Budapest's Finest 2017 spring

LAJOS KOLTAI'S TESTIMONIAL

HUNGARIAN STARTUPS

GLOBAL CULINARY SUCCESS

SPRING | 2017

REDISCOVER THE OUTDOORS

THE FIVE STAR CITY GUIDE

HUF 1490 | EUR 5

CULTURAL CROSSROADS

Károly Mocsári

Bugge Wesseltoft

Bertrand de Billy

Denis Macujev

Malkovich Antonio Gades Company János Balázs

John

Mahler Chamber Orchestra Róbert Hrutka

Snarky Ivo Puppy

Pogorelich

Hungarian State Folk Ensemble Balett Ensemble of Slovene National Theatre Maribor

Akademie für Alte Musik Recirquel Contemporary Circus Company

The Shanghai Quartet Pumeza Matshikiza

Komische Oper

René Berlin Jacobs

www.btf.hu 2

Daniele Gatti

#thisisyourplace

Photo: urbanfoto.hu

Photo: Somogyi Tibor

INTRODUCTION

DEAR READER,

DEAR GUEST,

Budapest’s Finest and the University of Physical Education possess a similar spirit in a number of areas, since both simultaneously build upon timeless values, draw on tradition and provide scope for innovation. I consider it an honour to be included in this issue, which, in addition to collating the city’s natural, architectural, cultural and culinary excellence, also introduces one of the city’s finest districts: Hegyvidék. The University of Physical Education is Europe’s oldest higher educational institution for sports science, and is capable of adapting its traditions and culture to the new challenges of a knowledge-based society by taking into account changing socio-economic needs.

The university’s mission is the education of specialists who as intellectuals can apply their knowledge and relevant practical experience in the widest areas of sport and achieve outstanding personal and professional results. The university, with its bachelor’s and master’s programmes and Hungary’s only sports science doctoral programme, is an integrated facility for education and training, research and development, and related services.

The training programmes with renewable content will soon be supported by an appropriate infrastructural background. Backed by a government decision in 2015, the University of Physical Education has begun Hungary’s most modern sports science university campus development programme. The current campus and its sporting facilities for practical training will be renovated and expanded, and a new water sports site and recreational centre will also be built. The multi-purpose educational and sporting facilities, laboratories and community spaces to be built will provide the highest quality and comfort for students, creating ideal conditions for them to expand their talent, skills and knowledge, and to invest in themselves and in the sporting community.

Europe’s climatological map has a different colour and name for Hungary’s weather: the Pannonian Climate, which is characterised by four seasons.

There is a celebration linked to every season, be it a commemoration of traditions or a historical turning point. In autumn, we gladly invite visitors to sample our new wine and stay with us for Christmas and to ring in the new year. Budapest’s cultural programmes, refreshing medicinal baths and the unique specialities of Hungarian gastronomy that are increasingly successful on the international scene all offer wonderful experiences. In the summer, we can enjoy the city’s stunning panorama, while at night a youthful momentum attracts visitors. On 20 August, we celebrate the memory of our first king Saint Stephen with a fireworks spectacular above the Danube. As winter is about turning inwards, carnival balls and festivities, spring is about openness and reawakening.

The bells go quiet on Holy Thursday, to once again ring out on Holy Saturday to majestically proclaim the holiday. I hereby wish you an intimate and peaceful Easter!

All of us who love the charms of Budapest and our lives and work within it take the traditions of hospitality seriously, and we preserve, polish and guard our city’s treasures. With this in mind, we can confidently tackle the spring and summer programmes, such as the FINA World Aquatics Championships, the summer festivals like Sziget, the Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix, the Red Bull Air Race, and the National Gallop, which celebrates its twelfth anniversary this year.

We can be proud of our new and boldly decorated hotels, among them the Aria Hotel, which has been declared the world’s best.

We have internationally recognised restaurants and can introduce innovative initiatives that have been produced in the workshops of young inventors. We love Budapest just as much as Lajos Koltai, the cinematographer for the Academy Award-winning Mephisto and European Film Award winner.

We hope to share all of this with you.

Teodóra Bán Director of Budapest Festival and Tourism Center

Prof. Dr. h. c. Lajos Mocsai Rector of the University of Physical Education

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CONTENT

2016 | Spring

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Let’s discover nature!

The city's weekend getaway

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Testimonials of the heart

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Let's discover nature!

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A happy city attracts tourists 22 Why I love Budapest 26

Rendezvous with culture in Budapest 28

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What's on at the Budapest Spring Festival

Rendezvous with culture

Growing into giants 46 Hungarian startups

City Guide

The Bocuse d'Or and its impact Hotel RUM: a unique boutique hotel “Dear Budapest” Easter at Vörösmarty Square

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52 54 58 60 62

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Hungarian startups

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Cover photo: Fisherman’s Bastion is one of Budapest’s most well-known listed buildings in the Castle District. The panorama that one can see before it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Hotel RUM: a youthful boutique hotel To see the location on the map, simply scan the QR code with your smartphone.

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HE ADER

Aquaworld.One name, tons of memories One of the biggest indoor Water parks and Resort in Europe offers unforgettable entertainment for the whole year, for the whole family.

Whether it is a one-day break, wellness weekend or a family vacation, Aquaworld means all of them.

Relax and fun in one place .

Check in, chill out www.aquaworldresort.hu

A resort of:

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Photo: mapio.net

Hegyvidék, the city’s weekend getaway For hundreds of years, the area that is today’s District XII has provided proximity to nature to residents of the Hungarian capital. Hegyvidék is currently one of Budapest’s most desirable neighbourhoods, yet it nonetheless remains opens to all visitors, to the point that on weekends they might as well erect a “no vacancies” sign on the district’s border. The green space per person here exceeds 170 square metres, providing excellent opportunities for hikers and adventurous tourists, as well as sport and culture enthusiasts.

Seeing all the sights and places worth visiting is almost impossible, but it is certainly worth trying.

Hiking trails lead from the feet of the Buda Hills to the peaks that overlook the city. This picture features the Fairy Cliff above Zugliget, along with the Elisabeth Lookout Tower atop János Hill in the distance.

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LET’S DISCOVER NATURE!

Photo: mapio.net

Text: András Oláh

The cogwheel railway is a special type of train for hilly areas, and connects Városmajor Park with the lookout point on Széchenyi Hill.

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Formerly criss-crossed with vineyards and farmsteads, Hegyvidék became a popular excursion destination for Buda and Pest’s growing middle-class population during the period of urban expansion in the 19th century, while the city elite began to build summer residences and villas to allow them to extend their stays in the hills with their impressive panoramic views. In response, an increasing number of restaurants and sanatoriums opened their doors for those wishing to rest and relax.

To discover the popular excursion location Normafa, a ride on the Cogwheel Railway is the way to go. The line begins at the north-western end of Városmajor Park, winds up the side of Isten Hill and transports passengers to Széchenyi Hill in under 20 minutes, providing a wonderful view along the way of Pest’s northern districts through the Buda Hills and to Pestihidegkút.

This single track railway began service in 1874.

Among the more interesting stops is Városkút, which received its name from the spring of the same name. Near the station, at Városkut Street 2, visitors will find the studio house of the recently deceased organic architect Imre Makovecz, who also founded the Hungarian Academy of the Arts. There are plans to build a memorial centre here which would showcase Makovecz’s rich oeuvre.

Travelling further along on the cogwheel railway, we arrive at the Svábhegy stop. Here we will find the small Swabian village that developed

HEG Y V IDÉK , THE CIT Y ’S W EEK END GE TAWAY

Photo: mapio.net

The world-famous Hungarian novelist Mór Jókai spent his last years in a villa located at the top of Swab Hill. His statue is located before the school that bears his name.

The lookout structure atop Széchenyi Hill was formerly located at the entrance to the City Park.

Near the cogwheel railway’s Széchenyi Hill terminus, we can discover one of the hill’s hidden sights by taking a ten-minute walk on Rege Road: a memorial and observation tower erected in honour of Count István Széchenyi, who founded the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and initiated construction of the Chain Bridge. The structure, designed by Miklós Ybl, originally stood at the entrance to the City Park at Heroes’ Square, but was moved to its current location in 1898 due to the construction of the Millennium Column.

FOLLOWING A DIFFERENT TRACK

Photo: mapio.net

in the 18th century along with the villa built by “the great Hungarian storyteller” Mór Jókai. The former press house currently houses the DanubeIpoly National Park’s headquarters, as well as the Hungarian Ornithological and Nature Conservation Society.

The majority of those out on an excursion continue their journeys from the terminus of the cogwheel railway and walk two minutes to the Children’s Railway. This single-track narrow-gauge railway is 11 kilometres in length and winds around the Buda hills during its 40-50-minute trip to Hûvösvölgy. The first stop on the line is Normafa. This popular excursion spot received its name from a several-hundred-year-old beech tree that has since toppled over. Rozália Schodelné Klein, the National Theatre singer 7

Photo: Székely S. / panoramio.com

The Children’s Railway takes passengers through Hegyvidék’s magical landscapes from one crest to another.

famous throughout Europe, was touched by the greeting she received from her troupe and sang the aria from Bellini’s Norma opera in 1840 at the tree’s base. The tree was struck by lightning on multiple occasions, before toppling over in 1927.

Today, a memorial plaque marks its former location, next to which a sapling was planted, which has grown into a considerable tree itself over the previous nine decades.

Photo: BFTK / Diatár

The Buda Hills form the city’s lungs, offering residents recreational opportunities in nature just a short trip away.

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The location and its beautiful panorama are popular throughout the year, and in the ski hut erected in 1920 the Normakert restaurant offers excellent culinary treats. During the snow-filled

winter months, Normafa’s sloping meadows offer a wonderful opportunity for kids to go sledding or for their first attempts at skiing. In the summer, it is a favourite starting and finishing point for hikers, runners and dog walkers alike.

Hegyvidék’s local council, within the framework of the Normafa Program, will undertake nature and tourism-friendly developments for the Buda Nature Preserve, which is part of the Natura 2000 list. This preserve is home to numerous protected flora and insects, and is also famous for its rich bird life.

Photo: mapio.net

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Multiple tourist routes criss-cross Normafa, among which are the Mária Trail and the Hungarian Pilgrimage Trail. Of these two hiking trails inspired by the El Camino, the Mária Trail forms a cross by linking Central European Marian shrines from Mariazell, Austria to Sumuleu Ciuc, Romania and Czestochowa, Poland to Medugorje, BosniaHerzegovina. In addition, the Hungarian Pilgrimage Trail extends from Esztergom to Máriagyûd, passing through the many sacred Christian sites in Hungary. A 30-minute walk on both trails from Normafa will lead to the Queen of the Angels Shrine in Makkosmária on the city border, which has been a popular pilgrimage site since the 18th century. The 527-metre-tall János Hill can be easily reached via the Mária Trail from Makkosmária or via a paved road from Normafa. Atop this hill, the 23-meter-tall Elisabeth Lookout Tower was built in 1910 according to plans by Pál Klunzinger and Frigyes Schulek (who designed the Fisherman’s Bastion). The cylindrical, neo-Romanesque stone tower was named after Empress Elisabeth, the wife of Emperor Franz Joseph, who visited the peak in 1882. There are exactly 100 steps in the tower, which offers views extending up to 80 kilometres away on clear days.

The Elisabeth Lookout Tower stands atop János Hill, the tallest point in Budapest.

Photo: BFTK Diatár

The Holy Family Church awaits pilgrims near the bottom of the hills.

The crossroads of the Marian shrines

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Photo: Krisztián Bódis

The view from the Zugliget Chairlift (Libegő) is amazing.

Hegyvidék’s third unique mode of transportation is the Libegô located at the foot of the tower.

More than a kilometre long and with an elevation of 262 metres, this chairlift has operated yearround since 1970, facilitating easier access up the hill, or providing stunning panoramic views for those descending during its 12-minute ride.

The former terminal for Zugliget’s horsecar route is currently being renovated. (Plans by Zoboki-Demeter & Associates Architects)

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© Zoboki-Demeter & Associates Architects

The Libegô’s lower terminus in Zugliget can be easily reached from the Városmajor cogwheel railway station via Szilágyi Erzsébet Boulevard and Zugligeti Road by taking buses 22 and 291. In addition to the farmsteads and summer villas, from the 18th century onward this area witnessed the opening of luxurious restaurants and guesthouses, of which the most notable was the Laszlovszky Manor. This excursion destination was so pop-

ular that the first omnibus service in Budapest was launched in 1832, followed later by a horsecar route to transport passengers from various parts of the city, until the first tram line in Buda opened on this route in 1896. A gorgeous station building was erected on the spot, which is currently being renovated based on plans by Gábor Zoboki, who designed Müpa Budapest. In the future the building will feature an exhibition on the area’s history.

