The National Philharmonic Orchestra has added new colour to the Hungarian concert scene in recent years by periodically presenting audiences with a number of unusual operatic works. This strand has been strengthened further in the ensemble’s concert programme for the 2012/13 season, as these works now amount to almost a separate series within the traditional concert schedule. Capriccio is the final opera composed by Richard Strauss, assigned a special category the composer himself defined as “Ko...nversationsstück für Musik,” a conversation piece for music. In this single-act opera, Strauss utilised the musical forms fashionable at the end of the 18th century in an extraordinarily virtuoso manner: octets, complex groupings of instruments and fugues are heard within it, while at the same time the whole is characterised by the restraint and moderation of the Viennese Classical period. The idea for the libretto came from Stefan Zweig, although it was eventually developed by Clemens Krauss, the conductor of the première in Munich in 1942, together with the composer himself, who was by then almost 80 years old. In the opera set in 1775 in a château near Paris, the poet Olivier and the composer Flamand have each produced a separate piece of work for the countess’s birthday, and – before they can collaborate on a work together – they ask the lady the question: Which is the greater art, poetry or music? However, the countess can no more decide between the two rival suitors for her affections than she can separate words from music. “If you favour one, you lose the other,” she says, before setting off for dinner humming to herself…
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
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