“Picasso, Miró, Dalí, Buñuel, Almodóvar, passion, joy, realism wrapped into surrealism, the thousand faces of flamenco – the richness, identity and complex character of Spanish culture provides European artists with endless inspiration. At the Bridging Europe festival, we endeavour to discover what lies behind loveable stereotypes, how modernity and tradition go hand in hand in the works of Spanish artists, and what Spain thinks about the world today” said Csaba Káel, CEO of Müpa Budapest.
Stefan Englert, Executive Director of the BFO, said: “Europe is a very unique entity of diverse cultures enriching each other through adding new experiences and facets while preserving the very own tradition. Our festival Bridging Europe is striving to present the variety by highlighting one culture each year. This year’s programme focusing on Spain will present the music of a country which added the flavour of passion to the cultural prosperity of our continent."
This autumn, the Budapest Festival Orchestra will show its extreme faces at the festival. On 28 September, the Baroque ensemble of the BFO will perform in the “crazed atmosphere of Spain” at the Müpa Festival Theatre, under the baton of Jonathan Cohen, the British conductor endowed with an exceptional musical intelligence. For this evening, you can laugh together with Don Quixote and feel the rays of the Mediterranean sun kiss your skin through the notes of music. On 29 September, you can listen to contemporary Spanish works in the interpretation of Pascal Rophé. Passionate and innovative, he is just as much at home with the symphonies of the 18th and 19th centuries as he is with more contemporary works – as evidenced at the Bridging Europe Festival. The three composers he picked – Lazkano, Posadas and Parra – are scientific musicians, whose works require mindful listening. They are heavyweights that carry a profound impact, filled with musicality, the desire to explore, the natural powers that make the world go round, and science as well.
On 17 September, one of the foremost singers of our age, Magdalena Kožená, the brilliant Czech mezzosoprano, will take the Müpa’s stage with compositions from José Marín, Serqueira de Lima, Juan Hidalgo, Santiago de Murcia, Sebastián Duron and José Martínez de Arce. Her night will be a fusion of sensitivity and excitement – from time to time, the 17th century Iberian baroque songs will incorporate flamenco rhythms. Her partners are also outstanding: the Compañia de Flamenco led by dancer-choreographer Antonio Ríos Fernández “El Pipa”, as well as Private Musicke under the leadership of the incredible Pierre Pitzl (“the Jimi Hendrix of baroque guitar”), a group almost twenty years old.
Jorge Pardo’s concert also promises an exceptional musical journey. On 18 September, this legendary figure of Spanish jazz will fly the audience beyond the limits of traditional flamenco. He refers to his own special musical world as metaflamenco, which builds on traditional tunes, but still gets a completely new sound due to special orchestration, elements of improvisation and of course Pardo’s unmistakably unique saxophone and flute performances. The Cordança Flamenco Dance Ensemble from Córdoba, Andalusia tells the story of the life and works of famous symbolist painter Julio Romero de Torres, with choreography from Álvaro Paños and Carmen Manzanera. Mercedes Peón is a cult figure on the Spanish world music scene who is referred to as the sound of Galicia in Spain. The multi-instrumentalist singer (she plays 20 instruments) prepared her first recording in 2000 after having researched folk music for a decade and a half. Her music viscerally combines the traditional Galician sounds with contemporary electronic music. She arrives to Budapest on 23 September, with her new recording, Deixaas.
Following its successful 2011 premier in Müpa Budapest, the House of Bernarda Alba, Michael John LaChiusa’s musical adaptation of Federico García Lorca’s final work for the stage, will be performed twice, on 22 and 24 September at Müpa Budapest. The performance, which combines dancing, traditional theatre and concert elements, goes beyond the world of traditional musicals. We can strongly feel the impacts of world music, jazz and Spanish music, especially flamenco in the musical. Eszter Csákányi performs the title role in the piece directed by György Böhm. Her partners include Andrea Malek, Ildikó Hámori and Erika Náray.
As part of Bridging Europe, Literarium Extra, the Müpa’s musical-literary series will also present a special Spanish multi-arts night. On 25 September, the festival features Federico García Lorca and his works, interpreted by such exceptional artists, as Hermina Fátyol, Kamilla Fátyol and Tamás Fodor. Music will certainly play an important role in the evening directed by József Balog, where opera singer Lilla Horty will perform songs from András Csáki’s Lorca-adaptations and Balázs Fülei will perform one work each of Manuel de Falla and Claude Debussy on the piano.
Of course, there will be plenty of children’s programmes and free concerts, and the fifth Bridging Europe festival will await audiences curious about Spanish culture with symposia, discussions, film programmes and exhibitions.
Detailed programme and further information:
https://www.mupa.hu/programok/europai-hidak-2017
https://www.bfz.hu/bfo-cares/europai-hidak
