Rocking Toward a Free World: When the Stratocaster Beat the Kalashnikov

Description

Stephen Colbert calls Andras Simonyi "the only ambassador I know who can shred a mean guitar!" In fact, Simonyi, the former Hungarian ambassador to the U.S., may be the only diplomat to also front a rock band. And as both, he has witnessed two of the most powerful forces in modern life: democracy and rock and roll. In ROCKING TOWARD A FREE WORLD, Simonyi reflects on the profound effect of those two forces in his life. He details the struggle of growing up behind the Iron Curtain in 1960s Hungary, and how under a communist regime music was powerful but furtive: records were black-market bootlegs; concerts were held in secret; protests were hidden in lyrics. To get caught meant punishment, even prison. But Simonyi was determined and knew how music could feed the culturally impoverished. Inspired by the protest music coming out of the US and the UK, he formed a band, befriended musicians, and became part of the burgeoning rock scene. There were setbacks, the oppression of the regime, and the collapse of his own dreams of stardom. But Simonyi came of age in step with his struggling homeland. By 1989, when a watershed Amnesty International concert in Budapest helped signal lasting change in Hungary, it was Simonyi, now a bureaucrat, who helped make the concert a reality. That same year, the Berlin Wall fell, and communism began its collapse. Inspiring and moving, ROCKING TOWARD A FREE WORLD shows the soft power of rock and roll as a driver of change, and how it inspired one boy to make a difference in his country and the world.

Andras Simonyi is the Managing Director of the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University in Washington D.C. Ambassador Simonyi joins CTR following a successful career in multilateral and bilateral diplomacy, international non-governmental and governmental organizations, and in the private sector. His focus is on transatlantic security and business, democratic transition, and human rights. He has held some of the highest positions in the Hungarian diplomatic service including Hungarian Ambassador to NATO and to the United States. He is a proponent of soft power in international affairs and the role of popular culture for change. He plays the electric guitar.

A fascinating and very personal account of how rock and roll conquered communism. I felt like I was right there as music took the stage, witnessing a man and country change before us.--Stephen Colbert Andras Simonyi was a great ambassador from Hungary to the United States. Now, he's a great ambassador for rock n' roll, showing readers how American music penetrated through the Iron Curtain and inspired a generation.--Former Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright Around 2004, it came as a great surprise to me that my band, Traffic, was one of the first western rock bands to play in Hungary after the uprising, which took place there in 1956. Andras was at the show I did in 1968, and although we were kept separated by the audience, Andras made brief contact with us. Since that time, he has become a friend, a champion, and an ardent believer in music as the universal world language of peace.--Steve Winwood Simonyi's memoir serves as an urgent reminder that we should not take freedom for granted.--Financial Times Whether through the skillful practice of diplomacy or guitar, Andras Simonyi understands better than most how the power of music can unite cultures and countries the world over. This stunningly detailed and inspiring personal account will entertain revolutionaries and rockers alike.--p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 17.0px; font: 14.7px Helvetica; color: #212121; -webkit-text-stroke: #212121}span.s1 {font-kerning: none}Nancy Brinker, founder of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and New York Times bestselling author of Promise Me