21 minute read
Concerts
What does a melody mean? Something diff erent for each person. We are diverse, so music brings diverse things to us. Diff erent feelings, memories, and experiences. We celebrate this diversity with our photo series, as we believe that classical music belongs to everyone. Members of the Budapest Festival Orchestra, as well as of our audiences, were the models for the photo series. We asked each of them to listen to a diff erent orchestral piece from this season. Photographer László Mészáros presented their impressions, feelings, and fantasies, fi ltered through his own artistic imagination in his picturesque photos appearing in this season booklet. And what do these compositions tell you? Come and listen to them at our concerts!
Attila Sztán The model for this photo was trombonist orchestra member Attila Sztán, who had listened to the second movement of Schubert’s Symphony in C major, The Great. “What fi rst came to my mind was elegance: arriving at a royal palace in a beautiful carriage.”
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A joint event of Müpa Budapest, the Iván Fischer Opera Company and the BFO Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall 09 Friday 7:00 p.m. Solti 10 Saturday 7:00 p.m. Doráti
Britten Persson, Aikin Staples, Cook Fischer
Benjamin Britten The Turn of the Screw Miah Persson (Governess), Laura Aikin (Mrs. Grose), Andrew Staples (Prologue, Peter Quint), Allison Cook (Miss Jessel), N. N. (Miles), N. N. (Flora)/conductor and director: Iván Fischer
Hovering between reality and fantasizing. Constant uncertainty, both on stage and in the auditorium. A psychological drama disguised as a horror story. Opera productions have been the most prominent performances of the Festival Orchestra for years. This time, Iván Fischer has chosen a truly special piece: he directs and conducts Britten’s chamber opera, The Turn of the Screw. The story of two orphans and their Governess is made creepy by the ghosts of a former Governess and a former Manservant. Even creepier is the possibility that these ghosts may only exist in the imagination of the current Governess. The opera has a tragic ending, and, due to the unreliability of its narrator, never offers a clue to those in search of the truth; it is a real showpiece both musically and for its director. With the world famous soloists returning to the BFO, an experience that will remain with its audience is guaranteed.
A joint event of Müpa Budapest and the BFO Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall 22 Thursday 7:45 p.m. Solti 23 Friday 7:45 p.m. Doráti
Bridging Europe Andriessen Mozart, Beethoven L. & A. Jussen Fischer
Louis Andriessen Workers Union Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Concerto for Two Pianos in E-flat major, K. 365 Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major (“Eroica”), Op. 55 Lucas & Arthur Jussen (piano)/conductor: Iván Fischer
A piece by a contemporary Dutch composer on the program, two Dutch brothers in their twenties playing a piano concerto by Mozart, and one of the indisputable geniuses of West European classical music paying homage to Napoleon, later to an unnamed hero instead. This focused yet diverse program is to be enjoyed nowhere else but at the BFO concert in the Bridging Europe series, a joint initiative by Müpa Budapest and the Budapest Festival Orchestra. The concert opens with a piece by Louis Andriessen, who passed away in July 2021. The composer fixed the rhythm of the music only, while the work is indeterminate as regards pitch or instrumentation. The piano duo of Lucas & Arthur Jussen will play the concerto that Mozart originally composed for himself and his sister. The solemn exclamation point to close the evening is delivered by Beethoven’s monumental ‘Eroica’, a milestone in the history of music.
Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall 06 Thursday 7:45 p.m. Solti 07 Friday 7:45 p.m. Doráti 08 Saturday 3:30 p.m. Reiner
Lyadov, Prokofiev Rachmaninoff Ibragimova Ticciati
Anatoly Lyadov The Enchanted Lake, Op. 62 Sergei Prokofiev Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major, Op. 19 Sergei Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 44 Alina Ibragimova (violin)/ conductor: Robin Ticciati
Russian characters emerge at BFO’s concert from three composers who found writing music a hard task. Lyadov was hindered by his own laziness; of his few surviving works, the concert features his music depicting nature in a fairy-tale world. Because of their harsh sound, Lyadov excluded all brass instruments from his score. Written in the turbulent year of 1917, Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto treats the solo violin as first among equals rather than a dominating virtuoso. Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 3 wasn’t an easy delivery either. Neither critics nor the audience were overwhelmed by the new work: posterity, however, did justice to the composer. The soloist is Alina Ibragimova, praised for her “immediacy and honesty” (The Guardian), whereas the orchestra plays under the baton of BFO’s regular guest conductor, music director of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and the Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Robin Ticciati.
