Aladar Pege

A brilliant virtuoso, Aladár Pege was one of the top jazz musicians to emerge from Hungary. He did not start playing bass until he was 15, but Pege developed quickly. After studying classical music at Bela Bartok Musical Training College, he freelanced in jazz groups, often leading his own band. Pege attended the Franz Liszt Academy (where he taught after graduating in 1969) and was also a studio musician. Pege lived in Berlin from 1975-1978 before returning to Hungary's studios. Among his more notable accomplishments have been virtuoso duet recordings with pianist Walter Norris in 1978 and 1980 and tours with Mingus Dynasty. As a leader, Pege has headed quite a few dates for European labels (starting in 1963), most notably for Qualiton, Hugaraton, Pepita, Krem, and RST (including two unaccompanied bass sets in 1982 and 1984), although few of these recordings have ever been made available in the U.S. Pege died on September 23, 2006, at the age of 67. ~ Scott Yanow