Jozsef Balogh was born in Pecs in 1956, studying first in his native city and then at the Liszt Academy in Budapest. In 1974 he was a prizewinner at the Prague Concertino Festival and joined the orchestra of the Hungarian State Opera in 1976, also serving as principal clarinet in the Hungarian Radio Orchestra. He was on the teaching staff of the Budapest Academy since 1988. In 1989 he was awarded a scholarship to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra by Sir Georg Solti. He has won various awards, including first prize at the Graz International Competition in 1988, when he performed with his frequent colleagues of the Danubius Quartet.