We are thrilled to announce an extraordinary masterclass for Hungarian and foreign students with Liszt Prize-winning violist Máté Szücs, a professor at the University of Pécs.
We are looking for applications from violists who are studying viola at secondary or higher education institutions or young artists who have completed their studies. (For participants between the ages of 14-18, a parental consent statement for participation in the course is requested, as we are unable to provide supervision!)
The accompanist of the course is pianist Ibolya Huszics, a teacher at the Secondary School of Arts, and the University Of Pécs, Institute of Music
The masterclass will take place on August 3-6, 2026.
Location: University of Pécs, Faculty of Music and Visual Arts, Institute of Music (Pécs, 37 Vilmos Zsolnay Street, Zsolnay Quarter, Building E22)

Application deadline: June 10, 2026.
Registration here: Jelentkezés / Registration

FEES

Masterclass fee for active participants: 400 EUR
Masterclass fee for passive participants: 150 EUR 
The number of active participants is limited, so we recommend applying as soon as possible!
Payment method: bank transfer to the following bank account number:
ResonArt Foundation account number: 10410400-00000190-07954999, K&H Bank
IBAN: HU4210410400-00000190-07954999
SWIFT code: OKHBHUHB 
Please include the following in the note: Máté Szücs masterclass and the name of the payer
The registration fee is 50 EUR, which is payable upon registration for the course and will be included in the course fee in case of actual participation. 
The registration fee will not be refunded if the applicant does not participate in the master class. The deadline for payment of the participation fee (the part above the registration fee – 350 EUR): June 30, 2026.
The participation fee includes:
−    active participation in the entire course, 4 x 50-minute individual lessons 
−    3 x 50-minute tutoring (2 of which are individual + 1 time with Máté Szűcs)
−    opportunity to perform/participate in the course concert on August 5 
The participation fee does not include: travel, accommodation, meals, and leisure programs.

Dining options for lunch: RooM Bistro & Club at the Faculty of Music and Visual Arts campus 
Accommodation options: Individual bookings available depending on accommodation needs.
Suggestions:
Hotel Corso - Pécs, 7626 Pécs, 8 Koller Street 
Hotel Central - Pécs 7621 Pécs, 7 Bajcsy-Zsilinszky Street 
Hotel Arkadia - 7621 Pécs, 1 Hunyadi János Street 
Hotel Diána - 7621 Pécs, 4/a Tímár Street 
Piacsek Apartmanház - 7621 Pécs, 10 Felsőmalom Street 

Leisure recommendations, programs:
On the website of the city of Pécs - https://pecs.hu/programok/ or https://pecs.hu/en/events/
On the website of the Zsolnay Quarter - https://www.zsolnaynegyed.hu/programok or https://www.zsolnaynegyed.hu/en/programmes

For any other questions, please contact the institute manager Judit Sipos: sipos.judit@pte.hu

Picture: Hajnalka Hurta

TEACHER OF THE MASTERCLASS

Máté Szücs is a Hungarian-born violist whose international career unites exceptional artistry, orchestral leadership, and a distinguished record as chamber musician and music teacher. From 2011 to 2018 he served as the principal violist of the Berlin Philharmonic, a position that placed him among the world’s leading orchestral musicians. During his time with the orchestra he performed Béla Bartók’s Viola Concerto as a soloist in 2017, a performance widely noted for its depth, authority, and stylistic insight.

Originally trained as a violinist, Szücs turned to the viola at the age of 17, a decision that quickly revealed his natural affinity for the instrument. He completed his studies with highest distinction at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, the Royal Conservatory of Flanders, and the Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth, where he developed the subtle technique and musical imagination that would define his later career. His international recognition began early with top prizes at major competitions in Hungary, Szeged, Liège, Paris, and Brussels.

As a soloist, Szücs has played with many of Europe’s leading orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of Flanders, the Bamberger Symphoniker, the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden, the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, where he also served as principal violist. His repertoire ranges from the classical and romantic canon to major 20th century works, always marked by a distinctive combination of technical command and lyrical intensity.

Chamber music has an equally central role in his artistic life. He has been a member of music groups such as the Mendelssohn Ensemble, the Con Spirito Piano Quartet, Trio Dor, the Enigma Ensemble, and the Fragments Ensemble, and he has collaborated with artists including Janine Jansen, Frank-Peter Zimmermann, Christian Tetzlaff, Vadim Repin, Ilja Gringolts, Mischa and Lily Maisky, László Fenyő, Gábor Takács-Nagy, Kristóf Baráti, István Várdai, Camille Thomas, Kirill Troussov, Veronika Eberle, Daniel Müller-Schott and Julien Quentin.

