Concert, music

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.

The 80-year-old jazz pianist Kenny Barron is not a legend of the genre simply because of his age, or the fact that he played in Dizzy Gillespie's band for an extended period in the 1960s.

Taking the stage at Müpa Budapest on this evening will be the creative spirit Philippe Herreweghe joined by the world-famous workshops he founded: the Collegium Vocale Gent and the Orchestre des Champs-Elysées.

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.

The aptly named Angelica Girls' Choir, who are led by Zsuzsanna Gráf, and help nurture the legacy of Kodály and Bartók, have captivated Müpa Budapest audiences on several occasions.

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.

The Icelandic keyboardist/composer Jóhann Jóhannsson, who died in 2018, was, alongside his compatriot, Ólafur Arnalds, and Nils Frahm and Joep Beving, one of the key figures of the contemporary classical pop music scene.

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.

Wandering Gypsies leading adventurous lives and gallant yet ridiculous nobles abusing their power are the main characters of the animated film Szaffi. This adaptation of Mór Jókai's classic novel The Gypsy Baron is by now familiar to several generations of Hungarians.

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.

Zemlényi Eszter – szoprán
Bakos Kornélia – alt
Megyesi Zoltán – tenor
Cser Krisztián – basszus

Budapesti Akadémiai Kórustársaság (karigazgató: Balassa Ildikó)
Nyíregyházi Cantemus Vegyeskar (karigazgatő: Szabó Soma)
Budafoki Dohnányi Zenekar
Vezényel: Hollerung Gábor

The Choir of St John's College, Cambridge is an old acquaintance of ours, having already given two acclaimed Christmas concerts here at Müpa Budapest.

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

The Hungarian State Folk Ensemble's nativity programme counts down to the night of the birth of Jesus, with scenes that are sometimes comic and other times heart-warming.

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.

The concerts of the versatile performer, songwriter and poet Tamás Szarka represent the very best of Hungarian culture, which nourishes the roots of his music. His performance style contains the ancient power of the ‘táltos', the Hungarian shaman, while he has been able to reinvent himself from album to album and concert to concert, always speaking to the people of today.

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.

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

Puccini élete által ihletett zenés színpadi játék, a zeneszerző legnépszerűbb operarészleteivel. Résztelet hangoznak el a Le Villi, Bohémélet, Tosca, Manon Lescaut, Pillangókisasszony, Turandot és Köpeny című operákból illetve zenekari műveiből.

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.

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.

The Piano - Jakobi Concerts

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.

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.

A 16-year-old oriental princess with the voice of an Isolde: this was the perfectionist expectation Richard Strauss set for anyone portraying Salome, and now the South African soprano Elsa van der Heever, known for her portrayal of Elisabetta in the 2016 broadcast of Maria Stuarda, is about to prove she can pull it off.

A 16-year-old oriental princess with the voice of an Isolde: this was the perfectionist expectation Richard Strauss set for anyone portraying Salome, and now the South African soprano Elsa van der Heever, known for her portrayal of Elisabetta in the 2016 broadcast of Maria Stuarda, is about to prove she can pull it off.

Magyar Állami Népi Együttes
Pál István Szalonna és Bandája
Koreográfus: Mihályi Gábor
Budafoi Dohnányi Zenekar
Vezényel: Hollerung Gábor

The final Met broadcast of the 2024/25 season revisits Bartlett Sher's sparklingly alive Rossini production, this time conducted by Giacomo Sagripanti, who trained in the composer's native Pesaro.

The final Met broadcast of the 2024/25 season revisits Bartlett Sher's sparklingly alive Rossini production, this time conducted by Giacomo Sagripanti, who trained in the composer's native Pesaro.

Although Wagner's mature masterpiece, which he wrote after Tristan but before completing the Ring, is officially a comic opera and doesn't stint on entertainment, it is nevertheless much more complex, dealing with youth and old age, love and friendship, art and craft, as well as innovation and conservativism.