The American violinist, a resident of Hungary for the past two years, started teaching at the Liszt Academy this semester. In addition, he participates in Hungarian music life as a soloist, chamber musician, and concertmaster. We asked him about his goals in teaching as well as the challenges of sharing knowledge in the 21st century.

László Norbert Nemes, director of the New Liszt Ferenc Chamber Choir, knows the sensation that he shares with so many others in Hungary: when someone adds their own voice to the harmony, this choir member becomes part a sublime, majestic unity.

The fifth Budapest International Guitar Festival is to be held this year, keeping the guitar in chamber music in focus this time. We asked the founder of the festival: Liszt Prize winning guitarrist József Eötvös, head of Strings Department at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music regarding the programme and the performing artists.

One hundred years ago on 25th March, the very day Claude Debussy passed away, Béla Bartók was celebrating his 37th birthday. A couple of weeks later the periodical ‘Esztendő’, owned by Lajos Hatvany, asked Bartók to assess the works of the French composer. He summed up his analysis thus: “The significance of Debussy is unquestionably revealed by the impact that he exercised – in the best possible meaning of the word – on the young generation of musicians, both abroad and in our own country. Whether this impact will prevail and evolve into further progress is impossible to predict. However, one thing is for sure, his compositions will not lose colour because he pooled great value in them.”

When you open the gate with its the huge copper doorknob it feels as if you have entered another universe. The roar of the street is left outside; instead notes of the violin and piano, scales on the flute fill the space with a curious riot of sound, as if one were listening to some avant-garde musical composition. There is no need to ask the receptionist to check that you have arrived at the right destination: this is certainly the Bartók Conservatory, or more precisely, the Bartók Béla Secondary School of Music, Instrument Making and Repair.