The Laszlovszky Manor was sold by the family in the early 20th century to the Congregation of Jesus, who on the neighbouring plot built the Holy Family Parish Church of Zugliget. The Hungarian Charity Service of the Order of Malta moved in to this area in 1989. Half a year later, they assisted 500,000 East German refugees in the months before the fall of the Iron Curtain.

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© MMA / Matyas Szollosi

Destination of the city elite

The Hild Villa is now used by the Hungarian Academy of Arts.

The renovated Ybl Villa is one of Hegyvidék’s most elegant palaces.

Photo: Mittecomm / Balázs Czizik

The two buildings surrounded by elegant parkland are today owned by the Hungarian Academy of the Arts. The former houses the Art Theory and Methodology Research Institute, and the latter is expected to serve state functions. The draw of Zugliget’s charm and peacefulness was not limited to locals, however. As the valley was divided and developed in the 20th century, the American Ambassadorial Residence and the Algerian Embassy were built near the Libegô’s terminus, but other diplomatic facilities, such as the embassies of Australia, Belarus, Denmark, Egypt, Japan, Cuba, Pakistan and Ukraine, as well as the ambassadorial residence of France, are also located in this district.

© MMA / Matyas Szollosi

Many summer residences were built in the area by members of the city elite in the 19th century, among which are two outstandingly beautiful examples found along Budakeszi Road. These recently renovated villas located next to each other were designed by two of the most significant architects of the era: József Hild and Miklós Ybl. The classicist Hild Villa built in 1844 was designed by the architect himself, while the romantic Ybl Villa built in the 1850s was home to politicians, magnates and aristocrats.

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Látványterv: MOME Photo: Mittecomm / Balázs Csizik

The past, present and future in Hegyvidék

Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design’s temporary “Z” building, located on the campus of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics.

Design: MOME

The plan for the Media and Studio House at Moholy-Nagy University’s Zugliget campus.

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Hegyvidék is also an educational centre for future generations. The Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design (MOME) is located in the district and is the most prestigious institute of its kind in Hungary.

In March 2006, when the University of Applied Arts celebrated its 125th anniversary, it adopted László Moholy-Nagy’s name. Moholy-Nagy was a photographer, constructivist painter, industrial designer, professor in the Bauhaus school and an experimental film pioneer. Thanks to its international connections, MOME is able to provide state-of-the-art design and architectural and visual communications instruction to its students. The institute plays a defining role in cultural life and its students are regularly invited to national and international competitions and festivals, where they have placed prominently.

The University of Physical Education, located in Buda on Alkotás Road south of Déli Railway Station, has educated students for more than 90 years. Originally simply an institution for training physical education teachers and professional trainers, today it is so much more. In addition to being Hungary’s only higher education institution with a doctoral programme in sports sciences, it also offers two bachelor’s and four master’s degrees, as well as training programmes in sport and recreational organisation, coaching, sports management, kinesiology and recreation. More than 90 Olympic champions, coaches and numerous sports directors have earned degrees from the university. According to University Rector Lajos Mocsai, the university Is being updated not only in terms of its facilities, but also with respect

Visual design: Viktor Veres - Nemzeti Sport

HEG Y V IDÉK , THE CIT Y ’S W EEK END GE TAWAY

Centre, will be completely renovated by 2018. The site will see the construction of an underground hall, where, in addition to education, a 1,500-2,000 square metre area will be available for gym work and rehabilitation. A new athletics track and artificial football pitch will also be built. The new facilities will be suitable for using state of the art sports science technology, thereby allowing for quicker implementation of advances in sports science research, supporting not only the university, but also the international competitiveness of Hungarian sports.

The investment’s later phases will also see the construction of an ice rink, tennis courts and probably a multi-purpose hall, which would also be open to local residents. All of these developments will be undertaken in a way that the building and renovated architecture will become part of the “urban fabric” and help shape this part of the district’s urban landscape.

Photo: Viktor Veres - Nemzeti Sport

to its educational system, content, and institutional structure as part of a 46-billion-forint development programme. Consequently, the university’s current enrolment will be expanded in several stages from its current 2,420 students to 3,500. There are also plans to relaunch its international coaching course with more than 100 students. The first stage of the development will be on the site next to the Alkotás Road campus, where the listed Hauszmann houses that previously served as hospital buildings will become part of the university and serve educational/research purposes as part of an integrated knowledge and research centre. At the same time, the building complex on Alkotás Road will be completed to become the university’s new educational, administrative and services centre.

Mocsai is confident that the university’s practical training facilities in Csörsz Street, known as the Jenô Koltai Sporting

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The new city centre of Hegyvidék Continuing along Alkotás Road, we arrive at the most modern part of Hegyvidék, which was built on the former location of the Hungarian Optical Works (Magyar Optikai Mûvek). The abbreviation of this institution with a storied past lends its name to MOM Park, which consists of a residential park with 166 flats, office buildings and a three-storey shopping centre spread over 40,000 square metres. Across Csörsz Street, the MOM Sports Pool and Sports Complex awaits those wishing to exercise.

Photo: larusetterem.hu

An organic farmer's market operates next door to MOM Park on Saturdays.

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The MOM Cultural Centre once linked to the factory buildings has survived and hosts prestigious Hungarian and international performers, dance productions and festivals. For the past decade, an organic market has operated outside the building each weekend and attracts customers from all over the city in search of qu-

ality produce. Just below the Centre, one can find the Larus Restaurant, which serves the best food from Hungarian and French traditions. The restaurant’s young chef Péter Várvizi is a notable figure in Hungary’s high-end culinary world and assisted the Hungarian team as a coach in the 2014 Bocuse d’Or European Championship.

The MOM Gesztenyéskert Park, located below the Centre and bordered by Csörsz Street and Alkotás and Jagelló Roads, is a park created in 1984 on the site of the former Németvölgy Cemetery. This chestnut orchard, which has preserved its natural plant life, contains an obelisk in memory of the Hungarian Army from the 184849 Revolution and Failed War of Independence, the 1956 Revolution, and the victims of fascism.

At the time the park was developed, the four-star Novotel Budapest City hotel was also built along with the Budapest Congress Centre, which has a capacity of 2,000 in its Pátria Hall.

Over the past three decades, it

HEG Y V IDÉK , THE CIT Y ’S W EEK END GE TAWAY

Photo: larusetterem.hu

The Mom Park shopping centre is one of Buda’s most popular.

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Photo: mapio.net

Hegyvidék Centre, one of Budapest’s newest malls and also its first green shopping centre. A total of 45 stores surround a central atrium that contains the world’s largest lenticular work of art, Gyula Várnai’s Erdô a tisztáson¸ which changes according to the viewer’s perspective.

North of the MOM Cultural Centre at the upper end of Apor Vilmos Square, one can find the Photo: ezazanap.hu

The Budapest Congress Center is the city’s largest events hall with a capacity of 2,000.

has seen all sorts of international celebrities take the stage to packed houses, from a performance by the opera singer Edita Gruberová, a blues concert by the actor Hugh Laurie, and a stand-up show by the comedian Louis C.K.

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Photo: Mittecomm / Balázs Csizik

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Pantheon of famous Hungarians

Photo: Mittecomm / Mátyás Misetics

For over a century, tram 59 has wound up the hillsides of District XII on its journey from Széll Kálmán Square to Németvölgyi Road, passing by Farkasréti Cemetery, one of Budapest and Hungary’s most important graveyards. The largest cemetery in Buda was opened in 1894, and became the preferred final resting place of the Hungarian elite, numerous scholars and artists, as well as political, religious and economic leaders over the last century. Among the most prestigious Hungarian artists and authors, one can find the graves of the composers Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály, the conductor János Ferencsik, the pianists Annie Fischer and Zoltán Kocsis, the author Magda Szabó, the architect Imre Makovecz, the Olympic champion boxer László Papp and the master chef József C. Dobos, the inventor of the famous cake that bears his name.

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Photo: mapio.net

A garden of delights: Városmajor

Photo: mapio.net

The Városmajor Church of the Sacred Heart.

Semmelweis University’s Heart and Vascular Center, where the first successful heart transplant in Hungary was performed.

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Városmajor Park is a unique area within Hegyvidék, located a minute’s walk from the Széll Kálmán Square transportation hub. Formerly 3,000 but today 1,000 square meters in size, the park filters and cleans the air of the nearby transportation corridors.

Henrik Daun, who was the commander of Buda Castle after its recapture from the Ottoman Turks in 1686, would lay the foundations for Budapest’s first public park. He created a grassy meadow with a summer residence on the site, and after he left Buda this villa continued as a restaurant.

The city purchased the manor and transformed it into a park, planting trees so that by 1787 a French-style public park inspired by Schönbrunn was completed. From the 1780s Városmajor Park hosted events regularly, including enormous public celebrations, with an entertainment area opening among the trees by the mid-19th century.

The early 20th century launched a new era in the park’s history, which is when it received its current form. In 1912 the János Sanatorium opened, where notable Hungarian actors and authors went

Photo: szabadter.hu

HEG Y V IDÉK , THE CIT Y ’S W EEK END GE TAWAY

ted its first film. Thirty years later in 1952 the Városmajor Open-air Stage opened, with the seats and stage receiving a roof to protect against the rain in 2010. With a capacity of 800, the Stage is a popular theatre, hosting prose and music performances, as well as the Theatre Review, a mini festival that focuses on the most entertaining performances from theatres outside Budapest.

Children’s theatre performances await families on weekends, as do concerts ranging from classical to jazz and world music.

The Városmajor Open-air Stage hosts excellent music and theatre productions.

Photo: szabadter.hu / Bíborka Bocskor

to rest (among them Mari Jászai, Endre Ady and Mihály Babits). Today Semmelweis University’s Heart and Vascular Center operates in its buildings, which is where the first heart transplant in Hungary was performed in 1992. The nearby art nouveau chapel was built between 1923-1925, and alongside it the larger cubist church with its tower was completed in 1936.

Playgrounds and sporting facilities (including tennis courts) were built between the walkways, and in 1922 the open-air movie theatre projec-

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Photo: MTVA / Zoltรกn Balogh

HE ADER

Testimonials of the heart Budapest’s star has been on a continuous rise both in the traditional trade press as well as within travel blogger circles.

What has stood out to them is our architectural heritage, and how romance and modernism seamlessly fit side by side.

But citizens of the world who have travelled far and wide across continents also love our city. The panoramic view from the Danube is something that not only visitors, but locals alike can never grow tired of.

Paralympic swimmer Bianka Papp, Olympic silver and bronze medalwinning swimmer László Cseh, Oszkár Lavotha, European Champion and Olympian Evelyn Verrasztó, three-time Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer Katinka Hosszú, World and European Short Course Champion Péter Bernek, Olympian Márk Papp, Olympic Champion swimmer Dániel Gyurta, and junior national team swimmers Tamás Novoszáth and Noel Novoszáth in the Danube Arena.

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“A HAPPY CITY ATTRACTS TOURISTS” Teodóra Bán on a smiling Budapest Text: M. ZS.

“Tourism has grown into an enormous industry that spans continents. These days, it’s not only backpackers who we expect to visit Budapest, but visitors who wish to discover the city’s specialities, unique opportunities and activities, seeing the sights. Visitors arrive for sport, culture, festival programmes and attractions, in some cases expecting luxurious surroundings at their destination,” says Teodóra Bán, Managing Director of the Budapest Festival and Tourism Centre.

Photo: urbanfoto.hu

The Budapest Festival and Tourism Centre (BFTK) that she oversees is currently organising the programme for the Budapest Spring Festival, which runs from 31 March to 23 April, and primarily offers high-quality cultural events. But how does Bán prepare her team, as the capital’s tourism and cultural services provider, for the events that will be held this spring and summer in Budapest, as well as events further in the future? What are the priorities, and which responsibilities will receive special attention and even closer collaboration in advance of this enormous event? Does it draw attention and financial resources away from culture, or, conversely, does it result in an even greater number of events being planned for visitors to Budapest? We’ll return to these questions at the end of our discussion.

