Levente Gyárfás: Exploring Childhood Memories and Spiritual Depth Through His Award-Winning Piano Composition Dragonfly – Totem
- 4 days ago
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Levente Gyárfás, composer based in Norway, received the Platinum Prize for his composition Dragonfly – Totem for Piano at the Claude Debussy International Music Competition 2025 Season 4. The season ran from July 10 to October 10, 2025, with the official results announced on October 29, 2025. Following this remarkable achievement, Levente Gyárfás opens the door to the inner world behind his award-winning work Dragonfly – Totem for Piano. In the following interview, he reflects on the memories, emotions, and quiet moments of inspiration that gave birth to the piece, revealing how personal experience and poetic imagination gradually transformed into music.
Could you please introduce your award-winning composition Dragonfly - Totem for Piano? When and under what circumstances was it composed? Could you share the inspiration behind the composition and the message you hope to convey through it?
Levente Gyárfás:
"Dragonfly – Totem is a personal, nostalgic piano piece whose memories reach back to my childhood. The idea for the first few measures came to me while sitting on my grandparents’ riverbank, watching the dragonflies move with effortless, floating grace. That moment was both an inspiration and a challenge: how could I translate this delicate movement into music? Years later, in a nostalgic mood, I revisited my manuscript notes and reflected on the symbolic meaning of the dragonfly as a totem animal, paralleling it with my own journey.
The key motifs in the composition express the following:
Transformation and rebirth – The symbolism of the dragonfly emerging from a larva into a winged creature reflects the interplay of light and shadow, and the inner journey from childhood to adulthood.
Flexibility and lightness – The dragonfly’s quick and precise movements symbolize living life with ease and adaptability, encouraging flexibility in the face of change.
Floating motion and spiritual purity – The gentle, hovering movement in the piece evokes the lightness and purity of the spiritual realm.
Rediscovering simple motifs among my yellowed manuscript papers, I gradually shaped the piece, taking my modest piano technique into account. In this way, Dragonfly – Totem finally took its form, capturing the delicacy of nature and the subtleties of life through the symbolism of the dragonfly.
The recording was made in Oslo in 2016 in my own studio played and recording my self."
Could you talk to us about yourself, your journey in music, and your future goals? Could you also share your perspective on what defines a great composer in today’s digital age, and what you consider to be the most significant artistic or professional challenges facing musicians today and in the coming years?
Levente Gyárfás:
"For me, music is not just a profession, but an inner path and a form of service. It has always played a special role in my life and has deeply contributed to my spiritual development, self-awareness, and inner balance.
I started learning music with the encouragement of my father, who is also a musician, I studied violin and piano, but over time the piano became the instrument through which I can most honestly express my thoughts and emotions. For me, the piano is like a mirror: it reflects my inner processes and allows me to give sound to things that are difficult to put into words. Through composition and improvisation, I seek this inner dialogue while trying to connect personal experience with universal human emotions.
My years of higher musical education strongly shape my current musical thinking, which moves across a multi-layered and colorful spectrum—from classical music through jazz and beyond. Because of this, I consider improvisation and fully composed, carefully orchestrated music equally important. At the moment, I am working on an album where improvisation plays a central role.
In today’s digital age, I believe a great composer is defined by the ability to speak with an authentic voice and by the presence of real inner content. As a side note, the growing role of artificial intelligence is something that feels rather frightening to me. I often ask myself what an artwork can truly carry if it lacks one’s own ‘DNA’—the past, the experiences, and the unique emotional color palette of a human life. I feel that the true power of music comes from these deeply human layers, and this is something no algorithm can fully replace.“
Would you like to share your experience participating in our competition and anyone you'd like to thank?
Levente Gyárfás:
"Participating in the Debussy Competition has been a truly inspiring experience. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to share my music/composition and grow as an artist. I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to my parents for their constant support, and to all my fans whose encouragement means so much to me."
Biography
Levente Gyárfás is a pianist, composer, and music educator whose work blends spiritual depth, the dynamic flow of fusion jazz, and the spontaneity of improvisation. His music is exploratory yet deeply personal, building bridges between genres, cultures, and sensibilities. He has contributed to a wide range of projects across Norway and Central Europe, spanning jazz festivals, theatre, church, and interdisciplinary collaborations.
Now based in Oslo, he continues his work as a piano pedagogue, composer, and sonic explorer. His upcoming releases reflect his inner journey and ongoing creative evolution.
As a songwriter and composer, he is committed to translating his vision, thoughts, and insights into music. As a self-taught composer, he remains tirelessly dedicated to expressing his musical ideas in the most authentic and genuine way possible.