Haydn Mozart Gulyás, Kostyál Takács-Nagy
Joseph Haydn Symphony No. 39 in G minor, Hob. I:39 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Sinfonia Concertante in E-flat major for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra, K. 364 Symphony No. 38 in D major (“Prague”), K. 504 Emese Gulyás (violin), Péter Kostyál (viola) conductor: Gábor Takács-Nagy
When the Festival Orchestra announces works by Haydn and Mozart in its program, the experienced concert-goer immediately knows: Gábor Takács-Nagy is getting ready for another unforgettable concert. Music of the masters of Viennese classicism always sounds full of vitality, freshness, and wit under the baton of the Prima Primissima laureate conductor. Instead of their usual cheerfulness, both Haydn’s first Sturm und Drang orchestral work and Mozart’s surprisingly serious and profound Prague symphony represent a darker and more tense atmosphere – in minor keys. In between these symphonies, we will have sunshine: two outstanding violinists of the BFO who collected a special prize at the Sándor Végh Competition in 2021, Emese Gulyás and Péter Kostyál – who is at home with chamber music and often plays the viola too – perform the solo parts of an exhilarating musical dialogue before the intermission.
Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall 12 Saturday 3:30 p.m. Reiner, Storytime with Iván 13 Sunday 7:45 p.m. Doráti 14 Monday 7:45 p.m. Solti
Monteverdi Bartók Schubert Frang Fischer
Claudio Monteverdi A selection from Scherzi Musicali Béla Bartók Violin Concerto No. 2, Sz. 112, BB 117 Franz Schubert Symphony No. 9 in C major ("The Great"), D. 944 Vilde Frang (violin)/conductor: Iván Fischer
The charming Vilde Frang will be the soloist of the Festival Orchestra yet again! “Frang has the knack of breathing life into every note” – wrote the critic of BBC Music Magazine about the musicianship of the Norwegian violinist. This time she is to breathe life into Bartók’s score, one of the most demanding concertos in music history, his Violin Concerto No. 2. To begin the colorful program, a few of the vocal works by Monteverdi, accompanied by an ensemble of instruments, will be performed. The composer reconsidered the relationship between music and words in a revolutionary way. Following Baroque musical jokes and 20th century sounds, the second part of the concert features Schubert’s most significant instrumental work, a milestone of romanticism, the last symphony he finished.
Budapest Congress Center 03 Saturday 7:45 p.m. Solti 04 Sunday 3:30 p.m. Reiner, Fricsay
Weber, Grieg Tchaikovsky Perianes Orozco-Estrada
Carl Maria von Weber Oberon – overture Edvard Grieg Concerto in A minor, Op. 16 Pyotr Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64 Javier Perianes (piano)/conductor: Andrés Orozco-Estrada
A fairy overture composed for England by the founder of German romantic opera, the unique piano concerto of the celebrated composer of the Norwegian nation, and a "fate symphony" of a Russian master fighting his composer’s block – it's barely possible to put together a more colorful, more international program. The pieces and the performers are of course connected by the universal language of the European traditions of classical music. The output of Weber, Grieg, and Tchaikovsky has always crossed boundaries, although all three of them drew tunes from their respective treasuries of folk music. The piano soloist of the concert is Javier Perianes from Spain, who, in 2019, was chosen Artist of the Year by International Classical Music Awards (ICMA); the Festival Orchestra is conducted by Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Colombian music director of the Wiener Symphoniker, for the first time.
