A rézerdő lakói

It could be that even we ourselves often don’t fully comprehend how many ways the digital age has changed our relationship with music. Nevertheless, there remain themes that simply demand an analogue, more traditional approach. Active since the ’10s, singer-songwriter Gergő Szakács has transitioned over the years from monumental pop sounds to more intimate, live instrumental productions, and this journey will reach its next important milestone at Müpa Budapest.

Attendind a performance of Messiah is always a thrilling experience, but it is especially so when Handel’s work – which has become a national classic in England – is performed by a dedicated ensemble like the legendary German flagship of the international early-music scene: the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, now with over 44 years of history behind it. The storied chamber orchestra will perform with one of the world’s finest mixed choirs, the RIAS Kammerchor, which also hails from Berlin and was founded in the years immediately following the Second World War.

It is not exclusively Hungarians that Müpa Budapest honours with the prestigious title of Artist of the Season: foreign musicians, such as the Russian piano virtuoso Denis Matsuev, for instance, have also been distinguished in this way. The prerequisites are obvious: a high level of professional excellence and a fruitful relationship with Müpa Budapest.