COMPREHENSIBLE MUSIC 1: THE BIBLE

Comprehensible Music is Budafok Dohnányi Orchestra’s most popular Sunday morning concert series, in which Gábor Hollerung analyses a previously selected work in Hungarian, illustrated by some musical excerpts. After the intermission, the orchestra plays the entire work without interruption.

In this concert, you will hear the second part, the Passion from George Frideric Handel’s Messiah, which is his most popular work until our day and one of the most frequently performed oratorios in the world. It was first performed in Dublin on 13 April 1742, and its ‘triumphal march’ continued with concerts in London the following year. For Handel, it was extremely important that all the texts were performed at the concerts he conducted, as he was perhaps the only composer in the history of music to work exclusively from verbatim quotations from the Bible (the libretto was compiled by his friend and collaborator Charles Jennens). This morning, the audience will hear it interpreted by the Budapest Academic Choral Society, a regular performing partner of Budafok Dohnányi Orchestra.

DOHNÁNYI BÉRLET 5.

This evening, Dohnányi Orchestra will be led by Taiwan-born conductor Yu-An Chang performing works by Szentpáli, Beethoven and Sibelius.

First up we will be transported to the grandiose world of Beethoven with the German composer’s Choral Fantasy, which was written in a record time, as Beethoven had a sudden idea to make it the final piece of a charity concert that had already been organised. The concert was the première of Beethoven’s Symphonies No. 5 and 6, which took place on 22 December 1808. The evening concluded with the Choral Fantasy for piano, solo singer, mixed choir and orchestra, with Beethoven himself playing the piano, allegedly improvising his complete part on the spot.

After then the next piece is an audience favourite, Rapszódia (Rhapsody) by the young Hungarian tuba player and composer Roland Szentpáli – with elements of folk music, it promises to be a real one-man show for our clarinettist Bence Szepesi.

Finally, we are closing the evening with Sibelius’s Symphony No. 2, which is also known with the by-name ‘independence’, because it has long symbolised Finland’s aspirations for independence from Russia. Sibelius wrote this work after his stay in Italy, which had a great influence on him. This work is more spirit-filled than his first symphony; the composer himself called it ‘a confession of the soul’.

DOHNÁNYI SERIES – 4

Robert Schumann was a short-lived but prolific composer of Romantic music, with piano works, songs, symphonic and chamber music being the main works of his oeuvre. He wrote the Ouverture, Scherzo and Finale during one of the most productive and happy periods of his life, shortly after his marriage in 1841. He named it Sinfonietta at the time, and thought of the piece as his second symphony. However, the slow movement characteristic of symphonies is missing from the work, which he later renamed, giving it its final title: Ouverture, Scherzo, Finale. He revised the piece again a few years later, and after minor changes to the Finale movement, the work was given its final form. Although the Overture begins with a slow introduction, it continues in an allegro, followed by a dance like scherzo at a lively tempo, and finally, the return of the main theme and a coda closes the Finale. With this work, Schumann offers us the experience of a triumphant, powerful and exuberant Romantic music.

János Vajda is one of the most exciting and versatile composers of 20th century Hungarian music. He is an Erkel and Kossuth Prize-winning composer and music teacher whose musical work extends to many areas of music: operas, ballets, orchestral and chamber orchestral works, choral works and songs make up his oeuvre. Budafok Dohnányi Orchestra often performs works by János Vajda, so this season’s concert programme could not be complete without his works, either. This evening we present one of the composer’s new pieces, Vier vorletzte Lieder, which premiered in October of the last year. The songs will be performed by Andrea Meláth, a regular soloist of János Vajda’s works.

Saint-Saëns is one of the most famous figures of 19th century French music literature, with a vast oeuvre left behind. He was a child prodigy of exceptional talent, whose musical abilities were already evident at the age of 3. After studying the piano, he was admitted to the Paris Conservatoire and after graduating, he took up a post as organist at the St. Madelain Church. During one of his performances, Franz Liszt was present and, having heard Saint-Saens play, he described him as one of the best organists in the world. He composed his Symphony No. 3 in 1886, which was premièred in London in May of the same year. Two months later, after the death of Franz Liszt, Saint-Saëns dedicated the symphony to his late patron. The symphony is also known as the Organ Symphony, although this can lead to misunderstandings. In fact, it is an orchestral symphony in which the organ, the queen of instruments, is also featured.

DOHNÁNYI SERIES – 3

DOHNÁNYI SERIES – 2

Conducted by Péter Halász, this concert offers a classical programme. The first piece is Haydn‘s Symphony, named “The Bear”, which is one of the six Paris symphonies that the composer wrote on the request of the Concert de la Loge Olympique in 1786. The by-name was not given by Haydn to this piece, but attached to it by posterity in association to the humming bass of the bassoon and bagpipe in the final movement, which has the effect of a kind of bear dance.

Ákos Zarándy is one of the outstanding representatives of the young generation of composers. His Rákóczi Concerto, although modern in style, evokes the atmosphere of the Rákóczi era, sometimes with humour, sometimes with a touch of nostalgia. A special moment of the work is the solo duet of the shawm (tárogató) and the cimbalom.

