Hungarian Rondo. Though every piece is a work of art by the known European musician of the past, Virag and Sandor were successful enough to spread the magic of it once again in their inimitable style.

Sandor presented his own composition titled Sonatina which included three short pieces. Ranging from calm and solemn to a burst of passion, the artiste’s original composition was bubbling with positivity and energy.

Interestingly, the husband -wife duo, Virag and Sandor, have been working together since their college days. Their acquaintance dates back to 2005, when they were both studying in Miskolc. Virag received her piano teacher and chamber music artiste degree from the Bartók Béla Music Institute of the University of Miskolc whereas the cellist Sandor, a student of the University of Debrecen, graduated from the Bela  Bartok Music Institute  of the University of Miskolc. In 2005, he won the special prize of the National Competition of Bow Instrument Players. The duo work together and have given numerous concerts in the years since then.