Search: Orgona Mupa

The organ, this instrument that is at once acoustic and mechanical in character, can evoke in us, through its sound alone or even merely on account of its sheer visual presence, a sense of vastness spanning immense distances. For this concert, however, the organ is joined by a saxophone and live electronics to blend elements of classical and contemporary music with jazz to produce an unclassifiable, improvisatory performance that makes this expansive horizon even more breathtaking than usual.

The dice and the stopwatch will be coming out again at the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall as it hosts another round of musical ‘battle’. When we talk about instrumental duels in the Hungarian capital these days, it is no longer necessarily Bach and Marchand, or even Liszt and Thalberg, that we are thinking of, because we have our own riveting concert series right here at Müpa Budapest.

One of the organ’s most promising young stars and the winner of last year’s St Albans International Organ Competition, the Jena-born Alexis Grizard steps up as the soloist for this concert promising two monumental compositions. Ferenc Liszt’s most extensive organ work is often referred to as “The Organ Sonata in B minor”.

Let’s imagine the opera house is just a few steps from the church, because tonight is the night the organ pipes will bring the most thrilling moments of opera to life.

The 1924 silent film by Buster Keaton, the deadpan burlesque master of the stony face who always took extraordinary risks both as an actor and a director, will be screened before the Müpa audience on this occasion with improvised organ accompaniment.

A Journey Through the Realm of the Pipes

Works by Bach, Vivaldi, Daquin, Mozart, Vierne and Antalffy-Zsiross

Which contains more switches: the cockpit of a supersonic aeroplane or the console of the magnificent musical instrument that serves as the symbol of Müpa Budapest?