Last year's Celebration of Folk Music was not limited to the evening gala performance, and this year's show on 17 January will be the same. This free programme of folk music and dance awaits families from 3 o'clock in the afternoon in the Glass Hall and Foyer of the Palace of Arts. This programme is recommended mainly for children, since on this occasion performers of their own generation will be getting their feet tapping and pulling them onto the dance floor. The atmosphere will already ...hit a high point from 3 pm, with a solo performance by Vilmos Gryllus in the Glass Hall. As a musician Gryllus needs no introduction, given that hundreds of thousands of Hungarian kids have grown up on his songs, be they about the seasons, animals or bicycles, or adaptations of folk tunes.
From 4 o'clock the Magonc Ensemble takes the stage in the Müpa Foyer. This group, under the guidance of folk musician and teacher György Lányi, consists of students from the Waldorf School of Óbuda. Comprised of the shepherd's flute, drums, guitar, cobza, ütőgardon and hurdy-gurdy, they also sing while they play, with so much heart and lung power that soon they'll have everyone singing along.
Next, from 4.30 pm is the Tamariska Dance Workshop, formed in the capital's Csepel district some two and a half years ago under the leadership of Sára Farkas Hudák. Since then the workshop functions with four groups of various ages, proving that communities receptive to folk culture can be developed even in an industrial zone of the city. The focus on this occasion will be the traditional dance house for children.
From 5 o'clock, the Óbuda Folk Music School - the longest-running institution for teaching folk music in Hungary - presents the origins of our traditional instruments and how they blossom in playing folk music. As a primary principle, the school's director Tamás Kobzos Kiss adopted Bartók's exhortation that musicians should not treat peasant music as a "museum piece.' This ensures that instrumental and vocal Hungarian folk music has a place in an urban context as well, playing a role in the development of individuals and the community.
The Tamariska Dance Workshop returns from 5.30 pm until the end of the children's programme. This heralds the beginning of the Berka Dance House - naturally not just for those aged over 18. In two sessions, from 6 pm to 7 pm, and from 10.30 pm to midnight, followers of Csángó folk music from Moldavia and Gyimes can shake a leg if they still have the energy. It's unsurprising that the Berka Ensemble, formed in 2008, is considered one of the most energetic representatives of the genre.
Presented by: Palace of Arts
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.