140th academic year of the Liszt Academy starts

Péter Hoppál, state secretary responsible for culture (and an old boy of the Liszt Academy himself) was the first to speak at the opening of the academic year. Passing on the personal greetings of Zoltán Balog, minister of human capacities, and László Palkovics, state secretary for higher education, Péter Hoppál qualified Hungarian music education as one of the most precious assets of Hungarian culture, and he assured the students and teaching staff of the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music that the cultural portfolio would continue to watch closely the Liszt Academy even after the closure of the major reconstruction project. Directing his words to first year students, the state secretary said that they had every right to be proud of being a part of the 140-year history of the Liszt Academy, and with reference to the gold, diamond, iron and ruby graduates greeted the day before, he asked those just starting their studies to respect their great predecessors and professors, and to always keep in mind their mission of passing on the experience of quality culture to as many people and in as wide a circle as possible.

Click on the picture to open the gallery (photo: Liszt Academy/Andrea Felvégi)

In her speech Dr. Andrea Vigh gave a special welcome to Chancellor László Zoltán Szentgyörgyvölgyi, who was taking part in his first official event of the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music since being appointed in July 2015. On the occasion of the approach of the 140th anniversary of the opening of the first academic year in November 1875, the president said that the history of the Liszt Academy – despite the upheavals of the 20th century – was one of unbroken development and from the moment of the foundation of the institution it had spread Hungary’s reputation throughout the world, while the palace of music on Liszt Ferenc Square had been a true haven of peace since its inauguration in 1907. Dr. Andrea Vigh was proud to list the successes and international courses of the university’s students and teaching staff over the summer months, including Brass Week organized for the fourth time, as well as state awards presented on the national holiday of 20 August. As for the events in this jubilee academic year, the president highlighted programmes saluting the Kodály Institute, which celebrates the 40th anniversary of its foundation and exactly 10 years since it was taken under the wing of the Liszt Academy. Among these programmes is the gala concert being held on World Music Day.

International projects of the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music being arranged in cooperation with prestigious partners continue during this celebratory academic year, thus we have several contemporary music series, the Reconnections project and the Opera Exam Festival. The final phase of the reconstruction project comes to an end in the autumn with the procurement of audiovisual studio equipment and new large musical instruments, the installation of all-weather lighting on the facade of the Liszt Ferenc Square building, and the furnishing of staff rooms and communal areas. Emphasizing the significance of the latter, the president said that the purpose of the multiple award-winning historical monument reconstruction was not to create a museum but rather a thriving and dynamic university and concert centre.

The general public can also be a part of celebrations marking the round-number anniversary since during the 2015/16 academic year the Liszt Academy is not only arranging a gala concert in November paying tribute to the foundation of the university but it also plans publication of two volumes jointly produced with Rózsavölgyi Publisher, and it is launching two season ticket series:  Legendary Concerts replay the programmes of milestone events such as the first concert of the Symphony Orchestra of the Liszt Academy in 1909, and the farewell concert of Béla Bartók and Ditta Pásztory in 1940, while the Liszt Academy of Yesterday series sees two of our music history professors (also popular as presenters), András Batta and Sándor Kovács, use live music and archive recordings to evoke the rich history of the Liszt Academy in four chapters. Every new student of the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music must prove worthy of this unequalled heritage, the president said in concluding her speech.

Professor István Lantos (piano), Bálint Kruppa (violin) and Domonkos Csabay (piano) gave a recital of the first movement of Leó Weiner’s Sonata in F-sharp minor at the ceremony. Within the framework of the celebration Dr. Andrea Vigh presented Ádám Medveczky with a diploma of honorary professorship, read out the list of students winning the scholarship of the republic, and finally the students launching their studies swore an oath to the university.