Corelli, Haydn C. P. E. Bach, Suk Iván Pilz
Arcangelo Corelli Concerto grosso in G minor (“Christmas Concerto”), Op. 6, No. 8 Joseph Haydn Violin Concerto No. 1 in C major, Hob. VIIa:1 Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach Symphony No. 3 for Strings in C major, Wq 182, No. 3 Josef Suk Serenade for Strings in E-flat major, Op. 6 Tímea Iván (violin)/concertmaster: János Pilz
A smallish concerto – this sounds a proper equivalent of the Italian word concertino. As part of BFO’s series, this evening focuses on pieces that were performed without a conductor, by ensembles smaller than today’s symphony orchestras. The chamber orchestra is once again led by the violinist János Pilz as concertmaster. The program covers a time-span from the early 18th century to the end of the 19th, beginning with a piece fitting the Advent season, Corelli’s Christmas Concerto, his best-known composition. This is followed by the Haydn’s Violin Concerto, drawing on Baroque patterns. The soloist is a founding member of the Festival Orchestra, Tímea Iván. After Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s String Symphony with a wide range of emotions, an unusually cheerful Serenade by the young Josef Suk, a pupil of Dvořák’s, wraps up the concert.
Budapest Congress Center 26 Monday 7:45 p.m.
Surprise Concert Fischer
conductor: Iván Fischer
A great concert is always a gift. But what is hidden inside the packaging? The Festival Orchestra’s Christmas concert is the biggest music surprise during the holidays. Never out of ideas, Iván Fischer creates a program each year not to be disclosed in advance, making maximum use of the ensemble’s versatility, and sometimes even of the characteristics of the environment. It will never become boring, since the excellent musicians of the BFO perform alternately as orchestra players, chamber musicians, or soloists in the most diverse genres and styles. This evening may feature Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and contemporary pieces, as well as jazz, klezmer, or folk music. At the end of every year, the power of surprise, the delight of enjoying the usual high standard, and the celebratory atmosphere bring to audiences the experience called “the most beautiful Christmas present” in one comment.
Liszt Academy, Grand Hall 08 Sunday 3:30 p.m. Széll 09 Monday 7:45 p.m. Ormándy
Handel, Caldara Vivaldi Kim Altstaedt, T’Hooft
George Frideric Handel Concerto Grosso in D minor, Op. 6, No. 10, HWV 328 Antonio Caldara Concerto in D minor for Cello and Two Violins Antonio Vivaldi Cello Concerto in A minor, RV 419 George Frideric Handel Tra le fiamme (Among the Flames) – Cantata, HWV 170 Kangmin Justin Kim (countertenor)/ artistic director and cello: Nicolas Altstaedt, Baroque gesture: Sigrid T’Hooft
Countertenor Kangmin Justin Kim might as well have come from a K-pop band: to his extravagant, cheeky style is added a voice that has landed him in the top lists of several international classical music magazines. He will be the soloist of the ensemble led by Nicolas Altstaedt. The cellist “is an artist in a category on his own” as a reviewer in the Hamburger Abendblatt put it. We can also learn from other reviews that, behind the charming looks, there are musical extremes, incredible technique, warm tone colors, and direct communication. All this fire and audacity will meet one of the most beautiful vocal works of the Baroque period, the masterpieces of the cello literature, Handel’s tales, Caldara’s elegance, Vivaldi’s freshness, and Sigrid T’Hooft’s authentic stage gesture to provide a truly unforgettable Baroque program with period instruments.
Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall 19 Thursday 7:45 p.m. Solti 20 Friday 7:45 p.m. Doráti 21 Saturday 3:30 p.m. Reiner, Storytime with Iván
Mahler Fischer
Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 9 conductor: Iván Fischer
“It is music coming from another world; it is coming from eternity.” These are Herbert von Karajan’s words on Mahler’s 9th Symphony. Indeed, the work, lasting almost an hour and a half, creates a very special atmosphere. This is the last score the composer finished; still, we cannot say for sure if he was saying farewell to life as he started working on his 10th almost immediately and with the same vigor. It is indisputable, however, that the subject of the symphony is death: its mournful, grotesque, beautiful, and redemptory sides alike. The gigantic first movement begins innocently but intensifies into cacophony; this is followed by a movement put together from dances: folksy ländler and waltz. Then comes Mahler’s most modern music, the Rondo-Burlesque, and, finally, the vision of the afterworld; its ethereal sound closing the solemn and touching work.
