Tamas Balla

Tamas Balla (23) was born in Hungary. He first studied in Budapest at the Béla Bartók School of Music He then graduated as a Master of Music in oboe performance and attained a teaching diploma at Franz Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest with Professor P. Pongracz and J. Kiss.

Tamas won the National Oboe Competition of Hungary on three consecutive occasions. In 2004 he won the UFAM International Oboe Competition in Paris. He was awarded a tuition scholarship from Foundation Albeniz, continuing his oboe soloist performance study at Escuela Superior de Musica Reina Sofia, Madrid with Professor Hansjorg Schellenberger. As an orchestral musician he has toured America, Europe and Asia. He participated in master-classes with Lajos Lencses, Gordon Hunt, Dan Stolper, Elaine Douvas, Han de Vries, Christian Wetzel, Maurice Bourgue and Hansjorg Schellenberger.

In September 2007 Tamas won second place in the 18th Haverhill Sinfonia Soloist Competition. As the highest-placed woodwind player in this competition he was awarded sponsorship to play in a concert given by the Essex Musical Association and the Essex Symphony Orchestra on 3rd May 2008. He played the Marcello oboe concerto and gave an encore. A local reviewer said "......the real treat was his encore - five minutes of unaccompanied Bach. The perfect phrases rang around the Cathedral, bone-dry Krug after Asti."