Mozart‘s “Prague” Symphony was inspired by his trip to Prague in 1787. Unusual in form, it is composed of three movements – as Mozart omitted the minuet movement. The first movement evokes the agitated tone of Don Giovanni, while the second, andante movement is reminiscent of the opera’s sinister, demonic atmosphere. The third movement brings in the intriguing turbulence of The Marriage of Figaro through a musical material that’s both airy and exciting.

“GRAND OPENING – JOINING FORCES”

14 concerts of classical music, one hour each, by/in 14 festival cities of Hungary at the first weekend of June.

Interkultur Hungária Non-profit Ltd, the organiser of Zemplén Festival has requested Budafok Dohnányi Orchestra, the resident orchestra of the festival to perform at the concert that is being realised in Sárospatak as part of a country-wide initiative to celebrate opening up after the third wave of the pandemic. The venue of the festive concert is SRK Wáberer Sports Centre in Sárospatak.

Entry is free of charge but you need to present your immunity card. Registration tickets are available at: https://artfestivals.jegy.hu/program/grand-opening-sarospatak-122807/717738

Festive Overture by Erkel will be the first piece to be performed. One of the most well-known symbols of Hungarian national identity, Festive Overture was completed for the 50th anniversary of the inauguration of the Budapest National Theatre. In terms of its genre, it is genuine verbunkos music with the notes of Szózat (Hungary’s “second national anthem” – the tr.) sounding at its climax. The second work we will listen to is Movement 1 of Symphony No. 1 by Levente Gyöngyösi. It well deserves the title “Love” in that it is a serene, momentous, colourful piece. What makes it really special is how after an adorable concert of birds the finale turns into a boisterous folk dance. To close the concert, we are going to play Dances of Galánta by Kodály. Kodály composed a lavish concert piece out of folk music materials he had collected in Upper Hungary (the so-called “Northern Hungarian Highlands”, now part of Slovakia – the tr.). In fact, it is perhaps the most played and most well-known Hungarian music of the 20th century. The special feature of this performance is that the originally collected pieces will also be played just as Kodály must have heard them in the field: four musicians of Dohnányi Orchestra will form as if a folk band just for this occasion.

The concerts will be realised with the support of the Ministry of Human Resources and the joint effort of the members of the Association of Hungarian Art Festivals.

COMPREHENSIBLE MUSIC 2 THE SPIRIT OF PATRIOTISM

In today’s performance, we take a thorough look at Bartók’s Kossuth Symphony, about which Gábor Hollerung once said,

“Bartók’s juvenile work, written in the early 1900s, before Bartók had become acquainted with Hungarian folk music. The choice of subject matter is also romantic, displaying a kind of national commitment. Its orchestration and musical thinking still show the influence of Brahms and Richard Strauss. The structure of the piece is similar to programme music, in which each of the characters in the story are represented by a theme. In our case, Kossuth is symbolised by a verbunk-like music, while the opponents are represented by a distorted version of the imperial anthem written by Haydn. And although the composer did not give it an opus number – and so it is rarely played out of reverence for him – I have to say that it is one of the most brilliant works of Hungarian national romanticism, in the line of Liszt, Erkel, Mosonyi and Goldmark.”

DOHNÁNYI SERIES -1

The first half of the evening is a trumpet concerto by the conductor of the evening, Guido Mancusi. The melodiousness and virtuosity of the piece easily reminds one of Hummel’s trumpet concertos or Arban’s The Carnival of Venice. The final movement is a real bravura for the soloist, accompanied by a light, virtuoso orchestral material.

Der Rosenkavalier (The Knight of the Rose) is an opera by Richard Strauss, based on a libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, which evokes a bygone era (the time of Maria Theresa) with a touch of nostalgia, a bitter and sometimes impish humour. Strauss was a master of orchestration, and his skillfulness is reflected in the sumptuous colours of the orchestral sound and the virtuosic and enjoyable melodies. This evening, the audience will hear a version of the Rosenkavalier Suite.

The second half of the evening features Bruckner’s Symphony No. 6, which the composer never heard in its entirety in his lifetime, as only the two middle movements were played at the 1883 première, when the Vienna Philharmonic refused to perform the complete work due to its extremely difficult nature. It still remains the least frequently performed piece in the Bruckner repertoire, although Bruckner himself considered it to be his most unpretentious work, its lighter tone and translucent orchestration making it more accessible to the audience.  According to English composer Robert Simpson, “the symphony’s themes are extremely expressive and plastic, its harmonies are refined and sophisticated, and the orchestration is perhaps the most original of all the symphonies. Classical principles of form are smoothly and naturally incorporated into the language of the symphony, and the two Viennese masters – Brahms and Bruckner – have never been so close to each other.”

BDO Day

26th September 2021, Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, Budapest

A Day with Gábor Hollerung and the BDO

Four concerts – one public rehearsal – informal discussion

 

It is with great joy and excitement that Budafok Dohnányi Orchestra is preparing for the 2021-22 season, hoping to once again enjoy personal encounters, audience experiences and real concerts. The long online concert life, a time period of many changes and unpredictability will hopefully soon come to an end. At the beginning of the 2021-22 season, following the tradition started last year, the orchestra would like to meet and enjoy music and intimacy with its audience again in a BDO DAY, offering an unprecedented connection between stage and audience. During BDO Day, all those interested can gain an insight into the orchestral workshop through small and large-scale concerts and discussions with the artists.