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“In the international competition for tourists, our beautiful and beloved capital Budapest is capable of such “feats” that positively differentiate it from other metropolises,” Bán explained. She mentioned the development of attractions, the organisation of major and world events in the cultural realm and recent investments. Among these are the funicular, the renovation of the Castle Garden Bazaar and the construction of Metro 4, with the Szent Gellért tér and Fôvám tér stations receiving first prizes in a competition held by the international architectural portal ArchDaily. Bán also highlighted the construction of Bálna Budapest, the reopening of the Vigadó Concert Hall and the Erkel Theatre, the opening of Müpa Budapest and its world-class operation, the ongoing reconstruction of the Museum of Fine Arts, and the Liget Project, including the House of Music. She also drew attention to the capital’s unparalleled natural attributes and its built wonders such as the Parliament building, the bridges spanning the Danube, Buda Castle, and, last but not least, Budapest’s stunning panorama. Bán considers the 2017 World Aquatics Championships to be a great challenge and a “dress rehearsal”, for which the Danube Aquatics Arena will open its doors, or rather, pools. Hopefully, the city will

Photo: BFTK / István Práczky

TE STIMONIAL S OF THE HE ART

“2017 will be the year of sport tourism, with fantastic associated events. Everything in the entire city, from its roads, transportation, parks, nightlife and ruin pubs to its concert venues and exhibition halls need to be fresh and comfortable. Young and cheerful the way we like it, in places where we feel at home and await and receive guests warmly,” Bán said. “The capital’s tourism organisation has a significant responsibility to provide information and services. The experiences and qualified people working in the Festival and Tourism Centre’s Budapestinfo office network (located at Ferenc

Budapest has something to offer visitors every day of the year.

The grand Danube Arena was built for the 2017 World Aquatics Championships.

Photo: Napur Architect Kft.

excel, she adds. Budapest’s Danube panorama will dominate the opening ceremony, which will be broadcast in nearly every country around the world. Another positive outcome is that the development strategy put forth by the city also takes into account the creation of new job opportunities, she added. The team at the Budapest Festival and Tourism Centre (the tourism, programming, event planning, city card and marketing division) work together so that even greater numbers of tourists will arrive to the city to savour a rich variety of experiences.

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Photo: szabadter.hu

From the late spring onward, open-air venues once again await visitors.

Photo: BFTK / István Práczky

Tourist information desks assist visitors and can be found at popular locations throughout the city.

Liszt International Airport, Buda Castle and Sütô Street at Heroes’ Square) annually receive three million tourists and provide them with tourism services. This takes place not only in the offices, but also at the Budapestinfo Tourist Information Points located in 22 popular locations throughout the city.”

Produced by BFTK and the city, the Budapest Card family guarantees quality service packages, including free public transportation. Cardholders can assemble a programme spanning several days to maximise their enjoyment of Budapest. “The

BFTK’s budapestinfo.hu webpage is a window onto our city and is simultaneously an invitation.

Every day of the year, the city is ready to welcome guests to culinary events, recreational thermal springs, Danube cruises and excursions in the Buda Hills. Tourists can also go to Margaret Island with its wonderful atmosphere during the summer and visit the Margaret Island Open-air Stage, where international stars from five continents spanning the genres of opera, ballet, jazz and pop music will all take the stage this summer.

Each year, Budapest’s selection of programmes expands for each season and age group. During the school year, the city attracts older guests, who visit the Gellért, Rudas or Széchenyi Thermal Baths. In the winter, the Christmas Market, New Year’s Eve and Carnival events enchant travellers in addition to high-quality theatre and concerts.

Tourists with a refined palate can also visit our Michelin-starred and Gault&Millau recommended restaurants to discover the foundations for our success at the Bocuse D’Or “chef Olympics”.

Summertime is for the youth and young families, thanks to events like the Sziget Festival,” Bán revealed in detail.

“Tourism is a profession that operates empirically. Steadily increasing the city’s competitiveness is an ongoing responsibility and great challenge for us all,” Bán continued. “Successful work is only possible with a good team and good support from senior management. Budapest Mayor István Tarlos and Deputy Mayor Alexandra SzalayBobrovniczky, who is responsible for tourism, are

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Photo: BFTK / István Práczky

TE STIMONIAL S OF THE HE ART

The next exciting event will be the Budapest Spring Festival, which has developed into one of Europe’s most important cultural attractions during its 37 years. “For the third year, the BFTK and Müpa Budapest are organising the festival with guaranteed financial support from the government and the municipality. Consequently, we are more capable of following the larger events taking place around the world that we would also like to bring to Budapest,” she adds. “Our colleagues responsible for culture continuously monitor what is available around the

globe. Internationally-acclaimed performers have busy schedules, so the programme is assembled well ahead of time, with invitations sent out years in advance.”

Tourists cool down at Erzsébet Square in central Budapest.

The organisers also consider it important that the city and its residents also feel some ownership toward the Budapest Spring Festival. This is why programmes are not limited to the Opera, Academy of Music or other traditionally “aristocratic” locations, but are spread throughout the city in nearly every district. In addition to performances by Pumeza Matshikiza, John Malkovich, Denis Matsuev, Ivo Pogorelich, Kristóf Baráti, the Shanghai Quartet and other stars, maintaining a youthful feel is also an important perspective, so we provide performance opportunities for scholarship recipients from art schools and universities. Looking to the future, the opportunity to introduce themselves alongside the greatest stars in a festival can be a defining moment for those still early in their careers.

Photo: BFTK / István Práczky

confident in our abilities. Together with the Hungarian Tourism Agency and in collaboration with our partners active in Budapest tourism, we wish to combine our company’s wealth of experience for the benefit of Budapest. Three years ago, together with the deputy mayor as chairwoman, we founded the Budapest Tourism Roundtable, which consists of companies that play a defining role in the city’s tourism. The panel assembles proposals in workgroups to aid the further development of Budapest tourism.”

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WHY I LOVE BUDAPEST Lajos Koltai, Hungary’s award-winning cinematographer Text: Gyula Balogh

Lajos Koltai’s name is known worldwide, having been nominated for an Academy Award in 2001 for his cinematography in Malèna, and for his work on the István Szabó-directed Mephisto, which won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1982. Although there have been years when he’s spent more time in America than at home in Budapest, Koltai remains loyal to the city of his birth.

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poetic atmospheres. We’ve had access to such elegant spaces as the Museum of Ethnography. The Hungarian State Opera doubled for the Palais Garnier in Meeting Venus, which starred Glenn Close. The film’s producer David Puttnam suggested Buenos Aires at first for shooting, but once he saw the Opera building in Budapest and saw its interior he said ‘we’re not going anywhere; we’re staying here’”.

“We’ve found everything in Budapest,” he continued, “From fantastic stairwells to wood-panelled offices, we’ve found the things necessary for depicting high society elegance from the pre-war years. Our films are lined with the most beautiful Budapest locations. Although with Szabó we focused primarily on human faces, we also made certain to place those faces in the appropriate surroundings, which we could easily do since Budapest is so rich architecturally. The milieu surrounding those faces reinforced the characters. The city’s beauty radiates from our films. We used Budapest’s previous 100-200 years, and this is the Budapest that I love and which I am always delighted to show. I also consider Lôrinc Pap Square in District VIII among these places, which is where Sunshine opens and closes. Additionally, the church on the square is where I was married and where I filmed one of my film school exams,” Koltai added.

Photo: Judit Fáryné Szalatnyay

Lajos Koltai was born in Budapest and considers himself a true lad of Óbuda. His mother was descended from the Hufnágel family, whose roots go back far in Óbuda. “We lived close to the school, so I was never able to skip school since my Mother would have seen from the kitchen window if I didn’t go inside,” Koltai revealed. “We later moved elsewhere, but in my heart I still considered myself from Óbuda. I became a lad from Pest when I met my future wife in 1962, who lived in downtown Pest, which was quite new to me. When we married in 1969 I moved to Váci Street and we lived in her parents’ home for ten years. These days we live in Buda. One after the other, I managed to live in the three cities that unified in 1873 to form Budapest, and as a result I truly consider myself a Budapester.”

Many other memories tie the director/cinematographer to this city. He met his wife at the Schmidt Mansion of the Kiscelli Museum in Óbuda, and to him this historic location is just as important of a memory as is Bécsi Road with its yellow ceramic bricks that he travelled on as a teenager.

“I am captivated by the Danube. The view is majestic, irrespective of whether I’m looking from the Pest embankment to Buda or from Buda to Pest,” he continued. “Budapest’s proportionality is amazing and beautiful and worthy of protection. The widening Danube takes the form of a bay as the hills hug the river. Through my work I bring many foreigners to my city, and without exception they are all amazed by it.”

Koltai has travelled far and wide, but each time he returns home to Budapest he falls in love with the city again and again. “There are more and more tourists coming who are interested in us, and this is huge. I really love the parts of Budapest built from 1870-1930, and would love to take everyone by the hand to show it to them. That was the period of the most beautiful construction work. I spent 37 years alongside my friend the director István Szabó, with whom I made most of my films. Few know Budapest better than him. I’m not exaggerating much when I say that we’ve filmed on nearly every street corner and in countless buildings. We used this city to stand in for Vienna in Colonel Redl and Hanussen. The story in Sunshine is completely Hungarian and is set in Pest. We’ve documented in pictures all of the metropolis’s flavours and

The Schmidt Palace in Óbuda, part of the Kiscelli Museum.

Photo: © Zsófia Pályi

TE STIMONIAL S OF THE HE ART

Filmography

Photo: Edit Mészáros-Freidl

At the closing ceremony of the 10th Aranyszem Cinematography Festival in 2013, Lajos Koltai awarded Vittorio Storaro with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

As a high school student Lajos Koltai prepared amateur films, and in 1965 began his studies at the Academy of Drama and Film where he studied under the famous György Illés. Koltai graduated in 1970 with the film Agitátorok. Among his more famous works as a cinematographer are A Priceless Day (1979), the Academy Award-winning Mephisto (1981), Time Stands Still (1981), Colonel Redl (1981), Hanussen (1988), Meeting Venus (1991), Sweet Emma, Dear Böbe (1992) and Sunshine (1999). In 1998 he filmed Giuseppe Tornatore’s The Legend of 1900, and was nominated for an Academy Award for his cinematography on Malèna (2000). In 2005 Koltai directed the film adaptation of Fatelessness based on the novel of the same name by the Nobel Prize-winning author Imre Kertész. In 2007 he directed Evening, which starred Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Claire Danes, Toni Collette, Vanessa Redgrave and Natasha Richardson. Koltai has also been the recipient of the Kossuth Prize (1985), Best European Cinematographer – European Film Awards (1999), Honorary Citizenship of Budapest (2012) and Artist of the Nation (2016).

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Photo: © Woosanghee

HE ADER

Rendezvous with culture in Budapest Winter tested us all in 2017 so that we await spring even more than we usually do.

We long for the days when overnight frosts are no more so that after a wonderful concert or theatre performance we can remain captivated by the experience as we go for a stroll through the city. Although the forecast does not call for an early spring, the Hungarian capital’s cultural life becomes vibrant once again as it has for the previous 37 years.

The Budapest Spring Festival awaits visitors and Budapest residents with much more than traditional concerts, featuring artists from afar and extraordinary individuals, as world-famous and up-and-coming talents take the stage.

Who should you go see?

Let us provide some recommendations.

The world music band Coreyah.

Please see our article on page 36.

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THE DEVIL WITH A THOUSAND FACES

JOHN MALKOVICH Text: András Oláh

Photo: Sandro Miller

The Budapest Spring Festival is pleased to once again welcome the legendary American actor after a five-year absence, who will perform in Austrian writer-director Michael Sturminger’s exciting new production of theatre and music. Just Call Me God uses a dictator’s final speech to explore why people feel the need time and again to elevate a despot into power.

The performance at Müpa Budapest on 4 April will give us the opportunity to examine why we love Malkovich’s devious characters.

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RENDE Z VOUS W ITH CULTURE IN BUDAPE ST Ever since he became a member of the Hollywood elite through his portrayal of the devilishly intelligent, calculating and passionate Vicomte de Valmont in Dangerous Liaisons, John Malkovich’s name has become synonymous with the archetype of sophisticated evil.

Photo: Olga Martschitsch

Despite this, the 63-year-old American actor feels much closer to simpler and more honest characters such as Lennie from John Steinbeck’s classic Of Mice and Men, or the occasionally neurotic, impetuous and grotesque characters he portrayed in Being John Malkovich, The Man in the Iron Mask and RED. In addition to his film roles, however, Malkovich has also performed one-man stage shows, in which he has performed as the serial killer Jack Unterweger or Casanova, thereby not only responding to the desires of the audience, but also providing himself with the opportunity to return to his true and frequently neglected love: theatre. But why is it that audiences seemingly cannot get enough of his characters, which, while exciting, are not exactly easy to identify with?

Colleagues and critics alike agree that the Chicago-born actor’s personality possesses a unique playfulness both in life and on stage. His darkest characters are still capable of conjuring up some impishness, through which he makes them engaging and charming to the point where they nearly win over the audience before going through a sudden and profound transformation that reveals their true nature. The reserved nature is just a façade, as Malkovich is capable of bringing forth the widest array of emotions and is capable of returning to his earlier, good-humoured persona at any moment. At the same time, the “thirst for blood” necessary for his current dictator role is not alien to him, for he was a committed supporter of the Iraq War and has repeatedly defended capital punishment. According to one of his colleagues: “He's so right-wing – you have to wonder if he's kidding.”

