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world music, jazz, popular music
Emir Kusturica & The No Smoking Orchestra
27 December 2021, Monday
7 pm - 9 pm
Béla Bartók National Concert Hall
Produced by Müpa Budapest

Please note that by attending the event you are accepting the house rules at Müpa Budapest, which also include the latest regulations and security rules. You can read further details and find key information on this page.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.


Neither the band leader, nor the orchestra need any introduction, as Emir Kusturica is one of the most famous film directors from the former Yugoslav region, and the No Smoking Orchestra is world famous for the soundtrack to Black Cat, White Cat. Of course, this was not the first time the two figures met: their history goes back to the 1980s. Over the past 25 years, the group has been playing a Balkan mix - a blend of garage folk-punk, kolo, the "Balkan rumba" and Roma music - that turned the heat up on many a stage.

Emir Kusturica, in addition to directing influential films (such as When Father Was Away on Business and Time of the Gypsies), has always had a strong affinity to music - and this is evident in his films with Goran Bregović's music. In 1986, he also joined Zabranjeno Pušenje (No Smoking), a rock band that was a star turn in Yugoslavia. It split in the 1990s, but was partly revived as No Smoking Orchestra. Then, after the 1998 soundtrack to Black Cat, White Cat was a hit, Kusturica returned and took over control. The director, who is also friends with Manu Chao, has mixed a "Manu-like" music cocktail for his band, but of course with Balkan ingredients. Between the release of 2000's Unza Unza Time and their latest studio album, 2018's Corps Diplomatique, No Smoking has entertained audiences with more film scores, concept albums (such as 2007's punk opera Time of the Gypsies) and, of course, crowd-pleasing concerts. The line-up can change, the palette can become more varied, recently including Latin influences in addition to Southern European flavours, but the No Smoking Orchestra always turns up both the volume and the heat.

Presented by: Müpa Budapest

vocals, guitar Emir Kusturica
violin Dejan Sparavalo
accordion Zoran Milošević
saxophone Nenad Petrović
drums Nenad Marjanović
trumpet Strahinja Banović
guitar Nenad Gajin
bass guitar Ištvan Mađarić
keyboard instruments Nikola Kitanović
  • 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.

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