A joint event of Müpa Budapest and the BFO Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall Müpa Budapest, Festival Theater 04 Saturday
Marathon Fischer
artistic director: Iván Fischer
There is so much great music. However, there is only one event each year stirring up the music scene in Hungary for a whole day. In the past 15 years, Tchaikovsky, Dvořák, Beethoven, Schubert, Mozart, Bartók, Bach, Stravinsky, Mendelssohn and Schumann, Brahms, Bernstein, Debussy and Ravel, Beethoven once again, Berlioz and Liszt online, and Richard Strauss have been the composer giants at the center of the joint Marathons of the Festival Orchestra and Müpa Budapest. During the all-day event, the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall will primarily be be the venue for the symphonic concerts, while the Festival Theatre will host the chamber music events. The other rooms and spaces will offer free concerts and screenings. Performers include outstanding Hungarian soloists, chamber ensembles, and orchestras, and, as usual, some young talents will be also invited. But who will be the next name?
Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall 10 Friday 7:45 p.m. Solti 11 Saturday 7:45 p.m. Doráti 12 Sunday 3:30 p.m. Reiner, Fricsay
Ravel Saint-Saëns Bavouzet Langrée
Maurice Ravel Ma mère l'Oye (Mother Goose) – orchestral suite; Piano Concerto for the Left Hand in D major Camille Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3 in C minor (“Organ Symphony”) Op. 78 Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (piano)/conductor: Louis Langrée
The French conductor Louis Langrée returns to the pulpit of BFO with a French program, performing the music of two prominent composers of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, Ravel and Saint-Saëns. The music director of both the New York Mostly Mozart Festival and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra is to conduct an orchestral suite (grown from a piano piece) and a symphony including an organ part, and, between the two, one of the most significant 20th century piano concertos. The soloist of the latter is the conductor’s compatriot, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, who has already played concertos by Bartók and Mozart with the Festival Orchestra. This is what The Financial Times wrote about him: “He makes you listen to music as if you are discovering it Eureka!-style: yes, that’s what the composer must have meant!”
Mozart Wieniawski Spohr, Haydn Kádár Gál-Tamási, Liptai Takács-Nagy
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Divertimento in D major, K. 205 Henryk Wieniawski Violin Concerto No. 2 in D minor, Op. 22 Louis Spohr Concertante in C major for Violin, Cello, and Orchestra, WoO 11 Joseph Haydn Symphony No. 70 in D major, Hob. I:70 István Kádár (violin), Mária Gál-Tamási (violin) Gabriella Liptai (cello) /conductor: Gábor Takács-Nagy
Gábor Takács-Nagy’s Haydn–Mozart series, which has been running with great success for years, now incorporates works by less frequently played composers. Each piece being an odd-man-out in its own right, they are still attached to each other on many counts, primarily because of the dominating D tonality and because of the outstanding role of soloists. The strongest link between the composers is that all four of them were excellent instrumentalists. They wrote a number of their works for themselves, perfectly mastering, and pushing to the limits, the attributes of their respective instruments. They should also be appreciated for their several technical innovations. After Mozart’s nimble divertimento comes the most successful composition by the Polish violin virtuoso Wieniawski. Following the intermission, Spohr’s double concerto-like, single-movement piece is followed by a scintillating Haydn symphony. All this is on offer with the orchestra led by a conductor specializing in Haydn and Mozart.
Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall 09 Thursday 7:45 p.m. Solti 10 Friday 7:45 p.m. Doráti 11 Saturday 3:30 p.m. Széll, Storytime with Iván
Dohnányi Schumann R. Strauss Buchbinder Fischer
Ernő Dohnányi Symphonic Minutes, Op. 36 Robert Schumann Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54 Richard Strauss Don Juan, Op. 20; Tanz der Sieben Schleier from Salome, Op. 54; Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche, Op. 28 Rudolf Buchbinder (piano) /conductor: Iván Fischer
Symphonic Minutes, then “something between a symphony, a concerto and a large sonata”, a symphonic poem, an opera excerpt and “an old scoundrel's tale – in rondo form”. Three composers with a fantastic gift for orchestration; untold yet audible stories and the endless mix of timbres in an orchestra – this is on offer at the joint concert by the BFO and the legendary Rudolf Buchbinder, an authority with sixty years’ experience. The pianist, known for his Beethoven performances, appears on the podium after Dohnányi’s Symphonic Minutes (composed with a ballet stage in mind) to perform Schumann’s only completed piano concerto. After the intermission, the focus is on Richard Strauss: the story of the famous womanizer is followed by Oscar Wilde’s seductive but terrifying heroine, then, eventually, Till Eulenspiegel provides edifying minutes with his musical pranks.