This type of playful theatricality is characteristic of his entire career, ever since he founded Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre in the 1970s with his university friends, among them the internationally renowned Gary Sinise. Malkovich was considered the group’s star from the beginning, and when the troupe performed in the 1980s in New York with Sam Shepard’s True West, the talented young actor received an invitation to perform on Broadway. In 1984, Malkovich starred alongside Dustin Hoffman in Death of a Salesmen as Biff, reprising the role a year later in the made-for-television film adaptation, for which he won an Emmy. Malkovich also worked with Steven Spielberg in Empire of the Sun, and was an established actor by the time he was offered the lead role in Dangerous Liaisons.

During a career that spans four decades, Malkovich has performed in 100 films in roles of varying size, be they Hollywood blockbusters or low-budget American and European chamber plays, occasionally even appearing in comedy roles. Perhaps one of his strangest recent performances was in Robert Rodriguez’s short film 100 Years, in association with the cognac Louis XIII de Rémy Martin, which will only be screened in 2115.

Malkovich has also worked as a director and producer, and has also opened a restaurant in Portugal. Taken all together, it can be said that he enjoys what life has to offer. A Bohemian, his on-stage characters live on in the real world through the clothes that he wears. His friends and colleagues said that his simple but extravagant style goes back to his high school years, which has also lead to various adventures within the fashion world. Malkovich has even occasionally walked the catwalk at shows for Japanese fashion label Comme Des Garçons, and in the early 2000s he founded his own brand called mrs. mudd, which was followed in 2010 by Technobohemian. This January, he lent his own name to his clothes. In contrast to many other celebrities who lend their names to various brands, Malkovich actively participated in designing the outfits and in selecting materials. His ornate style and thorough attention to detail, spiced with his eccentric and unpredictable temperament, are the kind of traits that a dictator wishing to be like God would be proud to possess.

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A MASTERPIECE BORN OF TRAGEDY Text: Becze Szilvia

On 1 May 1904 the celebrated Czech composer Antonín Dvořák was feeling well enough to participate in his country’s national celebrations following a month of bed rest. That afternoon he enjoyed a bowl of soup, and those around him were happy to see that the composer was on the road to recovery. Unexpectedly, however, Dvořák died that very same day.

On that day the world lost not only a great composer, but a wonderful person as well. Although his works were played worldwide, he never let fame go to his head and never forgot his Czech roots. This was the reason why he did not heed the words of his mentor Johannes Brahms, who advised him to move to Vienna, and to not give his works Czech names.

Due to his unexpected death Dvořák left behind many unfinished works, despite his reputation for completing everything he started, and for composing magnificently in every genre. Among his symphonies the most widely known is the one subtitled “From the New World”, but he also composed exceptionally valuable operas, chamber works, songs and religious works.

Among the latter, Stabat Mater Op. 58 stands out from similar works with its perfect orchestration. The work is quite moving, since the Stabat Mater was inspired by personal tragedy.

Dvořák lost all three of his children. In 1875, his new-born daughter Jozefa died only two days after her birth. This loss was what spurred the deeply saddened father to compose this work, since he wanted to write the music of mourning and the search for consolation. Stabat Mater is a hymn about the Virgin Mary’s suffering next to the cross, and is one of the most widely known medieval songs. Dvořák set the work aside in 1876 for some time, but fate would not let him do so for long. On 13 August 1877 his 11-month old daughter Ruzena also died. In his pain, Dvořák returned to the Stabat Mater to find comfort.

Death would visit him again barely a month later when his three-year-old son Otakar died from smallpox. The Dvořáks were left childless.

Although they had more children later, this terrible triple tragedy left a lasting mark on Dvořák and his wife. At the time Dvořák felt that his only chance for survival was to throw himself into his work and complete the piece, consequently Stabat Mater Op. 58 was completed on 13 November 1877. It would have been self-explanatory if the ten verses had been broken down into ten parts, but Dvořák had a different idea.

In the work, which consists of ten parts of varying length, the verses are connected or divided according to how the feeling of mourning transforms into acceptance, and the rediscovery of Divine Providence.

The concert is sponsored by Staropramen, a proud and permanent supporter of Czech culture in Hungary. Staropramen believes that in addition to beer, Czech culture in Hungary should also be represented through film, music and literature.

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Multiple composers have written a Stabat Mater (such as Pergolesi or Rossini), but this unparalleled work is imbued with Dvořák’s deep religiousness and the sense of irreplaceable loss that resulted from his family tragedy. Therefore, his version of the hymn is probably the most personal, which symbolises eternal faith and hope.

Photo: Petra Hajská

Photo: Petra Hajská

RENDE Z VOUS W ITH CULTURE IN BUDAPE ST

The performers, the Prague Philharmonic Choir, are one of the leading choirs in the world, and are the most notable and authoritative representatives of Czech music. Since the choir was founded over 80 years ago it has collaborated with the world’s greatest orchestras and conductors. The choir performs regularly at the world’s most prestigious music festivals and possesses an exceptionally rich repertoire, from late baroque to contemporary music. First taking the stage in 1935 under the direction of Jan Kühn, the ensemble was at the time known as the Prague Radio News Choir and later as the Czech Choir. Founded as an amateur choir, in time it became professional, and formed part of the Czech Philharmonic until 1990. The Prague Philharmonic Choir is currently an independent ensemble, led by Lukáš Vasilek since 2007. It is especially important for the choir’s artists to maintain their famous and characteristic sound, as well as the value of their professional status.

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THE POET OF THE PIANO Ivo Pogorelich at the Liszt Academy

Photo: Malcolm Crowthers

Text: Györgyi Orbán

Ivo Pogorelich will perform in the Liszt Academy of Music’s Grand Hall on 13 April. His concert will feature Liszt’s Dante Sonata, Mozart’s Fantasia in C minor, Schumann’s Carnival Scenes from Vienna and Rachmaninoff’s Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor.

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RENDE Z VOUS W ITH CULTURE IN BUDAPE ST

One of the world’s most important pianists, Ivo Pogorelich will give his first recital in Hungary during the Budapest Spring Festival.

Pogorelich was the first to record directly for streaming via a smartphone, making classical music more accessible to younger generations. In collaboration with the Berlinbased IDAGIO classical music platform, he recorded two of Beethoven’s less commonly performed sonatas for release last November.

Pogorelich told a Zagreb newspaper that this recording of Beethoven’s early works allowed him to reveal a new side of the composer.

Competition in 1980, he did not make it to the final round, at which point the world famous pianist and jury member Martha Argerich declared “He’s a genius!” before resigning in protest. This awkward experience in Warsaw brought Pogorelich luck, however, since it provided him with new opportunities. The pianist bounced back from this uncertain start in 1981, when the storied record label Deutsche Grammophon released his Chopin record, which sold 20,000 copies in a single month. That same year, he debuted in Carnegie Hall, New York’s temple to music. Pogorelich then toured the world over the next 20 years, taking the stage with such notable orchestras as the Boston, Chicago and London Symphony Orchestras, and the Vienna and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestras, performing a 60 concerts per year.

Music critics dubbed him the poet of the piano. His repertoire consists of Baroque, Classical and Romantic pieces, as well as works by modern composers from the early 20th century.

Conducted by Claudio Abbado, he recorded Chopin with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1983, and performed Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto in B-flat minor, once again with Abbado. Pogorelich confessed to The Guardian that Abbado left a great impression on his later career. The British daily wrote of the Chopin recording that Pogorelich played Chopin faithfully without sentimentalism, and that there was not a single note that was not bright and clear.

The noted critic Bernhard Holland wrote in the New York Times of Pogorelich that his trademarks are fire and virtuosity, and his playing is vibrant and sensitive. In 2015, Der Spiegel characterised him as a narcissistic personality with golden fingers.

When he was younger, he carried himself as a popstar in jeans, attracting the youth like a magnet. These days, however, his hair is quite short and he wears a tuxedo on stage.

When his wife passed in 1996, Pogorelich completely withdrew from the limelight and moved to Lugano, Switzerland, where he has lived ever since. He returned to the stage at the end of the decade, performing a charity concert to support the Sarajevo Maternity Clinic damaged in the Balkan Wars and to assist the reconstruction of Dubrovnik. Pogorelich also launched a foundation for the treatment of cancer sufferers, and he was named a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. He Photo: Cyrill Guir

The artist, who has a deep respect for the old masters, was born in Belgrade in 1958. His father was a Croatian musician who played double bass with the Yugoslav Army Orchestra, while his mother was Serbian. His younger brother by 11 years is also a pianist and performed in Budapest in 2012.

Pogorelich’s talent was discovered early and he found himself in Moscow on a scholarship by the age of 12. There he completed the Central Special Music School, before continuing his piano studies at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory under the direction of his Georgian professor Aliza Kezeradze.

Kezeradze taught Pogorelich according to the methods of Alexander Siloti, who had been a pupil of Franz Liszt.

The Ukranian-born Siloti (1863-1945) studied at the Moscow Conservatory as a pianist, conductor and composer. During his tour of Germany, he became a student of Liszt’s while in Weimar, and they stayed in contact until the latter’s death in 1886. Siloti’s recollections of Liszt were published in book form in St. Petersburg in 1911. Pogorelich would marry his teacher Kezeradze, who also happened to be Siloti’s granddaughter, and the two lived together in London for 20 years until Kezeradze’s passing in 1996. He considers her as the basis for his life and work, a person who was beautiful, talented, classically refined, highly educated, and alongside whom there was no rest, but a constant drive to continue forward.

Pogorelich received a mixed reception at the beginning of his career. While participating in the International Chopin Piano

established another foundation to support young Croatian musical talents, and hosts masterclasses from China to Greece and Germany. According to the noted German critic Gregor Willmes, the young rebel has become a reference point in classic music. He is the type of artist who finds the true connection with the composer’s inner self.

Deutche Grammophon released the 14 records Pogorelich recorded between 1981-1995 as a set in early 2015, which featured the works of Chopin, Beethoven, Bach, Ravel, Tchaikovsky, Liszt, Haydn, Scarlatti, Brahms, Mussorgsky and Mozart. Of this, Willmes wrote that the artist is an outstanding talent, his playing is bewitching and exciting, and that his hands make the piano sound like an orchestra.

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KOREAN CULTURE: EXCITEMENT FOR ALL AGES Text: András Oláh The Budapest Spring Festival is always open to other cultures, and this exotic weekend will begin with an exhibition launch on 7 April.

This exhibit open until 9 April will primarily introduce the traditional Korean alcoholic beverage known as makgeolli, which through its ability to lift spirits has inspired numerous works of art. Of special note is the Korea Day on 8 April, when every age group can participate in Korean culture. Visitors can taste the increasingly popular flavours of Korean cuisine from six restaurants and three stores.

Traditional dance will be performed by the Mugunghwa, Manwol and Mindeulle dance groups, while youth music and fashion as expressed in K-Pop will be introduced through dances by the groups Idolater, Home Made Asia and LikeOn, with a K-Pop beauty salon and accessories store also operating for the occasion.

Gastronomy, music, dance, theatre, handicrafts and martial arts will all be on show from 7-9 April at Bálna Budapest. The Korea Day and related events hosted through a partnership between the Budapest Spring Festival and Korean Cultural Centre will offer excitement for people of all ages.

The renowned Korean Gypsy violinist KoN will also perform, who despite his young age has conquered the stages of South Korea, Japan and China, even performing in Budapest last year to great acclaim. Visitors can also see Korean handicrafts and games, as well as learn stamp making and artistic calligraphy. Additionally, we can take a look inside the school of the 15th century ruler King Sejong, whose fresh ideas, neologisms and scholarly discoveries continue to impact Korean culture to this day. The events will be complemented by market dancers, musicians, a taekwondo display and an e-sport centre.

The Korea Day will feature a diverse assortment of concerts.

7 April will see a performance by the well-known musician Gonne Choi in the Bálna, who blends the singer-songwriter traditions of indie-folk with her characteristic and unique sound. The young woman was one of the first South Korean musicians to perform at the world-famous Glastonbury Festival in 2014. Her performance was so well received that she was invited to perform again the following year. Choi’s debut record 36.5°C released in 2010 quickly brought her success at home. In 2013, she won the Asia Versus talent scouting programme shown on Japanese Fuji TV, in which emerging talents from South Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Indonesia compete 36

against each other. Choi’s songs focus on relationships and the small joys in life, and she will likely perform songs from her 2014 record I Was, I Am, I Will and last year’s XXXY.

