Erdődy, who heads Musicoffice KLASSZ, which was set up within the framework of Hungarofest, a public benefit company that organises cultural events, said Musicoffice established a partnership with Walter Reicher, the director of Austria's Haydn Festival and the programme planner for the Haydn Year in the Austrian state of Burgenland.
In the service of Esterházy court, Haydn worked in the Austrian city of Eisenstadt and on the Esterháza estate in the Hungarian countryside near Fertőd.
Responding to criticism by Burgenland's cultural adviser Helmut Bieler that Hungary has not appointed a commissioner to oversee preparations for the Hadyn anniversary, Erdődy said a programme concept for the year has already been presented to Ádám Fischer, the artistic director of the Austrian-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra, who was in agreement with the plans.
Among the highlights of the programme will be a series of performances by György Vashegyi and the Orfeo Orchestra of Haydn's symphonies in the grand hall of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. The academy's Music Studies Institute will also organize a conference on Haydn during the year.
On May 31, 2009, an open-air Haydn marathon is planned, said Erdődy. As the event falls on Children's Day, a special emphasis will be placed on attractions for young people.
Though most of the events on the Hadyn anniversary programme will take place either in Budapest or in Esterháza, the programme organizers wish to include all of Hungary in the celebration, Erdődy said.
Source: Múlt-kor / Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