Jubilee concert to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the composer’s birth
Ligeti 100 Károlyi Perényi Rácz
György Ligeti With Pipes, Drums, Fiddles; Concerto for Cello and Orchestra; Poème symphonique; Concert Românesc; San Francisco Polyphony Katalin Károlyi (mezzo-soprano), Miklós Perényi (cello) conductor: Zoltán Rácz
In 2023, the Festival Orchestra pays homage to György Ligeti, born a hundred years ago, with a grand concert. One of the most significant composers of the post-World War II half century, Ligeti bequeathed to us an extraordinarily colorful œuvre. He was interested in all periods of music history, was attracted by literature, and, ever since his youth, he was tied up with mathematics. All this infiltrated into his works, always revealing layers for research that are often beyond music. Ligeti left Hungary in 1956 and got to know the greatest figures of avant-garde art in Cologne. Soon he, too, was one of them. His selected works are conducted by the founding member of the Kossuth Prize laureate Amadinda Percussion Group, Zoltán Rácz.
Telemann Fasch, Handel True Seiler, T’Hooft
Georg Philipp Telemann Orchestral Suite in G minor (“La musette”), TWV 55:g1 Johann Friedrich Fasch Symphony for Strings in G major, FWV M:G5 Georg Philipp Telemann Concerto for Three Violins in F major, TWV 53:F1 George Frideric Handel Concerto Grosso in A major, Op. 6, No. 11, HWV 329; Armida abbandonata – cantata, HWV 105 Stefanie True (soprano)/artistic director and Baroque violin: Midori Seiler, Baroque gesture: Sigrid T’Hooft
It’s hard to imagine a season of the Festival Orchestra without a Baroque concert where the unforgettable experience is also guaranteed by the series of motions choreographed by Sigrid T’Hooft. She has enlivened the BFO’s historical performances with her expertise – through period costumes and authentic motions – since 2011. This time again, the artistic director of the program, including the prolific Telemann, the forgotten Fasch, and the ever-inspiring Handel, will be violinist Midori Seiler, who has been responsible for the BFO’s early music concerts for years. The program will conclude with Handel’s emotional cantata, which almost demands some movements on stage. The cantata will feature the solo performance of Canadian-born soprano Stefanie True, a returning guest of the BFO.
Budapest Congress Center 22 Saturday 7:45 p.m. Doráti, Széll 23 Sunday 3:30 p.m. Reiner, Fricsay
Mendelssohn Bruckner Braunstein Oren
Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 Anton Bruckner Symphony No. 4 in E-flat major (“Romantic”), WAB 104 Guy Braunstein (violin)/conductor: Daniel Oren
Fairies enchanted into musical notes; knights, medieval castles and hunters appear in the Festival Orchestra’s romantic program featuring two grandiose and ever-inspiring highlights of concert halls composed by two giants of German music. The concert will start with Mendelssohn’s violin concerto, written in his mature years, conducted by the Israeli Daniel Oren, music director of the Verona Opera Festival, with the excellent Guy Braunstein playing the solo part. The composition, including a virtuoso opening movement, a singing air, and a finale evoking the atmosphere of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, will be followed by one of the most popular pieces of Bruckner, his Symphony No. 4, which he revised several times. The composer accompanied the music with the description of scenes from a knight’s tale, but the movements, built up in a lucid and deliberate manner, guarantee an overwhelming experience that shuts out the outside world, even without knowing the program.