The following day the widely acclaimed world music group Coreyah will take the stage at the Bálna. The six-member group, which has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the likewise storied Sfinks Mixed world music festival in Belgium, uses Korean folk music as their foundation, but their music incorporates musical influences from countless other cultures from Anglo-American pop-rock to jazz and Balkan Gypsy music as well as South American and African genres.

Coreyah plays exotic Korean folk instruments such as the Korean zither, the geomungo, the Korean dulcimer, the yanggeum, gongs such as the kkwaenggwari and the jing, as well as various flutes and whistles made from bamboo, such as the daegeum, sogeum and tungso, as well as the hourglass-shaped janggu drum, while also playing guitars and other percussion instruments from western music. The band’s name is a play on words, for transliterated into Korean it means whale, which is the group’s mascot, meaning that the audience on 8 April will get to see whales inside the Bálna, which itself means whale in Hungarian.

The closing of this event series will be two performances on 9 April from the Shim Cheong, which is a pansori (a Korean genre of musical storytelling) featuring modern elements. The musical production in the Bálna tells the story of a father and daughter, and is sponsored by the Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation. The performance will feature typical pansori elements such as the sword and peace dance, as the singer’s narrative story is brought to life by a 30-member company with live music and digital effects.

As a part of the festival, the Korean Cultural Centre will also hold a traditional instrument exhibition from 31 March to 21 April. btf.hu, koreaikultura.hu

RENDE Z VOUS W ITH CULTURE IN BUDAPE ST

EVERY DOOR OPENED BEFORE US Text: Máté Ur

Photo: shanghaiquartet.com

“A wonderfully unruly and thought-provoking presentation” the Washington Post wrote about the Shanghai Quartet , which was formed in the 1980s by alumni of the Shanghai Conservatory. The group, which for thirty years has blended far-eastern musical traditions with western music that moves on a wide emotional spectrum is one of the most progressive and innovative string quartets today. The ensemble will be one of the Budapest Spring Festival’s outstanding performers.

Three of the ensemble’s members Weigang Li, YiWen Jiang and Honggang Li were born in the China that was characterised by strong centralisation and a personality cult. This atmosphere was defined by the Cultural Revolution, which led to a dire situation for intellectuals and a decaying effect for higher education and the economy. The quartet formed in the early 1980s during the political thaw and the start of a new era of openness.

In 1984, a year after their founding, the Chinese Ministry of Culture selected the ensemble to participate in the international quartet competition held in Portsmouth, England. The group performed well and placed second at their first global competition. The quartet’s members, seizing the opportunity and the thaw in Chinese politics, travelled to the United States in 1985 to perfect their knowledge of the genre alongside the Vermeer Quartet. Following their New York debut in 1987, there was no question that every door in the United States stood open before the Shanghai Quartet. They became the resident ensemble for multiple universities, among them the University of Richmond. Later on the Shanghai Conservatory also awaited their return, and as their cellist, the American Nicholas Tzavaras said in an interview: “Since the quartet’s inception in 1983, teaching has played a significant role in the life of the Shanghai Quartet both on the road and at home. […] We find ourselves teaching quite a bit on the road and really look forward to working with young musicians. It's also nice to see those same students at our performances every so often.”

A nd with respect to concerts, the string quartet has over the previous three decades taken the stage in Asia, North and South America, as well as a string of European countries, performing together with notable soloists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Lynn Harrell, Wu Man and Peter Serkin. Not incidentally, in addition to quartet pieces the ensemble is also committed to new music and has performed a number of premieres of works by Bright Sheng, Carl Vine and David Del Tredici.

The quartet is also known for the number of their recordings.

They have recorded all of Beethoven’s string quartets, as well as Schumann and Dvořák’s piano quintets together with Rudolf Buchbinder. One of their most popular recordings is Chinasong, which is a collection of Chinese folk songs arranged

by Yi-Wen Jiang, and is a reflection on his childhood memories of the Cultural Revolution.

The ensemble will perform Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 6 in B-flat major and Schubert’s String Quartet No. 14 in D minor (“Death and the Maiden”) at the Liszt Academy of Music. They will arrive as unknown friends, since we have likely heard them before playing Bartók in Woody Allen’s film Melinda and Melinda, or have heard violinist Weigang Li in the documentary From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China.

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THE GRAND MASTER OF MODERN BALLET COMES TO BUDAPEST Text: Zsuzsa Mátraházi

“Peer Gynt is not a play, but a state of mind,” a critic of Henrik Ibsen’s play once wrote.

The drama is at times dreamlike, at others it enters the world of fairy tales, raising deep philosophical questions while depicting life and the reality of human relationships. Ibsen himself asked Edvard Grieg to set his work to music in 1874.

Henrik Ibsen published his work in 1867 and the music for Peer Gynt was written by Grieg in 1875, with the premiere taking place in 1876. The ballet company of the Slovene National Theatre of Maribor will perform this fundamentally absurd story with an emphasis on the surreal on 10 April in the Hungarian State Opera as part of the Budapest Spring Festival. The choreographer for the performance is the 43-year-old Edward Clug, who is of Romanian background.

Clug is so respected in his company that an entire week was devoted to his works on the 25th anniversary of his membership of the troupe last year. Of these, the latest was the choreography for Peer Gynt.

“Subconsciously, I’ve long been occupied with composing a great ballet d’action,” Clug said of the period leading up to the choreography’s development. “I tend to prepare pieces that are short and without a particular theme or historical thread.

Early on, I draw upon my emotions and instincts, after which I have to work on the details. But as the years have passed and the idea of a ballet d’action spun in my head, it became increasingly clear that I would choose Peer Gynt, Ibsen’s mysterious masterpiece. Perhaps the idea has been maturing inside me ever since I joined Maribor and the first performance in which I dance happened to be Waclaw Orlikowsky’s rendition of Peer Gynt.”

This decision matured to the point where, at the end of 2012, he approached Reed Andersen, the director of the Stuttgart Ballet, with the idea of creating a full-length choreography.

Fortunately, as he now recalls, it did not come together.

“I still needed a few more years for the production to mature further. During this time, what we would like to show in this project and why crystallised. Peer Gynt is fundamentally a complicated character. I let this concept work its way around in my head for some time so that a way in which to present it through dance and movements would work itself out. I had to invent characters, creatures and situations that would fit the dramatic atmosphere created by Ibsen’s words. Ibsen’s work opens with Peer telling his mother a Norwegian folktale about a reindeer hunt as if he were the story’s hero. This was extended to the whole performance, which has the deer as one of 38

its main characters, as Peer’s alter ego and guardian angel at once.”

The choreographer spoke of the distinctive nature of the performance, which balances on the line between reality and fantasy: “Ibsen concentrates on the real world that is unconventionally mirrored by Peer’s fantasy, while Grieg’s music evokes romantic landscapes despite the dramatic actions. My goal was to overcome the contradictions of these two versions. During my preparations, I studied not only Peer Gynt from Grieg but also his most popular chamber music as well, and I integrated parts of these works into the performance. I stepped into Peer Gynt’s world of fantasy through a door I opened myself, and I invite everyone to step inside as well, so that they too can enjoy a new ballet experience.”

The stage with its many actors is magical, and the choreography is inspirational. The costumes for the trolls and other creatures designed by Leo Kulaš is the stuff of (frightful) dreams, while the reindeer will have four legs that require its performer Sytze Jan Luske to dance for an hour with crutch-like “front legs”. When Clug was asked how the dancer responded to this unnatural situation, he was surprised at first, since he had not even considered the role’s difficulty and took for granted that it could be performed on stage. Clug only asked Luske later, who responded that he would consider the role a challenge.

In February, Clug prepared a new choreography for the melodies of the experimental Balanescu Quartet for the Ballet Dortmund. The coming months will be filled with excited anticipation since two of Clug’s works from last year have been nominated for the Prix Benois de la Danse, the Oscars of the ballet world. Sacre was performed by the Ballet Zürich and the other he prepared for the Nederlands Dans Theater 2 under the title Handman. The Hague-based contemporary dance company is among the world’s elite and performed this production at Müpa Budapest on 19 February as part of the Budapest Dance Festival. As to whether or not Hungarian audiences have seen one of this year’s award-winning works, that will be revealed when the Prix Benois de la Danse are awarded in Moscow on 30 May at the Bolshoi Theatre.

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Photo: Marta Tiberiu

Edward Clug was born in Beius, Romania, and graduated from the National Ballet School in Cluj-Napoca in 1992. That year, he signed to the Slovene National Theatre in Maribor as a soloist, becoming its artistic director in 2003. His first choreography was for Babylon in 1996 for his own company, and his first full-evening ballet Tango premiered two years later. Radio and Juliet, a modern interpretation of Romeo and Juliet, was based on the music of Radiohead and was an international success in 2005.

The Maribor company have toured the world with Clug, earning accolades at festivals in the Netherlands, Italy, Singapore, South Korea, Israel, Russia, Canada and the United States. By 2012 he was already past his jubilee 100th performance at the Maribor Theatre.

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MAGICALLY FRESH MELODIES FROM THE NORTH Text: András Oláh

Photo: Rovaniemen taidemuseo / Arto Liiti

Founded in 1972, the Lapland Chamber Orchestra from The orchestra’s concert at the Budapest Spring Festival will Rovaniemi is the most northerly professional orchestra in highlight several links to Hungary. Although the majority of Finland and indeed the European Union, and have achieved the orchestra is from Lapland, the cellist László Ghéczy spent far greater success than is typical for city orchestras. The 15 years with the orchestra starting from the 1990s, and Attila Lapland Chamber Orchestra performs more contemporary and Renáta Mojzer have performed with the orchestra for music than any other Finnish municipal orchestra, and two decades, with Renáta as second concertmaster and Antal has collaborated in important premieres together with as a bassoonist. The evening’s soloist for the concert in the international composers such as the Danish Bent Sørensen, the Vigadó Concert Hall will be the promising young Hungarian cimbalist András Szalai, who will join British Dave Maric or the Hungarian József Sári, as well as notable Finnish The Lapland Chamber Orchestra the orchestra during their performance composers such as Aulis Sallinen, will perform an introduction to of the contemporary French composer Édith Canat de Chizy’s work Lands Pehr Henrik Nordgren and Kalevi the works of the great masters Away. Zoltán Kodály’s early but still Aho. The latter’s Symphony No. 14 Rituals will be performed in Budapest, as well as contemporary Finnish popular chamber piece Adagio will be performed, which originates from the and a 2009 recording of this piece composers within a European performed by the Orchestra was context. The concert on 12 April same period as Debussy’s Préludes, four of which will also be performed with selected as the record of the year by in the Vigadó Concert Hall will an orchestral arrangement. Last but Finnish Broadcasting Company YLE. also highlight various links to not least the notable Finnish composer The Finnish violinist and conductor Aarre Merikanto’s Arioso based on Hungary.

John Storgårds has been the multiple an Ugor folk song will be part of award-winning orchestra’s artistic director for twenty years, the programme, which can be considered a tip of the hat to who in addition to leading the orchestra has received acclaim Finnish-Hungarian musical relations. as the Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra as well as Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra. In addition to touring Scandinavia, the orchestra has performed in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as at the BBC Proms in London, the Carinthian Summer Music Festival in Austria, and the International Music Festival in Algeria.

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INTERNATIONAL STARS ON THE STAGE Text: András Oláh

A number of exciting programmes are in store for theatre enthusiasts at this year’s Budapest Spring Festival, and it is worth taking into account that the genre’s boundaries will be blurred, since theatre will mix with new circus and dance.

Photo: Regina Brocke

The Átrium Film & Theatre will host a performance on 12 April of Vándorlásra születve… Journey. The road that leads from Novi Sad to Berlin was for years the only escape from poverty and exclusion for the Roma from the Balkans. Since the Balkan countries were officially considered “safe”, the chances for being recognised as refugees in Germany was effectively null. How is it possible to lead a normal and predictable life for those stuck between German deportation and Balkan agony? This piece, a collaboration by Hungarian, Serbian,

Romanian, German, Roma and non-Roma artists seeks to answer this question. The production is written and performed

by Hamze Bytyci, Mihaela Dragaˇn, Kristóf Horváth, Branislav Mitrovic`, Péter Zoltán Ónodi, Brina Stinehelfer and Liou van de Havel.

The Átrium will also host Tamás Dömötör’s Kihallgatás on 4 April, which will be directed by Dömötör himself. This crime thriller is a story of sin and the relativity of society’s relationship with it. The performance will feature Tamás Mohai, Gusztáv Molnár, Szabolcs Thuróczy and Gábor Hevér.

