The bust, by János Krasznai, pays homage not only to the composer but to the opera house?s most famous director.
Mahler took the position of artistic director at the opera on the invitation of administrator Ferenc Beniczky in 1888, four years after the opera house was established, said Lajos Vass, the latest in a long line of directors. Mahler strived to bring artistic and financial discipline to the opera, and succeeded to a large degree, although he did not escape criticism, he added.
Conductor Ádám Fischer said collective memory shows a picture of an angry and upset Mahler leaving Budapest after just two and a half years, but the focus should shift rather to his achievements during this short period.
Retired Vienna Opera director Ioan Holender said Mahler did much to bring closer the opera houses in Budapest and Vienna. Since Mahler?s time, others, such as Kálmán Pataki and Róbert Ilosfalvy, have done the same, he added.
Zoltán Rockenbauer, a cultural anthropologist and Hungary?s former culture minister, said Mahler was already well known when he arrived in Budapest at the age of 28, but it was there that his career really took off. The opera?s performances of Wagner, Mozart and Verdi under Mahler were famous, in spite of the whims of the press, sometimes praising him, sometimes attacking him, he added.
Source: Hungarian News Agency (MTI) / Photo: MTI
