The first half of this concert comprises the work of two composers born a short time apart and who shared an unofficial relationship as master and student. Passacaglia by Anton Webern (1883–1945), written in 1908, reinterprets with modern instrumentation the series of variations on the bass form passed down from the Baroque era. At the same time, Webern effects the counterpoint technique to develop a beautiful and emotionally charged sound, prompting this early work to be recognised as a modern... classic. Gustav Mahler (1860–1911), adopted as role model and master by Arnold Schönberg and his students Alban Berg and Anton Webern, composed the Kindertotenlieder (“Songs on the Death of Children”) cycle between 1901 and 1904. The five songs were inspired by the writings of Mahler's favourite poet Friedrich Rückert following the death of his two children. When the Gustav and Alma Mahler themselves lost a child shortly after its completion, the composer's wife accused her husband of tempting fate. “The cycle is a gripping lyrical work. Its musical material is given by noble symphonic melodies, … (yet) even the strongest dramatic effect fails to tempt Mahler to stray into the territory of chanson,” wrote Bruno Walter, not only one of Mahler's most dedicated performers, but also among his closest friends. One of Mahler's biographers, Kurt Blaukopf, wrote the following about the piece: “Here, Mahler's music has already broken free of the stylistic forms of earlier songwriting, such as simple folklore, marching rhythms, military signals and folk dance tones, rising to new heights from which Schönberg's Pierrot Lunaire (1912), Anton Webern's Rilke Songs (1910) and Alban Berg's Altenberg Songs (1912) can be observed.” Following the interval, the Pannon Philharmonic Orchestra will play its part in repaying one of the great debts owed to Hungarian music in performing Symphony No. 2 by in E major by Ernő Dohnányi (1877–1960). Over the past half century, the work, which was begun in 1944 but was only finalised in 1956, has been all but banished for political reasons. It will follow Dohnyányi's recently premièred Symphony No. 1, Ruralia Hungarica and the Symphonic Minutes. Presented by the Pannon Philharmonic Orchestra
Parking information
We wish to inform you that in the event that Müpa Budapest's underground garage and outdoor car park are operating at full capacity, it is advisable to plan for increased waiting times when you arrive. In order to avoid this, we recommend that you depart for our events in time, so that you you can find the ideal parking spot quickly and smoothly and arrive for our performance in comfort. The Müpa Budapest underground garage gates will be operated by an automatic number plate recognition system. Parking is free of charge for visitors with tickets to any of our paid performances on that given day. The detailed parking policy of Müpa Budapest is available here.
Safe ticket purchase
Dear Visitors, please note that only tickets purchased from the Müpa website and official ticket offices are guaranteed to be valid. To avoid possible inconvenience, we suggest buying tickets to our performances and concerts via the mupa.hu website, the Interticket national network (jegy.hu) or at our official ticket offices.