The Trafó House of Contemporary Arts will host the Svalbard Company of Sweden who will perform contemporary circus with All Genius All Idiot on 31 March and 1 April. There is a fine line between the genius and the idiot. Another such line is be-

tween instinct and the intellect. But where? The up-and-coming Svalbard Company’s four members met at The University of Dance and Circus in Stockholm a few fateful years ago. This is their debut piece, which was awarded “best circus and physical theatre” at the Adelaide Fringe weekly awards in 2016.

Oscar and Viola are the heroes of the bitter-sweet Adieu! jointly produced by Bence Vági and Neil Fisher, which will premiere in the Müpa Budapest Festival Theatre on 18 April. We tend

A scene from the Israeli L-E-V formation’s performance of OCD Love.

to think that clowns equal laughter. Recirquel have already added nuance to this image with one of their productions, and now they go further as they weave the expressive means of contemporary circus into the story of two persons' lives.

The L-E-V company from Israel will take the stage in the Trafó on 13-14 April. The company’s name derives from the Hebrew word for heart. Sharon Eyal’s latest choreography, OCD Love, is concerned with matters of the heart. Eyal has collaborated with Gai Behar, another key figure of contemporary Israeli art, for over a decade. In 2013 they were joined by Ori Lichtik, and together the three established L-E-V. Previously Eyal had worked in the Batsheva Dance Company as a dancer and choreographer, while Behar had organised underground events with live music in Tel Aviv car parks and basements.

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A NEW PHOTO FESTIVAL BROADENS BUDAPEST’S CULTURAL PALETTE

Young artists in the footsteps of Moholy-Nagy, André Kertész and Brassaï Text: András Oláh

The new Budapest Photo Festival will herald the return of spring to the Hungarian capital, with the festival garnering attention from international photography circles even before its launch. The initiative will concentrate primarily on March and April, and will introduce young artists, exhibit curiosities from photography’s rich past and also include a “photo marathon”.

of Budapest also actively supports the festival, which comes under the patronage of Budapest Deputy Mayor Alexandra Szalay-Bobrovniczky.

With its diverse programmes that include workshops, museum educational activities and industry events, the festival will focus on two exhibitions that follow one another. The Mûcsarnok Hall will exhibit a collection entitled Alex Webb: The Suffering of Light from 1 March to 9 April, which will showcase the pioneering American colour photographer’s first monog-

Hungary has provided the world of photography with no shortage of emblematic figures, such as André Kertész, Brassaï and László Moholy-Nagy, in addition to the pioneering photojournalist Robert Capa and Martin Munkácsi, who is known for his fashion photography. These roots provided the basis for launching a new and exciting two-day event and programme series called the Budapest Photo Festival in 2017, which according to the hopes of the organisers will make the Hungarian

Marilia Fotopoulou: Family Portrait / Családi kép. Part of the Greek Photometria photography festival’s HOME exhibition.

capital a vibrant international centre of photography. As the photographer Szilvia Mucsy, who is also the festival director said: “We wanted to create a lively and colourful festival for the capital that is of a high professional standard, and that introduces photography’s diversity to a wide audience.”

The Budapest Photo Festival’s acceptance into the prestigious Photo Europe Network of photography festivals will contribute significantly to the festival’s success in developing an international reputation. Organisations belonging to the network will feature as exhibitors during the programme. The Municipality 42

Mexicans arrested while trying to cross the border to United States San Ysidro – California USA 1979 © Alex WebbMagnum Photos

raph through more than 60 pictures. This outstanding figure of the Magnum Agency (of which Robert Capa was a founding member) successfully blended street photography, photo

RENDE Z VOUS W ITH CULTURE IN BUDAPE ST journalism and artistic photography and produced multiple prize-winning works during his travels across three continents.

Following this, from 8 April to the end of May, the Castle Garden Bazaar will host the SUBJECTUM collection in partnership with the Budapest Spring Festival, which is a selection of the best of contemporary Hungarian portrait photography.

Through the works of 50 artists, the exhibition reveals what photographers think of the genre today, and how a gesture, pose, accessory, dress, lighting or environment can all be used to introduce someone’s personality.

The Budapest Projekt Galéria is also among the featured locations for the festival, where the Greek Photometria Festival (also a PHEN partner) will introduce its exhibition entitled HOME. The TRIPONT photo marathon starting at the Castle Garden Bazaar on 22 April also promises to be an exciting family programme. Participating adults and children, amateurs and professionals must prepare and upload four works with a given theme in under four hours. The works selected by the jury will receive valuable prizes.

Beauty / Szépség, the SUBJECTUM exhibition’s poster.

Photograph by László Mészáros.

Hungarian, West Balkan, Spanish and Turkish photographers. The selections will also feature individual and group art photography exhibitions, historic portraits and sports works, culinary photos and behind-the-scenes photos from theatres, as well as documentary and news photographs.

In addition to this, Budapest’s most important galleries, cultural institutions and museums will host satellite collections thanks to the curatorial work of photo historian Klára Szarka and art historian Rita Somosi, who made their selections from the diverse palette of photographic works. The public will be able to view works from American, Brazilian, French, Polish,

On 16 March poetry takes the stage as images by three-time Academy Award-winning cinematographer Vittorio Storaro will be displayed to inspire the verses of the invited rappers participating in the programme entitled Apocalypse Now.

For more information, please visit: budapestphotofestival.hu

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PRESTIGIOUS SPRING EXHIBITIONS IN BUDAPEST Text: Györgyi Orbán • Photos: btf.hu

Spring is the season for exciting new colours and exhibitions. The Hungarian capital’s museums await tourists and locals alike with a host of unique collections. can be seen in our exhibition. Born in Uzhhorod, Lili Ország’s path took her from the walls of a ghetto to the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem. During a visit to Prague she visited the Old Jewish Cemetery, where she discovered the stone motifs that inspired her to create her own imaginary cities. Ország personally encountered Orthodox icons in Russian and Bulgarian monasteries, and these experiences inspired the compositions of her so-called Icon period, while the montages accompanied her throughout her career.

The Hungarian painter will be followed by the German Georg Baselitz, one of the most famous and sought-after contemporary German artists.

The exhibition, titled Preview with Review will be one of the outstanding opening events of the Budapest Spring Festival (31 March - 23 April).

This exhibition will consist of more than 80 works spanning every period from his oeuvre and will be the first large-scale exhibition of his work in Central Europe. From them we can understanding Baselitz’s unique humour and irony, his freLili Ország: Aranyváros

Georg Baselitz: The Painter’s Head as Bouquet

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The Hungarian National Gallery is hosting an exhibition entitled Shadow on Stone, which will feature the oeuvre of Lili Ország, one of the outstanding artists of Hungarian classical surrealism.

The exhibition will feature more than 300 works by the painter, and will illustrate the development of Lili Ország’s artistic approach through analogies selected from Hungarian and foreign art, by artists such as Endre Bálint and Lajos Vajda, Paul Delvaux, Giorgio de Chirico, Maria Helena Vieira da Silva, Toyen, and Zoltán Kemény. The Labyrinth was built according to Lili Ország’s original concept, and contains the artist’s Labyrinth series of more than fifty compositions which she worked on until her death.

Lili Ország got the basic idea for the series from the painted ceiling panels of the church in Ádámos that originates from 1526, nine of which

RENDE Z VOUS W ITH CULTURE IN BUDAPE ST quently critical and provocative demeanour, constant outsider status, his radical approach to life and art, maniacal faith in tradition as well as its constant renewal. Baselitz claimed that the past does not belong in a glass case, which became the guiding principle for the exhibition. His Remix series consists of his works painted from 1960-2005, which were recreated to show how figures change over the years. “He used an expressive method and was not averse to abstracts or caricatures, taking the third way”, the exhibition curator Kinga Bódi told Budapest’s Finest. Baselitz is primarily known for his upside down figures, heads, landscapes and birds that he painted from 1969 onward. Among his statues, a 3.5-metre-tall human couple will greet visitors, and another monumental work will hang from the ceiling, while three smaller statues (1.5 metres in height) will stand on pedestals, among them the G-head carved from wood, which is owned by the Ludwig Museum of Budapest. The Gallery’s A building will also screen a documentary, in which the public can become acquainted with the artist’s painting techniques as well as his views on art.

Also located in the Buda Castle, the Budapest History Museum will feature an exhibition from 15 April to 15 September entitled Treasures Under the City: Novelties from the Past – Revealing the Archaeological Heritage of Budapest 1867–2005–2015, which is also part of the Budapest Spring Festival. As the archaeologist Paula Zsidi, who is the curator said, the exhibition introduces how the beginnings of Budapest archaeology are tied to the economic boom and city development that began following the Austro-Hungarian Compromise (1867). It was at this time that archaeological relics began to be collected and excavated systematically under the leadership of Flóris Rómer in Pest, Buda and Óbuda, which at the time were still distinct cities. This exhibition presents the most important discoveries and results of the most significant excavations of the past ten years – works whose roots are grounded in the post-Compromise era. In addition to presenting finds and excavations from 150 years ago, the exhibition also shows some 2,000 valuable discoveries that have been recently uncovered at around 100 sites, most of which have not been displayed before.

The exhibition divides Budapest into 12 archaeological zones, among them Aquincum, Buda Castle and Downtown Pest, and will introduce the most outstanding work of art from each region. The exhibition will also feature a kids’ corner with hands-on art copies, interactive games, an archaeological sand box, and a selection of objects. Visitors can see the treasures discovered during current construction and renovation

works. Some of these discoveries include a gold coin from a Doge of Venice by the Carmelite Cloister, cloth seals referring to commercial life under Szentháromság Square 2, and a breastplate by the Castle Garden Bazaar. Roman era bricks with inscribed letters will be on display, through which children were taught their ABCs, but jewellery from ancient graves will also be shown, such as a fibula with enamel, as well as a life-size Roman statue.

At Heroes’ Square the Mûcsarnok Hall will host an exhibition entitled All Around Us. Applied Arts and Design. National Salon 2017 from 22 April until mid-August. Part of the Hungarian Academy of Art’s exhibition series, the collection will consist of an overview of industrial and designer art from the previous ten years. While the salon pays tribute to the trendsetting masters of recent times, the organisers want the show to focus on the possibilities and greatest achievements of contemporary artists, who work within the changing environments of training, design, production and trade.

Szilvia Vereczkey: The Unique Sewing Technique of Tuscany

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46 Photo: Gauss Wheel • Soma Ungar

Growing into giants For the girls of Singapore getting around on a Gauswheel has become second nature, and you are likely to see one of these new methods of transport yourself around Budapest. Worldwide success for Hungarian inventions was for a long time a distant dream, but these days that has all changed.

Today’s inventors are more courageous in finding partners, such as the smart bicycle grip’s inventor, who partnered with an international telecommunications provider.

But these initiatives are in need of support to help their ideas reach the market.

We hope that Budapest will soon become one of Europe’s top five startup incubator centres.

The Gauswheel, which weighs only eight kilos, has seen success from Australia to Japan and Brazil.

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A FLYING START FOR HUNGARIAN STARTUPS The goal: to be among the top five Text: József Gyüre

This is what the Hungarian government’s economic policy would like to change. By opening the financial taps of EU and Hungarian state funding to the tune of 50 billion forints (€162 million) to support startups in various stages of progress, the country’s Digital Startup Strategy was officially launched at the end of last year. Since financing startups is quite risky for most market players, active participation on the part of the state in this realm is not at all a bad thing. There are examples from numerous European countries of where the state has become involved through collaborative companies with innovative SMEs. Startups are capable of rapid growth, and in addition to their great risk they also contain great business opportunities, since they target the world market. What this means is that if a startup becomes successful, a sharp and risk-taking investor can make returns well above the market average. As an expert said: innovation, thanks to the rise of startups, is no longer solely the domain of multinationals and academic labs, but can now be found in homes and community offices.

In Hungary, the digital economy is 20% of the total national economy’s gross added value, and 15% of those in employment work in this sector. In terms of the weight that the digital economy has as a percentage of the total economy, Hungary is at the forefront of the EU. This comparative advantage can be enhanced, but it can also disappear in a moment, since in the digital economy there is huge competition globally for trained individuals and market-ready ideas and innovations.

On the World Economic Forum’s overall competitiveness ranking, Hungary placed 63rd, which while better than the world average places us near the bottom in the European Union. This is why it is important to introduce successful and innovative startup companies, to encourage creative youth still in the planning stages, or the small companies beginning to spread their wings, so that within five years Budapest can become one of the top five incubator centres in Europe.

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Photos: Eric Laurits

The international press reported widely on the news that Laszlo Bock, Google’s Senior Vice President of People Operations, had announced that he would be leaving the search giant to launch his own startup company.

