Hungary has a proud cultural history, but much of its output remains closed to a world that can’t speak the tongue. Some of the finest literature is set in regions now beyond the country’s borders, and represents the constant prick of loss. An early narrative of roaming Magyars fleeing hostile foes in their own land has a strong hold, while there’s a tradition of rebellion, isolation and despair among the popular songbooks. The most renowned writers hark from the Romantic age, kings among them being the young revolutionary poet Sándor Petofi and his friend János Arany. Others you’ll come across – often through the names of streets or squares – are the Romanticists Ferenc Kölcsey (author of the national anthem) and Mihály Vörösmarty, the late-19th-century Realists József Eötvös and Mór Jókai, the anguished Endre Ady and the Expressionistic, avant-garde Attila József. Imre Kertész – author of Sorstalanság ( Fateless ), a shocking Holocaust novel – won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2002. Head for the Hungarian National Gallery for a survey of the nation’s artistic contribution.
As for classical music , Ferenc Liszt, Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály are established names in the canon of European composers. These days, the minimalist textures of modern composer György Ligeti are helping to carry on the Hungarian claim to musical preeminence – his compositions featured in 2001 A Space Odyssey , and his was the eerie piano music in Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut and Márta Sebestyén’s haunting vocals at the beginning of The English Patient . However, fewer will have encountered contemporary Hungarian music, although this scene is one of the most intriguing faces of cultural change underway in the country.
In the second half of last century, while rock and roll boomed in the West, Hungarians only had access to it via Radio Luxembourg and Radio Free Europe (which were illegal). Communism prohibited commercial radio, and the musical diet was officially limited. During this era underground radio played a crucial counter-establishment role, both cultural and political (indeed, some people partly attribute the bloody 1956 Hungarian uprising to its subversive influence).
As a consequence, Hungarians are even now ‘catching up’ with some of the music that passed them by. And it hardly needs stating that Hungarian classic rock is unknown in the West. Although local rock bands required a permit to play for live audiences, there were some very successful home-grown artists in the 1960s and ’70s (such as Bikini, LGT, Illés, Metró and Omega).
Popular music underwent a rapid change in the late 1980s. The cultural influx that came with the political shift has continued unabated since. Young Hungarians are generally fashion conscious and up to date. Nevertheless, seismic cultural change has inevitably resulted in generational differences. Those in their 30s and 40s tend to go out less frequently as family and work commitments take precedence; older Hungarians arguably hold a limited definition of ‘culture’, partly due to the entrenched Soviet practice of ‘cultural houses’, which served for the staging of everything from poetry readings to chess games. The established view in Hungary is that pop is a subculture belonging to the commercial – not the cultural – domain, and full acceptance will take time.
To try to isolate and define Hungarian music would be to overlook the fact that its diversity is intrinsic to understanding this corner of the world. The musical landscape in central Europe reflects a tangled web of historical relationships and influences. The mutual borrowing from musical traditions in this region – Slavonic, Romany, Jewish and more – may seem bewildering at first.
Folk music – stifled under communism because nationalistic songs were out of keeping with the professed internationalist ethic – now thrives again. Try listening to Kaláka, or Muzsikás with Márta Sebestyén. In some restaurants, musicians play traditional tunes on string instruments, including the Hungarian cimbalom . To hear the instrument’s capabilities explored in full, try Balogh Kálmán and the Gipsy Cimbalom Band. Other notable groups exemplifying distinctive regional music styles include the renowned ambassadors of klezmer (a Jewish folk tradition originating in central and eastern Europe) the Budapest Klezmer Band; purveyors of Croatian dance Vujicsics; and Parno Graszt, Romano Drom, Kalyi Jág and Ternipe, bands that exemplify the Romany (gypsy) strand of Hungarian musical tradition. Or the Hungarian strand of the Romany tradition, depending on your point of view.
Operas in Budapest are full-blown affairs, with elaborate sets and luxuriant costume. They are also often performed in Hungarian, which is considerably less romantic than Italian but probably no worse than English. Opera buff or not, you should take advantage of some of the cheapest ticket prices in the world and a sumptuous setting at the State Opera House. You don’t need to wear top hat and tails, but jeans distress the usherettes. The ‘father of Hungarian opera’ was Ferenc Erkel, who conducted his own Hunyadi László and Bánk Bán at the opening of the State Opera House. Both operas remain popular today; there are also performances throughout the year by foreign masters like Mozart and Wagner.
Jazz fans might try the Dresch Mihály Quartet or the Balázs Elemér Group, while the upcoming group The Next Generation is made up of highly talented young musicians in their teens and 20s. Admirers of instrumental virtuosity should make a note of pianist Béla Szakcsi Lakatos and his son Robi, the latter a rising star in his own right. Dynamic young violinist Lajkó Félix – imagine a kind of Balkan Nigel Kennedy – from northern Serbia now lives and regularly performs in Budapest.
Among well-regarded DJs active in Budapest, and at the cutting edge of Hungarian sounds, are turntable veteran Palotai and the talented young Yonderboi. Electronic and dance artists you can pursue in record shops (or perhaps catch live) include Anima Sound System, Korai Öröm, Zagar, Másfél and Yonderboi (again). These acts are notable for fusing global and local elements in a way that is original and eclectic, but avoids seeming contrived.
The fusion of new and old is emblematic of the meeting of world and local cultures occurring in this part of Europe. Contemporary Hungarian music is especially interesting for the way many of the artists disregard, and so transcend, boundaries between musical genres and traditions.
Folk Dance
The dance-house ( táncház ) movement began over 30 years ago as a reaction against sanitised state ensembles, a sense of national pride and a concern for the Magyar minority in Transylvania (where the best music was
concentrated). Young urbanites travelled to rural communities in an attempt to learn and preserve dying traditional music and dances. They then played
and taught these to those in cities. Such dance houses continue. They are usually held in cultural centres, where traditional dance is accompanied by folk music played on traditional instruments by groups like Muzsikás.
Visitors take an active part in the dance, or sit around with glasses of pálinka and watch as musicians play and dancers dance. Dance houses take place less often in the summer. If you want a polished performance rather than a workshop, it’s worth checking the programmes at the National Dance Theatre, the Vigadó or the Danube Palace.
Ballet has been popular in Hungary for 200 years; the most prestigious of today’s companies is the National Ballet Company, the country’s first ensemble, which is based at the State Opera House. The National Dance Theatre also includes ballet among its repertoire.
