Inauguration of The Sir Roger Scruton Music Library

A Piece of Scrutopia at the Andrássy Salon

Description

Lady Scruton has entrusted The Sir Roger Scruton Music Library, a selection of carefully curated books, sheet music, musical scores, and CDs from Sir Roger’s personal library, into the care of Common Sense Society. The library will be housed at the Andrássy Salon, Common Sense Society–Hungary’s (CSS–HU) headquarters, in Budapest. 

Event Overview

Join us for an intellectually and artistically enriching evening at the CSS Andrássy Salon as we celebrate the life and legacy of Sir Roger in the realm of music. The program will feature welcoming remarks by Common Sense Society president and C.E.O. Mr. Marion Smith, an introduction by Common Sense Society–Hungary director Ms. Orsolya Domaniczky, a lecture on the Scrutonian approach to music by Common Sense Society research fellow in music studies Mr. Benjamin Crocker, and a string trio performance by Ms. Eszter Kökény (violin), Mr. Péter Tornyai (viola) and Mr. Tamás Zétényi (cello).

Gates open at 6:00 P.M., and the program will commence at 6:30 P.M. Hors d’oeuvres and refreshments will be served following the formal part of the evening.

Program Summary:

Welcoming Remarks
Marion Smith, Common Sense Society president and C.E.O.

Introduction
Ms. Orsolya Domaniczky, Common Sense Society–Hungary director

Lecture: A Scrutonian Approach to Music
Benjamin Crocker, Common Sense Society research fellow in music studies

Music Performance: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Three Movements from the Divertimento for String Trio, K. 563
Ms. Eszter Kökény (violin), Mr. Péter Tornyai (viola) and Mr. Tamás Zétényi (cello)

This event is for members, alumni, and upon special invitation.

Not a member yet? Consider becoming a member of Common Sense Society–Hungary. If this is your first event at CSS and want to get to know us, you are welcome to join for a teaser.

Featured Speaker

Mr. Benjamin Crocker is academic programs manager at UATX in Austin, Texas, and since 2022, has been research fellow in music studies at Common Sense Society. He is from North Queensland, Australia, and most recently taught at the King’s School in Sydney. Ben has lectured and guest conducted at the University of Sydney and recorded for nationwide radio broadcast at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. In 2021, he was appointed as an inaugural Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation scholar to Washington, D.C. His columns have been published by The Spectator, The Federalist, and Australia’s Quadrant magazine.

With Performance By

Ms. Eszter Kökény is an award-winning violinist. She graduated in 2020 from the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest. Before joining the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra in January 2022, Ms. Kökény played solo with several orchestras in Hungary and abroad, such as the Anima Musicae Chamber Orchestra, Aarhus Youth Symphonic Orchestra, the Lithuanien National Philharmonic Orchestra, and the IBF Gran Canaria Chamber Orchestra. She is currently playing on a Rugeri violin loaned by the Ede Zathureczky Foundation.

Mr. Péter Tornyai is a composer, chamber musician, violinist, and violist. He graduated as a composer and violinist at the Liszt Academy of Music and studied at Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome, Italy. In 2021, he finished his doctoral (DLA) program at the Liszt Academy with a thesis on Salvatore Sciarrino’s music. He now teaches composition, orchestration, analysis, and contemporary music there. As a violinist and violist, Mr. Tornyai often plays classical and contemporary music with chamber ensembles such as THReNSeMBle, Ludium Ensemble, Dohnányi Quartet, Classicus Ensemble, Classicus Quartet, and UMZE Ensemble. His music has been awarded in numerous competitions and performed by orchestras across Hungary, Europe, the United States, and New Zealand.

Mr. Tamás Zétényi is an active member of the Hungarian music scene, both as the cellist of Classicus Quartet and an adjunct professor at Széchenyi István University, Győr. Celebrating the 2023 centenary of Ligeti, BMC Records released his Kodály&Ligeti recording, including the world premiere of his transcription of Ligeti’s Viola Sonata. Mr. Zétényi plays dozens of concerts a year as a founding member of Classicus Ensemble, Classicus Quartet, and Trio Passacaglia. He regularly performs as a soloist across Europe and in the United States. Mr. Zétényi studied in Budapest and at Bard College and defended his doctoral thesis on the late chamber music of Liszt at the Liszt Academy of Music.