Although Bock (who is of Hungarian origin) has left everyone guessing what his new startup will do, it is generally expected to be successful. That should not come as a surprise, for is often said of Hungarians that they are legendarily good at technical and scientific innovations, although that’s not exactly the case when it comes to finance and financial innovation.

Laszlo Bock

Startup Calendar 17-19 February: StartupLive Budapest #1 (facebook.com/events/1484987151514676/) 28 March, Düsseldorf: Budapest–Düsseldorf Be Smart Tech Event Theme: smart cities and mobility (bvk.hu) 29-31 March: think.BDPST–Startup Corner Theme: future jobs, future education, health innovations and artificial intelligence (think.bdpst.org/agenda/index) 5 April: Smart Conference, Budapest (smartmobilhq.hu) 1-3 June: Brain Bar Budapest (brainbarbudapest.hu)

Photos: handinscan.com

Photos: Gauss Wheel • Soma Ungar

GROW ING INTO GIANTS

No more pedalling for success

Only with clean hands

What is it? Barely two kilos, easy to transport on a bus or tram, and we can also use it to get to work? If you’re having trouble with the answer, it’s the Gauswheel. This Hungarian freestyle urban scooter is a “cross” between a skateboard, roller skates and a scooter, and received its name after its inventors András Göczey (GA) and Soma Ungár (US). “The chances of an idea becoming an invention are one in five. For it to become a product, that’s one in twenty. Only 3% of inventions turn a profit, but for that to happen hundreds of thousands of items must be sold to recover the 5-10 years of work, as well as the funds invested in patenting, product development and marketing,” Ungár said. Gauswheel now has wholesalers in a dozen countries from Australia to Japan and all the way to Canada and Brazil. Therefore, we should not be the least bit surprised if we come across one of these unusual modes of transport during our travels abroad.

The Hungarian-developed HandInScan is useful for inspecting hand hygiene with great precision. In under five years it has truly become an international medical technology success story. This invention immediately evaluates the results of washing your hands.

The tool was developed by Tamás Haidegger, who is a Dennis Gabor Award-winning biomedical engineer and associate professor, along with four engineering colleagues. HandInScan is important not only in health care (to prevent the spread of deadly infections in hospitals) but also in the food industry, certain manufacturing processes, in industrial kitchens and in biotechnology. After coming up with the idea in 2011 and “two years of hard work, searching and negotiations”, a venture capital fund management company invested to support the development of a marketable version. The first generation of the tool was tested by 17,000 hospital employees from Europe to Asia, and today negotiations to use the scanner are ongoing in 30 countries from Europe, Asia and North America.

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The upholstery fabric and curtain wholesaler Rovitex Kft. launched as a one-man show back in 1995. As its founder and Executive Director Nobert Romeisz said: up until 2001, he conducted his business by instinct, with conscious growth beginning in 2002 and expansion to Croatia following in 2004. The company entered the Czech market in 2005, and the purchase of the German home textile wholesaler Galant Gardinen in 2006 was another step forward for the company, after which it entered the Slovak and Romanian markets. The group’s revenues last year only missed €10 million by a hair’s breadth. In terms of turnover, Rovitex is the market leader in the home textiles wholesale market in Central and Eastern Europe (including Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, the former Yugoslav states and Romania and Bulgaria). Rovitex is currently strengthening its position in flame-retardant materials: although this is not yet the case in Hungary, hotels and public institutions in western Europe can now only use flame-retardant materials. The Hungarian company also supports young creative talent: this year, Rovitex once again launched a competition for textile designers currently enrolled in higher education or who graduated in the last five years.

Within the framework of the National Hauszmann Plan, the Szent István Hall that practically burned to the ground in 1944 will be reconstructed. A total of 360 million forints (nearly €1.2 million) will be spent on reconstructing its tapestries, curtains and upholstery fabrics. Rovitex Kft. won the assignment through a public tender.

By a fortunate accident, a few samples survived of the tapestry and the curtains weaved in France. These 120-year-old materials are now being examined with a special textile scanner that analyses the weaving techniques used and the composition of the thread, including its gold content. While performing the necessary analysis has so far cost tens of millions of forints, the Museum of Applied Arts will be given the results free of charge. “These days, only 5% of the costs of a larger investment are the textiles themselves. At the beginning of the century this was greater than 50%,” Romeisz said, adding, “an order as special as this only happens once in a person’s or a company’s lifetime.”

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Photo: rovitex.hu

Everything will be as it once was

The Saint Stephen Hall named after the first king of Hungary and designed by Alajos Hauszmann was one of the jewels of the Royal Palace in Buda Castle. The hall was one of the palace’s important locations at the turn of the 20th century, which was revealed in the quality of the materials used and the style of its decorations.

The tapestries were manufactured by an Austrian company, Philipp Haas & Söhne, and the stunning, gold brocade curtain composed of three-layer gold embroidery with pearl overlays and semi-precious stone inlays was produced by the French company, Gelb.

M. The furniture was upholstered with the company’s high-quality gold embroidered upholstery. The room was a true applied arts curiosity, but was almost completely destroyed in World War II. The wooden panels and textiles perished and the ceiling was destroyed. As a result of the work of numerous experts and restorers, it will once again shine in its original glory.

“Every thread will be just as it once was”, Romeisz promised.

GROW ING INTO GIANTS

Step by step electricity: piezoelectric sheets are attached to brick-sized frames made from recycled plastic, which in response to pressure (be it from a Gauswheel or a pedestrian’s weight and steps) produces an electric charge. The highly wear-resistant paver also contains solar panels. A lot of development and creativity is still needed for this special paver to be ready for mass production, but Platio may become another Hungarian success story on the international market in the near future.

Photo: Platio

Two years ago a sidewalk paver that creates energy won the Budapest Design Terminal’s Smart City Lab competition, which uses human steps and solar rays to produce electricity. Platio, as it is known, was invented by József Cseh, Miklós Ilyés and Imre Sziszák to be “the world’s first public square paver which does not use raw materials from nature, but recycles municipal waste to produce green energy by using solar power and the momentum of dynamic city life”. The project is based on the principle of piezo-

Get a grip What is a smart bike grip good for? The Moow SmartGrip can measure a cyclist’s speed, performance, calories burned, distance covered, and the LED at the end of the grip can provide directional signals to assist safe riding and turning at night. With its builtin motion sensor, it notifies the owner via a smartphone app if someone is trying to steal the bike, but if the thief has managed to move it then a GPS will show where the bike has been taken.

But the SmartGrip is the most useful during an accident: the grip automatically notifies loved ones of the cyclist’s exact coordinates.

János Ienciu’s creative solution is supported by mobile carrier Telenor. The telecommunications provider is the first large domestic company to launch a startup accelerator programme, offering 150 million forints (nearly €500,000) to support five startups chosen from a field of 143. The winning startups can then present their projects in the hope of entering the domestic or international market.

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Photo: DESIGNFood Antonio

City Guide “An audience already exists which knows that if they want to find quality gastronomy, they have come to the right place by visiting Budapest,” said Chef Tamás Széll.

In addition to opening his own bistro in the near future, Széll was the winner of the 2016 Bocuse d’Or European Championships and placed fourth at this year’s Bocuse d’Or World Championships held in Lyon.

Budapest’s culinary offerings are now on par with Europe’s, and those looking for rustic or refined and complex flavours will both find what they are after. A meal consisting of many courses or simply a quick bite to eat while seeing the sights? Either way, the choices are plentiful. And should you like to take something home with you, make sure to visit Vörösmarty Square with its many handicrafts this spring.

Képaláírás két sorban

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“THE BEST THING IN THE WORLD IS TO EAT WELL” The Bocuse d’Or and its impact Text: Somogyi Szonja

Photo: DESIGNFood Antonio

Hungary and more specifically Budapest have made their mark on the world’s culinary map.

The number of Michelin-starred restaurants in the city has grown, and fine dining establishments have won a string of international awards. Hungarian chefs are also now counted among the world’s elite: in January, at the Bocuse d’Or, the culinary world’s most prestigious chef competition, the Hungarian team just missed out on a place on the podium by the smallest of margins, finishing fourth behind the United States, Norway and Iceland. What is more, thanks to their unbelievable precision and practised perfection, the team was awarded the Special Plate Prize by an international jury comprised of culinary experts from 24 countries.

According to chef Tamás Széll, who led the Hungarian team, the Bocuse d’Or, in addition to being a “Chef’s Olympics”, presents the heights of the culinary arts and requires an enormous amount of concentration. The contest is also a wonderful opportunity for the world to discover the treasures of Hungarian cuisine. One of the 54

fundamental requirements of the contest, which celebrated its 30th anniversary this year, was for national characteristics to be incorporated into the ingredients and presentation.

“The country’s image is constantly changing.

Ten or 20 years ago, people were attracted with gulyás or paprika, and tourist buses stopped in

CIT Y GUIDE Tamás Széll’s audience award-winning poster at the World Championship in Lyon.

Hortobágy National Park to watch a herdsman crack a bull whip. Today, this image has changed.

Information spreads faster, and news of Hungary reaches further, with greater numbers visiting Budapest than ever. There is now a target audience who know that if they are looking for culture and quality gastronomy, they are coming to the

right place by visiting Hungary,” Széll observed.

Back in May 2016, representatives from the highest echelons of the culinary world arrived in Budapest for the Bocuse d’Or European Championships, where they witnessed Széll lead the Hungarian team to victory. By finishing in first place, Széll and his team qualified for the Wor55

Photo: DESIGNFood Antonio

Time is of the essence Frequently referred to as the Olympics of the Chef World, the Bocuse d’Or, which is the world’s most prestigious chef competition, was started by the famous French chef Paul Bocuse, and this year’s final in Lyon was the thirtieth occasion that the world’s finest chefs went head-to-head.

Within a pre-determined framework and under a strict set of rules, the teams participating in the contest received 5 hours and 35 minutes to prepare the series of dishes for which they had spent months preparing.

Each competition features the preparation of an obligatory meat and fish entrée. Due to the anniversary, however, this year a “Vegetal” vegetarian dish replaced the fish entrée. Additionally, the competition also added a twist whereby all 24 nations participating in the finals would need to add something characteristic of their own country to their dishes.

The Hungarian team prepared their dishes using Tokaj wines, vinegars commonly used in Hungarian cuisine and numerous forest vegetables, receiving the special prize for best meat entrée by the jury. The Hungarian team qualified for the event when it won the European Championship in May 2016 in Budapest ahead of 19 other countries. In Lyon, Hungary placed 4th out of 24 teams. Since this was only the third time that Hungary had participated in the world championship, this was an enormous achievement.

ld Championships. According to Széll, the event last May was a great “dress rehearsal”, as the Hungarian Bocuse d’Or Academy organised an excellent European contest. “The French told us they had their work cut out for them in Lyon.”

The Hungarian team’s success should not be seen just as an isolated victory. “Gastronomy in Hungary has experienced steady and conscious development since 2004, which has led to the Photo: bocusedorhungary.hu

Hungary won the Special Plate Prize, which contributed to the fourth place finish.

According to team coach Frigyes Vomberg, the Bocuse d’Or is not just a competition, it also has an impact on a country’s gastronomical knowledge. “The point is not to look at this to see what we could make ourselves at home. Through this competition, greater emphasis is placed on the

concept of quality products. Our successes also aid the development of gastro culture, as youths and the new generation of chefs demand more and as people become increasingly interested in exceptional products. We hope everyone can build on this Hungarian success at the Bocuse d’Or competition.”

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Photo: bocusedorhungary.hu

CIT Y GUIDE opening of our Michelin-starred restaurants and an improvement in the quality of our hospitality offerings. The Bocuse d’Or is only one milestone on the path we have embarked upon,” Vomberg added. "This impact will be widespread in Budapest kitchens as everything changes and is reimagined, such as ingredients, kitchen technology and methods. This is also an excellent example of what the Bocuse d’Or is.”

Team captain Szabina Szulló agrees that the success in Lyon will “drip down” to everyday gastronomy. She emphasised that the Hungarian Bocuse d’Or Academy is welcoming huge numbers of students, who will then take their experiences and apply their modern knowledge into their daily routines at their future places of work.

“Although the number of tourists coming to Budapest explicitly for its gastronomy is still relatively small, we are on the right path. The Hungarian capital is beautiful, it has a rich history and a wide variety of attractions, it is affordable and also stands out for its safe environment,” Szulló opined. She continued: “The best thing in the world is to eat and eat well.

