At the concert in Gyula (SE Hungary), Erkel's home town, the orchestra will recite from the composer's operas on themes from Hungary's history, including Bank Ban, Laszlo Hunyadi and Gyorgy Dozsa featuring acclaimed Hungarian singers, said Istvan Mali. The conductor will be Janos Kovacs, he said.
The event will be the first in a series of programmes marking the anniversary throughout the year, he added.
As part of the jubilee programmes, the organisers have called an international competition for opera singers, going with a 10,000-euro main prize, Mali said. The international jury includes names such as Russian bass Yevgeny Nesterenko, American baritone Sherrill Milnes and British lyric tenor Laurence Dale, and has Hungarian soprano Eva Marton as head.
The Budapest Philharmonics gave its first concert on November 20, 1853 under the baton of Ferenc Erkel. He continued to conduct the orchestra for its next sixty concerts, the Philharmonic Society said on its website.
Source: Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
