Concert, music

Kálmán Balogh is one of Hungary's best known cimbalom players, a regular performer at Müpa Budapest and numerous other illustrious institutions around the world and an influential figure among the new generation of musicians.

The conflict between the possibilities offered by modern military technology and the eternal fundamental ethical questions, drone strikes and the accompanying emotional and spiritual burdens: these are the themes at the centre of George Brant's 2012 drama Grounded.

The Vujicsics Ensemble, which plays South-Slavic music, has maintained the same line-up ever since their formation 50 years ago.

When Rossini died in 1868, Verdi urged his compatriots to compose a requiem in memory of the departed master, with each composer taking on a single movement.

A brácsás viccek ideje lejárt! Erre a sokoldalú francia-holland muzsikus, Sào Soulez Larivière az élő példa: szenvedélyes kamarazenész, új műveket mutat be és átiratokat készít, tanít a salzburgi Mozarteumban.

Having only recently left behind winning prizes at prestigious competitions, Carlos Ferreira is already serving as the first clarinettist of the Orchestre National de France and plays chamber music with such partners as Emmanuel Pahud and Hilary Hahn.

Zenés-bábos heje-hujára várja Marica Bábszínháza közönségét, ezt biztosan nem szabad kihagyni!

A BBC Magazine ötcsillagos lemezkritikája szerint „intenzív kifejezéssel és roppant melegséggel” játszik tavaly megjelent debütáló albumán a muzikalitásával és színpadi jelenlétével is magával ragadó Matilda Lloyd, aki számos koncertje mellett mesterkurzusokat tart, podcast-sorozatot vezet, és Afrikában jótékonykodik.

When we hear the sounds of both a Guarneri and a Stradivarius emanating from a string quartet, this is often a good indication of the skill of the hands playing them.

As a member of the Vienna Boys Choir, the young Austrian pianist Lukas Sternath got the chance to travel the world. After training in his home country, he is now studying with Igor Levit, who himself had the opportunity to introduce himself as a rising star eleven years ago.

On this November evening, the guitarist Mike Gotthard, who is equally receptive to the music of jazz, blues, rock and funk, will invite the audience into his own jazz-rock world where the instruments and melodies take centre stage.

Not only is the Staatskapelle Dresden one of the oldest orchestras in the world, it is also among the very best, helmed in recent decades by such conductors as Giuseppe Sinopoli, Bernard Haitink, Fabio Luisi and Christian Thielemann.

A magical meeting of two anniversaries on the Müpa Budapest stage: the Talamba Percussion Group is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year with a 21st-century arrangement of a piano cycle by Mussorgsky's piano cycle Pictures of an Exhibition as it turns 150 itself: following on the heels of Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Isao Tomita with their versions, they are presenting their own take on the 19th-century masterpiece, this one revised for percussion and electronica, and featuring DJ Bootsie.

Formed out of the unlikely encounter between a Spanish musician/filmmaker who fell in love with the music of the Khorasan region - located around the modern border between Afghanistan and Iran - and a performer of Persian classical music, the duo known as Badieh followed up their brilliant 2021 debut album by bringing their interpretations of traditional Khorasan music to an even higher level - now as a trio.

The popular folk-rock band MORDÁI, which was founded by Soma Nóvé - who made his name with the group Middlemist Red - feeds on the bedrock of experimental Hungarian folk music of the 1960s and 70s, boldly reconceptualising folk songs and well-known melodies with jazz motifs and elements of improvisation.

At the centre of David McVicar's delightfully spectacular staging of Tosca this time we have the Norwegian soprano Lise Davidsen, who in just a few short years has become one of New York's biggest opera stars, now irresistibly conquering us in the Italian repertoire as well.

At the centre of David McVicar's delightfully spectacular staging of Tosca this time we have the Norwegian soprano Lise Davidsen, who in just a few short years has become one of New York's biggest opera stars, now irresistibly conquering us in the Italian repertoire as well.

Honeybeast, who explore the boundaries of funk and funky pop and rock have enjoyed countless albums and hits. The 2014 track A legnagyobb hős (The Greatest Hero) was a particularly highlight, racking up 24 (!) million views.

Zsombor Tóth-Vajna is an outstandingly talented member of the young Hungarian generation of artists dedicated to the historically informed performance of early music, both as a conductor and a specialist in early keyboard instruments, playing the organ, harpsichord, fortepiano and clavichord. He completed his studies at Budapest's Liszt Academy and the Conservatorium van Amsterdam.

The world-renowned composer/conductor who passed away recently at the age of 80 after being awarded the Kossuth Grand Prize this year, once said that "jazz is a fundamental element for me”. At this concert in memory of his life and work, in addition to an early piece of electronic music and a late choral work, we will hear compositions of his that are closely linked to the sounds of jazz and improv performed by prominent artists from the Hungarian jazz scene.

At its World-Wide concert series held each year since 2013, Müpa Budapest has showcased the history of the cimbalom and the tárogató and the diverse range of genres they can be used in.

LAKVAR was founded by two versatile musicians, the Hungarian-Bulgarian singer-songwriter and percussionist Hajnalka Péter, and the Georgian songwriter, guitarist and panduri player Zura Dzagnidze. Their album Fiction and Folklore, which was released last year, features a reappraisal of Balkan, Caucasus and Central European traditions blended with elements of jazz, pop and rock music.

In each of their creative musical statements, the female performers who formed the group in Bamako ten years ago have spoken out for women's rights and the eradication of violence. Their rich, melodic music combines stylistic elements of pan-African traditions and contemporary pop songs.

The Hungarian word 'citera' and its English counterpart 'zither' both originate from the Greek word 'kithara', which was adopted by other European languages via Latin.

It is no secret that Swedish double bass player Anders Jormin and American drummer Joey Baron are two of 2024/25 Artist of the Season Ferenc Snétberger's favourite musical partners.

Age: 0-3 year

Sena Dagadu has been a key figure on the Hungarian pop scene for the best part of 20 years. Though the Hungarian-Ghanian singer has achieved her greatest success as a front person for Irie Maffia, she has also enjoyed a significant solo career.

At their Müpa Budapest concert, they will play both ballads and more up-tempo songs, a total of twenty-four of their greatest hit, like they have never been heard before: in an acoustic, chamber music arrangement accompanied by two vocalists and a piano, violin, cello and flute.

Aida, the greatest hit of the Met's HD broadcast series, will now return in Michael Mayer's dazzling brand new staging, in which we will also proudly get to watch our own Judit Kutasi in the role of Amneris.

The Piano - Jakobi Concerts

In addition to singing the title role in Tosca, Lise Davidsen, one of the biggest stars of the Met's 2024/25 season, will also appear in the series of worldwide broadcasts as the husband-liberator Leonore in Fidelio.

This performance featuring a polished ensemble of Mozartian singers marks the Met debut of the talented young but already globally recognised German maestra Joana Mallwitz on the conductor's podium.