11:00 Comprehensible Music (1st concert in the series) Handel: Messiah

 

In this concert, you will hear the second part, the Passion from George Frideric Handel’s Messiah, which is his most popular work until our day and one of the most frequently performed oratorios in the world. It was first performed in Dublin on 13 April 1742, and its ‘triumphal march’ continued with concerts in London the following year. For Handel, it was extremely important that all the texts were performed at the concerts he conducted, as he was perhaps the only composer in the history of music to work exclusively from verbatim quotations from the Bible (the libretto was compiled by his friend and collaborator Charles Jennens). This morning, the audience will hear it interpreted by the Budapest Academic Choral Society, a regular partner of Budafok Dohnányi Orchestra.

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15:00 BDzoO-Faktor – Animal Talent Show

family concert with stories and music quotes

Saint-Saëns: The Carnival of the Animals

A fun and entertaining performance of The Carnival of the Animals, complete with appropriate music and a story written for the occasion. Musical excerpts from the following works, among others, will be performed: Rimsky Korsakov: The Bumble Bee, John Williams: Jurassic Park, Dan Brown: Wild Symphony.

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17:00 Workshop Discussion

 

Gábor Hollerung, BDO’s Executive Music Director and Levente Gyöngyösi, BDO’s Resident Composer will have an informal discussion with each other and the audience about important and – to attempt an English version of Gábor Hollerung’s classic phrase – “import-less” issues.

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18:30 Percussions Show

 

BDO’s percussionists can “compete” with famous Hungarian percussion ensembles. In this colourfully complex, exciting and invigorating half-hour concert, you will hear Renaissance music on two marimbas, Bach, Debussy and Joplin by percussions, many exciting rearranged masterpieces, and a real curiosity: four percussionists will play simultaneously on a single marimba! At the end of the concert, the more adventurous can even try their hand on the different drums.

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20:00 Main Evening Concert

 

The end of the day will see us return to classical music in the truest sense of the word. The two pieces of music, both of a very pure quality, were written forty years apart and will lead the listener in an uplifting relaxation in complete harmony and lightness. In both works, common Baroque roots can be detected – Bach’s and Handel’s thinking in particular. The evening concert that will close BDO Day, could be seen as a continuation of our concert on 24th September, featuring works by prodigies, just as in our Budafok concert series.

Programme:

Mozart: “Linz” Symphony, KV 425
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 1

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ÉLŐ! Megérthető zene RÁADÁS – Bartók: A csodálatos mandarin – szvit – in memoriam Kocsis Zoltán

ÉLŐ KONCERT, KÖZÖNSÉG ELŐTT!

Május 28-án, Kocsis Zoltán születésnapjának megünneplésére készülődve, hosszú idő után először közönség előtt tartható koncertre várjuk közönségünket.

Bartók: A csodálatos mandarin című koncertszvitje szólal csendül fel. A mű a XX-XXI. század örök érvényű, ma is igen aktuális kérdéseit taglalja: Mi a civilizáció és mi a barbárság? Hogyan tudjuk a bűnt és a tisztaságot megkülönböztetni? Hogyan tudunk elevickélni a mindig is létező bűnök és a reményeink szerint szintén mindig létező tisztaság között?

Koncertünkkel A magyar klasszikus zene napja elnevezésű kezdeményezéshez, amelyet a néhai Kocsis Zoltán zongoraművész, karmester születésnapján, május 30-án indítják útjára a szervezők, ezzel a kifejezetten erre az alkalomra összeállított és rögzítendő koncerttel csatlakozik zenekarunk.  A szórakoztatóan ismeretterjesztő, legendásan szuggesztív, karmesteri magyarázatokkal kiegészített és átszőtt Megérthető zene sorozatunkban RÁADÁS koncertként műsorra tűzött Bartók: A csodálatos mandarin – szvittel kívánunk emlékezni és tisztelegni Kocsis Zoltán előtt. Hollerung Gábor sajátos viszonyt ápol a Kocsis Zoltán által is kiemelt kötődéssel kezelt Bartók-életművel. Tudása és Bartók-ismerete közismerten kiemelkedő.

Hangversenyünk a 2021. május 30-án 11:00-kor a BDZ YouTube csatornáján (www.youtube.com/bdzbudapest) követhető koncert nyilvános felvétele. Jegyvásárlás a jobb oldali panelben található “jegyvásárlás” gombra kattintva lehetséges.

A törvényi előírásoknak megfelelően csak azokat a jeggyel rendelkező látogatókat tudjuk beengedni a közönség soraiba, akik felmutatják narancs-zöld színű védettségi kártyájukat és személyi igazolványukat. Megértésüket és együttműködésüket köszönjük!

Bővebb információ a biztonsági intézkedésekről: https://bdz.hu/ujra-szemelyesen/