MÜPA BUDAPEST One of Central Europe’s most modern performing arts centres, Müpa Budapest opened its doors in March 2005 and has since been recognised as one of the top cultural brands not only in Hungary, but across the entire region. The institution hosts around a thousand programmes annually, including concerts celebrating a wide variety of musical genres – classical, contemporary, jazz, popular, folk and world music –, dance performances and contemporary circus productions, along with programmes embracing literature, cinema and contemporary art. Müpa Budapest is a true 21stcentury cultural space: the venue has also evolved into a bustling cultural hub and an important meeting place for the city’s residents. Open to visitors from morning until evening every day throughout the entire season, it offers wonderful and diverse entertainment to visitors of all ages and interests. Every weekend, the centre welcomes families with countless free children’s programmes, transforming the building into a bustling community space full of energy, while the regular Colour Concerts turn the facility over to the latest generation of young musicians during the week. In the evenings, aficionados of classical music, jazz, contemporary circus and dance have a unique opportunity to encounter international stars of their favourite genre. Anyone who wishes to learn more about the unique cultural environment of Müpa Budapest can take a peek behind the scenes on a guided tour, or explore the building in the form of 360-degree videos using VR technology. For those needing to relax, the terraces present a spectacular view of Budapest, the Danube bridges and the hills overlooking the districts on the Buda side of the river.
BÉLA BARTÓK NATIONAL CONCERT HALL Situated in the heart of the building, the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall evokes the atmosphere of a Gothic cathedral with its impressive dimensions. Its four-level auditorium can accommodate an audience of 1,700, and its stage is expandable to create as much as 290 square metres of floorspace. The hall is also home to the second-largest concert hall organ in Europe. The largest elements of this symphonic instrument boasting 92 registers and five manuals were installed during the concert hall’s construction phase, making the organ truly one of a kind. Like the monumental instrument itself, the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall can also be ‘fine-tuned’ to suit the given performance. Along with its fully optimised sound insulation and vibration damping, the venue owes its worldclass sound and unique acoustic properties to its truly remarkable acoustic canopy: the 44 tonnes of walnut-encased panels suspended from the ceiling can be configured to modify the sound produced in the hall as required. It is no wonder then that international stars and top Hungarian artists alike offer nothing but superlatives to attest to the exceptional qualities of this concert hall.
FESTIVAL THEATRE With cutting-edge stage technology, an audiovisual system equipped to display HD-quality projections and peerless technical equipment, the Festival Theatre is a perfect venue for performing arts productions of almost any genre. Here, the dense and painstakingly installed walnut cladding takes over the role of traditional acoustic panels, giving the 452-seat auditorium a unique atmosphere matched by wonderful sound properties. With 750 square metres of floor space, the enormous stage is primarily used for dance and contemporary circus productions, chamber operas, pop, jazz and world music concerts, as well as literary events.
LUDWIG MUSEUM Located across three floors along the side of the Müpa Budapest building facing the Danube, the Ludwig Museum provides an exhibition space for unforgettable displays of works by leading artists from the world of Hungarian and international contemporary fine art. The museum is also home to Hungary’s only public art collection spanning all of Central Europe, housing a continuously expanding number of modern works from all over the region.
BOHEMIAN EVENT VENUE, P’ART CAFÉ AND BISTRO Hungarian specialities, continental cuisine and striking spaces: the Bohemian Event Venue welcomes visitors at lunchtime every weekday between 11.30 am and 2 pm, and has a separate space serving as an intimate venue for chamber performances and jazz-themed dinner concerts. Located on the ground floor of the Ludwig Museum and renovated in 2018, the P’Art Café and Bistro is open to guests every day of the week and offers a unique selection of exciting bistro dishes, beverages and confectionery. Both the bistro’s indoor tables and its expansive terrace offer a beautiful panorama of the Danube, providing an exclusive setting for gatherings between friends and business associates both before and after performances. Opening hours: Café – daily from 10 am to 11 pm Bistro – weekdays from 3 pm to 11 pm; weekends from 12 pm to 11 pm
SHOPS The Vince Bookshop in the Atrium offers an extraordinarily wide selection of publications focusing on fine art, music and literature, as well as works of literary fiction, albums and gift items. The Rózsavölgyi CD and Sheet Music Store makes Müpa Budapest’s remarkable richness of genres tangibly apparent with a wide offering of recordings from the worlds of classical music, pop and jazz. The Ethnosound Musical Instrument Store offers visitors a rich assortment of instruments typical of Hungarian folk music and unusual musical products from every corner of the world, as well as acoustic percussion, string and wind instruments and instruments for sound therapy and music therapy.
SPECIAL EVENT VENUES Müpa Budapest is more than just a home for magnificent artistic events: the acoustic properties of the spectacular Glass Hall make it suitable for holding chamber concerts and piano recitals, and it is also a favourite venue for Müpa Budapest’s family and youth programmes. The Atrium and lobby area of the Festival Theatre are also popular spots for intimate get-togethers, while the colourful armchairs and theme-based photo exhibitions in Festival Square provide a refuge for those seeking conversation and relaxation away from the hustle and bustle of the busier parts of the building. The locations for the family and youth programmes, the terrace-like Stairway Hall and Banner Square, offer the perfect setting for different generations to spend time together. With fixed seating for 130 people, the Auditorium hosts specialist presentations, business conferences and film screenings and is fitted with state-of-the-art technical equipment to meet the requirements of any event. A built-in interpretation system also makes the venue ideal for multilingual programmes. The Blue Hall is used for small-scale professional conferences, roundtable discussions and youth and children’s programmes.
Müpa Budapest 1 1095 Budapest, Komor Marcell u. 1. Postal address: 1453 Budapest, Pf. 57. Telephone: (+36-1) 555 3000 E-mail: info@mupa.hu Opening hours: daily from 10 am, until the end of the last performance Tickets are available at Müpa Budapest’s ticket offices: 1095 Budapest, Komor Marcell u. 1., Tel.: (+36-1) 555 3300 1061 Budapest, Andrássy út 15., Tel.: (+36-1) 555 3310, 24 as well as at other authorised ticket offices. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.mupa.hu
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Photos © Gábor KOTSCHY, Attila NAGY, Zsófia NAGY, Claudio PARADA NUNES, Zsófia PÁLYI, Zsuzsa PETŐ, János POSZTÓS, Tamás RÉTHEY-PRIKKEL, András SZEMKEŐ