Opera House
We toured the Hungarian State Opera House.
A rather unusual sphinx in front of the hall.
Edmund attending to Victorian sensibilities.
Our guide started by speaking to us while we were seated on the ground floor.
Most surfaces are covered with gold — gilding or gold paint, that is. Faux marble columns also.
The very impressive ceiling.
The equally impressive stair case.
The private entrance for the emperor and empress was up this stairway. Our guide and group are standing at the top of the stairway in the first photo. So that the imperial couple wouldn't have to turn around to see the beauty of the building behind them, a large mirror was placed at the head of the stairs.
The hall is decorated with the busts of famous musicians, all men except for Clara Schumann. These two are Franz Liszt and Otto Klemperer.
A small recital hall.
The view from one of the boxes.
Each box has one of these oddly-shaped sofas in the back, out of sight from the audience. One could rest here during the performance if tired of seeing and being seen.
For the intermission, there was a nicely decorated bar for drinks and perhaps pastries.
Our guide, with a bust of Johannes Brahms.
Posters for some operas we never hear, because they're in Hungarian.
As we left, we saw this man practicing ice-skating moves on in-line roller skates.
The corner of a building next to the Opera House is a bit worse for wear.
Heroes' Square
The same could be said for this building on the edge of Heroes' Square, where we went next.
Heroes' Square abounds with, well, heroic statues.
Young people were having a good time crawling all over the monuments. I wonder if they could have done this back when Hungary was still behind the Iron Curtain.
Very elaborate lighting on the square.
This bike rack, only part of which is shown, seems exceptionally sturdy.
A refreshment and souvenir stand in the park next to Heroes' Square. Minions as helium balloons.
A bas relief bust of Zoltán Kodály on Andrássy Avenue.
Hungarian has few cognates with English, and I'm sure this is not one. Still, I had to chuckle at this street sign.
Liszt Museum and Concert
The sign on the outside of the Franz Liszt Concert Hall, located in the building that used to house the Academy of Music and Liszt's apartment. The apartment is now a museum, and the small concert hall is still used for recitals and chamber works. Note the "no cellphones" sign at the top.
We were treated to a piano recital in the concert hall. While the program we were given listed the works to be performed, nowhere did it mention the name of the pianist.
Beethoven
32 Variations on an Original Theme in C minor
Liszt
Pensée des morts (Poetic and Religious Harmonies: No. 4 In Memory of the Dead)
Liszt
Vallée d'Obermann (Years of Pilgrimage: No 6 Obermann's Valley)
Introducing the performer. The speaker in front of the piano is just for the announcements.
Just before and after the performance; I didn't take photos during the music.
Some items in the museum, which is housed in the apartment where Liszt lived.
A portrait of Liszt dressed as an Abbé. Liszt was very religious, and became an Abbé (a low-level priest, not yet in holy orders) in the Roman Catholic church.
An elaborate construction made from Liszt's hair.
Liszt's glass piano — the keys cause hammers to strike tuned pieces of glass rather than strings.
Liszt's portable keyboard, for practicing while traveling. It made no sound, just provided an "action" for his fingers to work against.
A fine example of the "Royal We". Kings, Queens, and Emperors tended to refer to themselves in the plural ("Approach us," and "We are not amused."). The first line here says "We Franz Joseph the First." The next five lines list all of the Emperor's titles, such as King of Bohemia and a dozen or so others. The proclamation names Franz Liszt, but I can't tell what honor he's being given.
Later this evening, traditional Hungarian music and dancing and a river tour by night of the lighted city.
No comments:
Post a Comment