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Cultural events in BudapestNews and a listing of the major cultural events in Budapest and HungarySunday evening jazz concerts at the Museum of Fine Arts, Caravaggio exhibition, the Budapest Festival Orchestra, Ludwig Musem |  |
Sunday Evening Jazz Concerts at the Museum of Fine Arts Continuing their popular concert series begun last year at the Budapest Museum of Fine Arts (Szepmuveszeti Muzeum), the Budapest Jazz Orchestra will be holding a special series of concerts this season, each celebrating an iconic figure of big band jazz. The Budapest Jazz Orchestra is recognized for its authentic performances of big band classics as well as premieres of innovative compositions. This season’s Sunday evening concerts feature such guest performers as Kristóf Bacsó, István Bergendy, Tamás Berki, Gergő Borlai, László Gőz, Myrtill Micheller, János Nagy, Erika Náray, Kálmán Oláh, Andrea Szulák and Tommy Víg. Program: 12 October– 30 November exhibiton at the Museum of Fine Arts Geniuses and Masterpieces VI. Caravaggio: David with the Head of Goliath October 26th The Revolution is not a Graden Party at Trafo, House of Contemporary Arts The international exhibition ‘Revolution is not a Garden Party’ is envisaged as a tribute to the revolutionary spirit of the Hungarian Uprising and considers the resonances of social and political revolution in contemporary art. As the first major popular rebellion against Soviet domination and the communist system in Eastern Europe, 1956 was a vital precursor of later revolutionary struggles. At the same time, it was part of wider geo-political shifts, such as the movement for decolonisation, and had cultural as well as political ramifications across Europe. In the history of art, the demolition of the Budapest Stalin Statue was the ultimate symbol of the decline of Socialist Realism. The truth about revolution is part of a contested history, a living process of rewriting and interpretation in which art takes a decisive part. The exhibition consists of new and recent works that examine the global economic and political context against which revolutions take place, as well as the intersection between personal and artistic heritages of revolution. It expresses the sorrow of failed political struggles in the past and the future, and considers the shared experience of a communist past and the post-communist reality. Other concerns include the experience of revolutionary literature, the gendered images of resistance fighters in contemporary media, and the legacy of 1956 for the relationship of art and revolution. The participating artists are Michael Blum (Austria), Nick Crowe (UK), Igor Grubić (Croatia), Sanja Iveković (Croatia), Little Warsaw (Hungary), Nils Norman (UK) and Adrian Paci (Albania / Italy). Curated by Maja and Reuben Fowkes On October 27th at 19:45 The Budapest Festival Orchestra is performing at the Bartók National Concert Hall (Palace of Arts)
Featuring:
Raphael Wallfisc
Conductor:
Dmitrij Kitajenko
Details: Liadov: Eight Russian Folk Songs, op. 58 Shostakovich: Symphony No. 6 in B minor, op. 54 Tchaikovsky: Variations on a Rococo theme, op. 33 Tchaikovsky: Capriccio Italien, op. 45 On October 3 the City of Toronto officially opened George Faludy Place in honor of George [György] Faludy, one of Hungary's greatest poets and a longtime resident of Toronto. George Faludy Place is located across the street from 25 St. Mary's St., where Mr. Faludy lived for much of his 22 years of self-imposed exile from Hungary. Mr. Faludy, 95 years old, was planning to return to Toronto for the official opening but died in Budapest on September 1, 2006. George Faludy Place is an initiative of the Toronto Legacy Project. The purpose of the Legacy Project is to honor notable artists, scientists and thinkers who have enriched the life of Toronto by embedding their names in the fabric of the city. "We celebrate George Faludy as a great poet and a man of great courage in the face of terrible oppression," said Rita Davies, Executive Director of Toronto Culture. "Imagine having the mental toughness and agility to compose poems while being held in a political concentration camp and committing them to memory as George Faludy did." George Faludy Place, designed by Scott Torrance, reflects the dominant themes of Faludy's poetry: the arts of classical civilization and Hungary itself. A plinth in the cente bears a bronze medallion of Faludy's profile created by Dora de