Budapest has great options from street food and cheaper eats all the way to high-end restaurants.”

bocusedorhungary.hu

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HOTEL RUM where every inch of this

central boutique hotel is unique Text: Ágnes Karcsay • Photo: hotelrumbudapest.com

As a travel blogger for the New York Times wrote about the Hungarian capital: “Post-Iron Curtain Budapest has emerged as an animated metropolis. An appealing, youthful energy increasingly arises in the city…” Several bistros and hotels were mentioned in the blurb, among them HOTEL

RUM, which opened its doors in May 2016.

The hotel is located in one of the grand listed buildings located on Király Pál Street, and its rooms and halls radiate comfort, creativity and luxury, which were designed to accommodate the tastes of young weekend travellers from Europe. Owner and managing director Szonja Lefkovics herself always looks to find something unique whenever she stays at a hotel while traveling abroad.

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“In Hungary there’s currently a shortage of boutique and designer hotels. This genre is where I’ve always seen opportunities,” Lefkovics said, noting that the attributes of listed buildings are never limiting. On the contrary, they are an excellent source of inspiration during the planning and construction process.

CIT Y GUIDE Every inch of the 38-room hotel is characteristically eclectic.

The copper and wooden elements that evoke a Scandinavian atmosphere are blended with the industrial world represented by metallic and exposed structural solutions. The colourful and artistic rugs (some Persian) fill the spaces with warmth, which was an important perspective during their design.

“We’d like to create an atmosphere in which the guests can feel at home”, Lefkovics said, adding that during the works she always made an effort to collaborate with Budapest-based designers and builders and to use local materials. Additionally, creations by contemporary Hungarian artists decorate the rooms.

The unique solutions in the hotel were preceded by a lengthy period spent gathering inspiration. “We travelled a lot to see what direction the world was moving in that Budapest does not yet offer, but which visiting tourists may already expect,” Lefkovics added, who collected ideas for the hotel by visiting shape, from the hotel’s vibrant bar, and from a play on words, since the Hungarian pronunciation of rum sounds like the English word room.)

Although Asian flavours dominate the menu of the Urban Tiger restaurant, the hotel strives to source most ingredients from Hungarian producers. The breakfast options also sneak in some Hungarian flavours, and based on customer feedback they love the French toast.

Regarding future plans, Lefkovics revealed that the building’s rooftop terrace will soon be open to hotel guests and the public, who can relax after work accompanied by refreshments and live music. In time the rooftop terrace will also host small exhibitions of works by contemporary Hungarian artists and – uniquely for Budapest – will remain open throughout the year. hotelrumbudapest.com

restaurants, bars and clothing stores in Berlin, New York, Los Angeles and Barcelona. As a result of this comprehensive research, every individual detail in HOTEL RUM, from the Do Not Disturb door hangers to the showers and employee uniforms are unique.

The bathrooms use tiles that remind us of the New York Subway and Paris Metro, and the building’s beautiful spiral staircase was restored, so that old Budapest mixes with the ambiance of American and European large cities. As the owner emphasised, she consistently made sure that uniqueness would not be at the expense of comfort, which is something boutique hotels frequently overlook.

The hotel contains four types of rooms, all of which feature rum in their names: Light Rum, Spiced Rum, Gold Rum, Black Rum, with a higher level of quality offered at each category. (The hotel’s name derives from the building’s rum bottle

POSITION Collective, one of the most inventive Hungarian design groups, assisted during the hotel’s planning stages through the collaboration of Attila Kertész and Bence Simonfalvi. The main designer was Zsuzsanna Kertész, who helped dream up every single unique detail featured in the hotel.

Part of the hotel’s lobby and Urban Tiger restaurant was designed and implemented by Ákos Bara (Bara Design Studio), who created a pleasant luxurious atmosphere with the use of designer furniture. The hotel’s cosy ambiance is the result of the wooden furniture by the Katona Manufaktúra, which were created exclusively for the hotel.

The hexagonal concrete blocks that cover the restaurant walls and appear in other parts of the hotel as well were produced by IVANKA Factory & Design Services. Graphical duties were performed by Eszter Laki, who contributed significantly in the establishment of the hotel’s image and continues to work with the hotel in this capacity.

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„DEAR BUDAPEST” An invitation into the world of creative open sandwiches Text: Ágnes Karcsay

In one of the romantic corners of Veres Pálné Street in Downtown Pest, the “Dear Budapest,” gastropub will soon open to offer customers visually stunning sandwiches and exciting combinations of flavours.

Originally from Miskolc, Juhász’s love of the capital inspired the place’s name: the logo and the comma at the end of the salutation, just as in a letter, signifies the start of something, the continuation of which we can personally experience.

“A little while ago, I was waiting in a sandwich bar in Copenhagen when the idea came to me, how it would be nice if there was a similar place back home that served sandwiches comprised of quality ingredients, which in themselves could also be considered works of art. This is the idea that will provide the core of the Dear Budapest, selection,” Juhász added.

Her commitment is evidenced by the fact that she would spend days sitting in other Budapest gourmet sandwich bars watching customer habits.

Almost everyone involved in the design of the gastropub was Hungarian. Juhász planned the spaces adorned with funky shapes and stylish accessories together with the interior architect Emese Bunyik of Studio Bunyik, LumoConcept designed the dominating chandeliers planned specially for the location, with experts in the field tasked with developed the perfect lighting design. The gastropub’s façade, logo and other graphical elements were prepared by Dia Ghyczy. There are also plans for a terrace open to guests from spring to autumn, which would dynamically and youthfully evoke the old Budapest.

When developing the sandwich selection, the concept of “art on bread” was the driving force for Juhász, who was assisted in preparing the recipes by Olivér Heiszler, the Michelin-star winning chef who formerly worked for Tanti. “For me, the food’s exterior and presentation are just as important as the flavours, since eating is a source of joy and needs to be an experience, even if we are in a rush and can only grab a few bites,” she emphasised.

Speaking of the ingredients, Juhász said the sandwiches use three types of bread baked by the Marmorstein Bakery: 100% rye, homemade white and gluten-free. The toppings are 60

sourced from Budapest’s markets, “secret” stores, and the finest butchers, fishmongers and greengrocers. “We’ll serve three types of fish sandwiches, one of which will be smoked sturgeon sourced from a Russian store. It will be an exciting combination of flavours, with quince mustard and peanut butter,” she revealed about one of these culinary creations. The selection will also feature vegetarian options with forest mushrooms, beets and many special homemade pickled items.

A chef trained by Olivér Heiszler will prepare the sandwiches in the gastropub on the basis of Heiszler’s recipes, and the speciality coffees will use ingredients purchased from Hungarian coffee roasters. Also available will be homemade cordials and wines from every region in Hungary, but with a focus on wines by young vintners. Those with a sweet tooth will be pleased to find homemade cakes from selected confectioners.

Photo: magyarkonyhaonline.hu

Bianca Juhász, the owner and director of Dear Budapest, has previously enjoyed success in the fashion profession as editor-in-chief of Lack Magazin for two years, after which she oversaw the Paris-inspired L’école makeup artist school.

“As I recall, it was in October 2015 that I came up with the idea to try my hand at hospitality. I spent all of 2016 planning this,” she revealed.

“In addition to searching for the finest ingredients, I also wanted to depart from the usual pairings and create a harmony that is not representative of what is considered traditional,” Olivér Heiszler revealed. According to the Michelin star-winning chef, the open sandwiches to be offered at Dear Budapest, fall somewhere between pintxos and Scandinavian sandwiches. “In appearance and taste, I’d like to bring the maximum out of the ingredients that I can. These combinations would not be out of place as a main course, but we’d like to condense the flavours into a few bites,” he added.

Photo: twitter.com/dearbudapest

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The bustle of spring and a handicrafts fair for Easter As Budapest turns green and Vörösmarty Square is in bloom, spring is in the air drawing locals and international guests back outside. Those who had been eagerly awaiting spring and the renewal that it brings should visit the Spring Fair, a cultural and tourist attraction located in the heart of the city, which runs from 31 March to 30 April.

Beautiful creations by members of the Hungarian Handicrafts Association will be on sale in the stands located around the square. All of the objects are made from quality materials, hand-crafted and unique in execution. This fair provides an excellent opportunity for examples of Hungarian art to reach the furthest corners of the earth, thereby spreading the name of the artists who crafted them. With these quality products and cultural events, international visitors can take the excellent reputation of our traditions far and wide, Kata Szabó, the president of the Hungarian Handicrafts Association said.

The 70 excellent artists who make up the Hungarian Handicrafts Association will be present at the Spring Fair with several thousand products. The craftsmen and craftswomen at the fair must pass a rigorous quality inspection and conform to strict regulations before they can sell their creative works of arts at the market. They constantly prepare new wares to sell and blend personal and unique styles that are decorated with modern forms.

The Carpathian Basin’s handicraft culture has always been unique in Europe, and the new artistic directions that emerged at the turn of the century drew from these styles. It is no accident that the works of Hungarian folk artists can be seen in several of the motifs found in Hungarian art nouveau.

Those who visit Vörösmarty Square can discover the richness 62

of Hungarian handicraft traditions. As visitors walk between the individual stands, they can see the many ancient trades performed by the artists, and how many different crafts can be made from the same material. There are no two objects alike among them.

Exhibitors will arrive from all over the country, meaning that every folk region of Hungary will be represented by the craftsmen and craftswomen. The fair is also unique because buyers can meet the producers in person. In addition to folk crafts, this internationally acclaimed event also features designer products, so that everyone who visits can find something to their taste. The organisers also await music and culinary enthusiasts with special weekend programmes.

Vörösmarty Square will truly transform into a workshop during this period, where visitors themselves can become acquainted with traditional pottery. There will also be a presentation by wooden toy, instrument and jewellery makers, as well as glass blowers. Visitors can create Easter decorations under the guidance of the artists, and can also learn the technique for making Japanese raku pottery.

kezmuvesszovetseg.hu facebook/Magyar Kézmûves Szövetség

Photo: BFTK / István Práczky

BUDAPEST TURNS GREEN AS VÖRÖSMARTY SQUARE BLOOMS

CIT Y GUIDE

Easter Market and Spring Fair 31 March – 30 April, 2017 – Vörösmarty Square

1. Silk jewellery, HUF 2,500 silkART – Stand 13A 2. Wall clock, HUF 5,990 Carneol- Stand 2A. 3. Bunny decoration, HUF 4,500 Artisan Produktum – Stand 10B 4. Batik purse, HUF 8,500 silkART – Stand 13A 5. Large flower fairy, HUF 11,900 Pipacs Kerámia – Stand 1B 6. “Green bubble” beads, HUF 12,000 Ildikó Verebes – Stand 9B 7. Elf Guardian, HUF 24,900 BubutimArt-Manóműhely – Stand 17B 8. Clay jewellery, HUF 2,900 Hajnal Boros – Stand 14B 9. Home blessing illustration with A5 frame, HUF 5,500 Mónika Horváth, Manka – Stand 23B 10. Tea pot, HUF 24,000 Ágnes Bély – Stand 8A 11. Silk jewellery, HUF 2,800 silkART – Stand 13A 12. Leather bracelet with glass decorations, HUF 5,900 Tündéri Üvegékszer – Stand 15A 13. Candle, HUF 3,800 Artistic Workshop Holdnapután – Stand 17A. 63

Fans of chamber music will be spoilt for choice in terms of what to see during the Budapest Spring Festival due to the many excellent performances included in its programme.

On 6 April the Canadian-born French cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras will perform at the Liszt Academy of Music and will be joined by Bijan Chemirani, Keyvan Chemirani and Sokratis Sinopoulos as they play contemporary works.

Photo: Marco Borggreve

PROGRAMME

CORNER The following day two excellent Hungarian pianists will take the stage in the Vigadó Concert Hall, where Károly Mocsári and János Balázs will perform romantic waltzs. The Budapest Music Center will feature the Tarkovsky Quartet also on 7 April.

Later on, the Vigadó Concert Hall will host the Classicus Ensemble and their musician friends who will reveal the impact of World War I on the era’s classical music through a chamber music performance on 15-16 April. For the two-day event consisting of four concerts, a special emphasis will be placed on the chamber music of Zoltán Kodály.

On 19 April the dream trio of Kristóf Baráti, István Várdai and Dénes Várjon, the most sought-after Hungarian musicians in the world, will perform at the Liszt Academy.

The final day of the festival, 23 April will see the Gurdjieff Ensemble perform in the Budapest Music Center. The group has performed around the world at large festivals over the previous five years, playing traditional Armenian and Central Asian instruments.

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CULTURAL EXPERIENCES AND LEISURE World Heritage Site Neo-Renaissance palaces and garden Exhibitions Guided tours Free ascent to Buda Castle Danube panorama at Buda side, Danube bank (Ybl Square)

CASTLE

GARDEN