Müpa Budapest, Béla Bartók National Concert Hall 11 Thursday 7:45 p.m. Solti 12 Friday 7:45 p.m. Doráti 14 Sunday 3:30 p.m. Reiner, Storytime with Iván
Bach, Ligeti Brahms Elbert Fischer
Johann Sebastian Bach Orchestral Suite No. 4 in D major, BWV 1069 György Ligeti Mysteries of the Macabre Johannes Brahms Symphony No. 3 in F major, Op. 90 Anna-Lena Elbert (soprano)/conductor: Iván Fischer
The musicians of the Festival Orchestra play a suite by Bach on period instruments, to be followed immediately by a set of showpiece arias for coloratura soprano from György Ligeti’s avant-garde “anti-opera” performed by the award-winning German soprano Anna-Lena Elbert, still in her late twenties; and finally, after visits to the extremes, comes a kind of synthesis: the bittersweet, far more reserved and conservative Brahms symphony – how could a concert program be more colorful? The skips between centuries produce seemingly irreconcilable opposites that in fact attract each other. Baroque and contemporary music are a particularly good match, while Brahms’ flowing melodies give a rest to the listener who may have been exhausted by this time travel and such modern sounds.
Haydn, Mozart Mendelssohn R. Strauss–Kostyál Aviat Pilz
Joseph Haydn Symphony No. 1 in D major, Hob. I:1 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 10 in G major, K. 74; Oboe Concerto in C major, K. 314 Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy String Symphony No. 1 in C major Richard Strauss – Péter Kostyál Der Rosenkavalier – Suite for Strings Victor Aviat (oboe)/concertmaster: János Pilz
The very first symphony by the 25-year-old Haydn, one of the early symphonies of the 14-year-old Mozart and the first string symphony of the 17-year-old Mendelssohn will be among the pieces performed at the June concert of the BFO’s Concertino series, proving that classical music can be youthful. The program also features a Mozart concerto, more popular for flute but originally composed for oboe and orchestra, with the solo part played by Victor Aviat, principal oboe of the Festival Orchestra, who has also worked with the BFO as a conductor on several occasions. He has been described by Iván Fischer as “a very sensitive musician, who is fascinated by the details”. The concert will end with a so far unknown series of well-known melodies: the popular waltz melodies of Richard Strauss’s opera, Der Rosenkavalier, will be performed as rearranged by Péter Kostyál, the orchestra’s violonist.
12 Saturday 11:30 p.m. Castle Garden Bazaar Iván Fischer 21 Saturday 11:30 p.m. Castle Garden Bazaar Iván Fischer 11 Saturday 11:30 p.m. Castle Garden Bazaar Iván Fischer
Midnight Music
Will you come at midnight and listen to some classical music while lounging on a beanbag, just an arm’s length from the musicians? This question might have sounded weird ten years ago but, thanks to the Festival Orchestra, Midnight Music has since become one of the best and most popular programs for those who have a keen interest in culture but don’t like the constraints at traditional concerts. There is no need to dress up and it won’t last for hours; instead, you can enjoy the friendly, relaxed atmosphere, made even more personable by Iván Fischer’s witty comments about the pieces being performed. A community event, a party instead of a party, a memorable experience – who said classical music was boring and rigid?
Cocoa Concerts
January
February
For almost a quarter of a century, the Festival Orchestra’s program series for children has brought a high-quality classical musical experience to the youngest. The orchestra’s rehearsal room not only serves experimenting with the tiniest details of the symphonic pieces to be performed or playing chamber music, but also as the venue for educating the next generation of classical music lovers. There is no better promotion of these events than the fact that several members of the BFO’s loyal audiences came to love music at these Cocoa Concerts, with a polka-dot mug in their hands. And nowadays they bring their own kids. While listening to the performance of the orchestra’s excellent musicians in a cozy atmosphere, the audience will learn about the instruments of the symphony orchestra and concert etiquette in a playful and interactive manner. After the concert, the kids can have a mug of cocoa in the lobby. Since 2015, we have also offered an autism-friendly version of our Cocoa Concerts thanks to the contribution of Nemzetközi Cseperedő Alapítvány (an international foundation to support children and their families living with autism). In order to ensure that the children living with autism do not encounter anything unexpected during the concert, the BFO provides the families with some information material in advance to help them prepare the children for the visual and auditory stimuli.