Pedery-Hunt. Three other plaques in George Faludy Place complement the plinth: a Heritage Toronto commemorative plaque, Faludy's poem Michelangelo's Last Prayer, and a Toronto Legacy plaque bearing the name George Faludy Place. Aladar Pege, a bassist who moved with ease from jazz to classics, died Saturday. He was 66. Mr. Pege formed a jazz ensemble in 1963. In 1982, he appeared at Carnegie Hall with Herbie Hancock, to wide acclaim. After that concert, Sue Mingus, the widow of the jazz bassist and composer Charlie Mingus, gave Mr. Pege her husband’s instrument. Mr. Pege’s most memorable performances included virtuoso duet recordings with the pianist Walter Norris and tours with the band Mingus Dynasty. In his later years he focused on classical works, often transcribing and performing pieces written for other instruments because of the bass’s limited solo repertory. Aladar Pege was born on Oct. 8, 1939, in Budapest, into a family of Gypsy musicians. He did not start playing the bass until he was 15, but he quickly attracted the attention of his teachers and his fellow musicians. After finishing his studies at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest in 1969, Mr. Pege became a teaching assistant and later a professor at the school. Hungary’s unofficial poet laureate, György Faludy died on September 1, 2006 at age 96. In the course of one his periods of exile from his homeland, Faludy lived for some 20 years in Toronto, where a park is to be dedicated in his honor on October 3, 2006. The dedication is part of a series of events in Canada commemorating the 50th anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. 2006 is also the 125th anniversary of the birth of Béla Bartók. The Hungarian composer who died in self-exile in New York in 1945, has been memorialized on National Public Radio with a series of programs. Travelers to Budapest can immerse themselves in Bartók’s world at the Béla Bartók Memorial House; for the virtual traveler, comprehensive Bartók documentation has been succinctly gathered on a site maintained by the Institute of Musicology of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Highlights of the Budapest concert season this fall include performances by the Royal Concertgebouw orchestra with conductor Mariss Jansons (Művészetek Palotája, September 8); “La Traviata” with Andrea Rost, Giuseppe Sabbatini and Anthony Michaels-Moore (Művészetek Palotája, September 14); a gala concert by the winners of the Liszt-Bartók International Piano Competition (Zeneakadémia, September 15); Béla Bartók’s six string quartets by the Bartók Quartet (Művészetek Palotája, 22 & 27 September); the opening concert of the fall season commemorating the 125th anniversary of Béla Bartók’s birth, with works by Bartók and Kurtág performed by Dezső Ránki and Zoltán Kocsis, among others (Zeneakadémia, September 26); Dee Dee Bridgewater (Művészetek Palotája, September 28); “The First Lady of Song,” a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, with the jazz pianist and composer Róbert Szakcsi Lakatos, Nikoletta Szőke and others (Thália Színház, October 8). On the Budapest art scene this fall, the Museum of Fine Arts (Szépművészeti Múzeum) has once again stolen the show with Parts 5 and 6 of its “Geniuses and Masterpieces” series. Part 5 (through October 1), centers around Picasso’s Portrait of Marie-Thérèse Walter, presenting 17 of the Spanish masters works, on loan from the Musée Picasso, Paris, the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart in addition to select pieces from the museum’s own collection. Part 6 (October 1-November 15) will present Caravaggio’s David with the Head of Goliath (from Caylus Anticuario, Madrid). At the Hungarian National Gallery (Magyar Nemzeti Galéria), “From Luther to the Bauhaus—National Treasures of Germany” (through October 15), presents some 350 objects from 20 German museums. Budapest Wine and Gastronomical Days (15-24 September): Part of the program A Year of Wine and Gastronomy, organized by the Hungarian National Tourism Office, visitors are introduced to classic Hungarian cuisine. The program is sponsored by the Committee of Commerce and Tourism of the General Assembly of Budapest, and intends to introduce Hungarian cuisine and culture to tourists visiting Budapest. The 19 restaurants participating in the program offer characteristic Hungarian dishes and traditional music accompanied by a multilingual cookbook Flavours of Budapest, featuring their best recipes. |
