Dániel Benkő, born July 29, 1947, in Budapest, was a Hungarian lute player, guitarist, and music professor. After studying at the Béla-Bartók Music School from 1965 to 1969, he entered the Franz-Liszt Academy of Music, graduating in 1971. He then pursued masterclasses in lute under Diana Poulton and Eugen Müller Dombois between 1971 and 1973. In 1971, he founded the Bakfark Consort, which was renamed the Benkő Consort in 1983, and performed worldwide with Renaissance and Baroque repertoires. He worked as a guitar teacher until 1976, when he was appointed professor of lute at the Franz-Liszt Academy of Music, and also led international lute courses in Grožnjan, Croatia. His extensive recordings were largely released on the Hungaroton label, helping to popularize the works of lute player Bálint Bakfark. He was awarded the Hungarian Order of Merit in 1998 for his promotion of Hungarian culture, and taught until his death from a heart attack on December 15, 2019.