A passionate teacher, Szücs has been a participant of Thy Masterclass in Denmark since 2006 and has taught at the Britten-Pears Festival, the University of Music in Saarbrücken, the Karajan Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic, the Hanns Eisler School of Music Berlin, and the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest. Since 2018 he has been a professor of viola at the Geneva University of Music, and since 2020 he has served as a visiting professor at the Liszt Academy and an assistant professor at the University of Pécs. He has recorded more than 20 CDs and earned a Doctor of Arts degree (PhD) in 2020. In 2026 he received the most prestigious music award of Hungary, the Liszt Prize.

Picture: PTE MK, Vass Benjámin

IBOLYA HUSZICS, PIANO ACCOMPANIST

Ibolya Huszics began her musical studies at the Pécs Branch of the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, and got a master's degree as music and piano teacher at the Faculty of Music and Visual Arts of the University of Pécs. She also obtained a qualification as a philosophy lecturer at the University of Pécs.

From 1982, she has been a teacher at the Pécs Secondary School of Arts, and from 1982 to 2019, she was a teacher at the Institute of Music of the University of Pécs. Since 2019, she has been a master teacher at the Institute. She comes from a family of musicians and educators whose lives, teaching and artistic careers were defined by the principles and methods of Zoltán Kodály, introducing the importance of live instrumental and choir music to several generations. Ibolya Huszics has been carrying on this legacy for more than forty years both as a teacher and a performer.

She works as a piano accompanist in primary and secondary music education, as well as for all instruments in the woodwind, brass and string programs at the University of Pécs. In this role, she has always demonstrated professional and artistic excellence. She is a versatile musician with a vast knowledge of chamber literature, performing difficult instrumental pieces with precision and musical expression.

As a chamber musician, she has played with the most distinguished partners, such as Nobuko Imai, Máté Szücs, violist Valadimir Bukac, Thomas Demenga, István Várdai, Csaba Onczay, Péter Somodari, cellist László Pólus, Uwe Köller, Uwe Komischke, trumpeter Péter Solymosi, Jagues Mauger, trombonist István Péter Farkas, Zoltán Szőke, hornist Szabolcs Zempléni, tubaist József Bazsinka, bassoonist Bence Bogányi, clarinetist József Balogh. He has performed and recorded numerous contemporary bassoon pieces with bassoonist Ágnes Herpay. Her recordings include several choir albums, radio and television work, and DVDs (e.g. The Pécs Symphony Orchestra's Complete Lajtha edition, Inspiration – Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin / The Wooden Prince).

She has participated in several hungarian and international master classes, such as the Frantisek Rauch course in Prague, the Bartók Seminar in Szombathely, the Malcolm Bilson Fortepiano course, the Barcs Brass Chamber Music Camp.

Since 1982 she has served as a piano accompanist at the Janus Pannonius University, later University of Pécs, working with students of the violin, viola, cello, oboe, bassoon, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, horn, tuba, guitar and private singing programs, from freshmen to graduates. She is an indispensable collaborator in the main subject exams and a member of the entrance exam committees. She has been invited to participate in the doctoral school (DLA) admission exams on several occasions.

In the field of talent development, she has supported young musicians at high school and university music competitions with her outstanding piano accompaniment skills. During these competitions she received a special prize as a piano accompanist on multiple occasions (2018 - The XIII. National Horn Competition in Budapest, 2019 - Femus International Wind Music Competition, Serbia).

Picture: László Cseri

LOCATION OF THE MASTERCLASS: THE ZSOLNAY QUARTER

Pécs is located in the southern Transdanubia region of Hungary, at the foot of the Mecsek Mountains. The Mediterranean-style city was the European Capital of Culture in 2010 and is still a significant center of the cultural life of Southern Transdanubia today. Among the many attractions of the city, the Zsolnay Cultural Quarter, declared a Hungarian cultural center in 2014, stands out. The campus of the Faculty of Music and Visual Arts of the University of Pécs and the building of the Institute of Music are located here.

The Zsolnay family, known for their tradition in porcelain production, had lived and created here in the 19th and 20th centuries. The Zsolnay heritage lives on with new content and dignity in a beautifully renovated, 12 acre area on the territory of their world-famous ceramics factory. A total of 15 protected historic buildings and 88 public Zsolnay statues decorate the picturesque parks and promenades. The Quarter also offers numerous attractions like cozy cafes, museums, a gallery, a concert venue, a theater, a puppet theater and various craft shops.

The Zsolnay Quarter houses unique exhibitions presenting the Zsolnay heritage, such as the collection of Dr. László Gyugyi (an art collector previously living in the United States), which consists of nearly 700 ceramic objects (The Golden Age of Zsolnay). The earliest Zsolnay products are displayed in the Pink Exhibition, that encompasses about 1,200 pieces. This is collection is complemented by the Zsolnay Family and Factory History Exhibition. On a hill near the Zsolnay Cultural Quarter, visitors can enter the Zsolnay Mausoleum, the resting place of the Zsolnay family, where 42 lions guard the secret of eosin.