László Kele­men PhD

Born in 1960 in the town of Gyergyóditró in Székelyföld, Transylvania (in Romania) he has played and collected Transylvanian folk music and was a member of the Bodzafa Band. In 1984 he earned his diploma in composition from the G. Dima Music Academy in Kolozsvár (Cluj-Napoca). Leaving Ceausescu's regime, he settled in Hungary in 1986. From 1987-2000 he worked as a music editor at the Zeneműkiadó (a music publisher), was musician, manager-director and produced recordings for the Ökrös Band, while also held the position of musical director for the Kodály Chamber Dance and Budapest Dance Ensembles. He has also composed music for dance theater and has been editor and music director for numerous recordings. With the aid of a Kodály Grant, his classical musical composition was performed at Young Composers Group concerts. Between 1999 and 2001, he initiated and directed a comprehensive program of village music collection done at the Fonó Music Hall in Budapest, which included a series of  CDs called the Új Pátria. In November of 2000 he was commissioned by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage to set up the Hungarian Heritage House. He has been general director of the institution since July 2001. As musical director he plays an active role in renovation of the Ensemble and in updating the old musical framework, while also taking part in the creation of the Ensemeble's new programs.

The first decade of the Hungarian Dance-House Movement in Transylvania - a subjective history -

Recitation has said on a conference in Indiana University, April, 2008.