Biography
One of the most remarkable characters in Hungarian folk-music, Kiss Ferenc created a unique blend of folk and avantgarde that earned him a strong reputation in his home country. After giving a decisive contribution to the creation of a distinctive sound for the folk-wave that swept Hungary through the seventies and the eighties, he embarked in a row of solo-projects in which he pushed further the concept of "living tradition". His name is historically related with two of the major folk ensembles bred inside the Hungarian folk-revival movement: Kolinda and Vízönto. If the former developed a more "symphonic" approach to traditional roots with long, multi-textured compositions, the latter proved decisive in the blending of electronics and musique-concrète in a strong folk substratum. An accomplished guitarist, mandolin and lute-player, Kiss Ferenc gave a very personal signature to the Vízönto-sound with his guttural voice. After leaving Vízönto in the nineties, he devoted himself to composition, issuing a row of daring solo-works: Vízönto Kor (The Age of Aquarium) , A Héttorony hangjai (The Sounds Of Seven Towers), Nagyvárosi bujdosók (Outlaws of The City), etc. collecting and publishing a number of field-recordings through his own label, Etnofon.
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.