Ozora Festival owner passes away unexpectedly
It is with great sadness that we have learned today that Daniel Zimanyi, the producer of the legendary Ozora Festival and owner of the festival grounds passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, March 17th, 2018.
This is a story of wonder, but one that fits so well within our culture. Daniel made that unlikely story into reality, and for that we are thankful.
Daniel Zimanyi’s story is a stellar one, a story that sounds like a fairy tale. Daniel, who was fondly called Danibácsi, was a Hungarian farmer, who was basically chosen by a solar eclipse, that passed through his land in 1999, and had the vision to see far into the future and believe in our psytrance culture, and create the space for a festival dedicated to psychedelic and trance culture, that became a cornerstone in our culture, and brought so much good into so many people’s lives, people from every corner of the globe.
From right to left: Raja Ram, Daniel Zimanyi, DJ Chicago, Avalon & Justin Chaos (Ph: Ozora Festival)
No one would have been able in 1998, a year before that eclipse and the Solipse Festival in Ozora, to even imagine that on Daniel’s agricultural lands there would exist 20 years later, Ozora Festival, a huge psychedelic culture festival that will host every summer tens of thousands of people of all ages and walks of life from all around the globe. This is a story of wonder, but one that fits so well within our culture. Daniel made that unlikely story into reality, and for that we are thankful.
Our deep condolences to Ozora Festival family. Rest in Peace, Daniel Zimanyi.
Daniel with his son and Avi Nissim from Astral Projection.
Here is the official Ozora Festival message:
“We are deeply saddened.
An era has come to an end. O.Z.O.R.A. Festival producer, owner of the festival grounds, humble farmer, nomadic shepherd and above all, farseeing visionary, Daniel Zimanyi unexpectedly passed away on Saturday, March 17th.
Danibácsi, as we call him affectionately, and his visions of paradise on earth, played a major part in shaping the Hungarian goa psytrance scene and the subculture and community that has bloomed around it, bringing to life one of the world’s leading psychedelic music festivals today, connecting and uniting our love and light tribes from all over the world. He kept creating, beautifying and caring for our alternate Ozorian reality to his very last breath. This is his greatest legacy, which so many of us from all over the globe are blessed to call sweethomeozora.
We are deeply grateful.
For the experience of working with him, for the wisdom he passed on, for his strong work ethics and high expectations, for his singular humor and mischievous twinkle in his eyes, for his love and respect of animals and nature, for the dreams he made real for us all, and for all the dreams we can live thanks to him. None of us would be who we are today had it not been for him.
He once remarked how the hero of many Hungarian folktales is just a simple sheepherder, and now he has become just that, our legend of the Starry Eyed Shepherd. And we will remain, as he fondly referred to us once, his harmless flower children.
We will miss you dearly, Danibácsi. Thank you for Welcoming us to Paradise, where you live on, in our hearts, with our deepest gratitude, and in every bit of the Ozorian spirit coming to life, then, now and hereafter.”
Cover photo by Amit Itach Photography.
Sunset on Ozora Festival 2012 (Ph: Chinchulive).