House of Music Hungary

This programme is held in Hungarian.Flamenco was born in the so‑called Andalusian triangle – in the poor quarters of Seville, Cadiz and Jerez de la Frontera – where the Roma poured out their pain through this music woven from Moorish, Jewish and Spanish threads. Loss, dignity, pride all at once, in a single voice. The word used for this is duende, the almost transcendent force that wells up from within, which cannot be faked, only experienced. Many misunderstandings surround flamenco; by the end of the evening, we will try to turn these misunderstandings into understanding.What do they sing about, what is the audience shouting in the meantime, why do they clap along all the way through, what is the role of the dance, how did it become a terrain for guitar virtuosity, what role did the Franco dictatorship play in the genre’s international triumph?Our guest will be Peruvian guitarist and flamenco musician Alex Torres.Alex TorresPeruvian-born guitarist Alex Torres, who lives in Budapest, blends the passion of flamenco with Latin American and contemporary musical influences. The son of legendary Peruvian musician Pepe Torres, he studied jazz at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music and learned flamenco in Seville, Spain. As an active figure in Hungarian musical life, he has performed on the stages of Müpa Budapest, the Erkel Theatre and the Sziget Festival, among many other prestigious venues. Over the course of his career, he has collaborated with leading artists of the Hungarian music scene in various genres. In addition to his work as a session musician, he also leads his own solo project as a guitarist and composer. 

The tradition of flamenco, its dark branches, as well as noise, echoes and feedback, slide guitars, songs about death and loss in a single show.

The temporary exhibition titled Freddie pays homage to one of the greatest rock stars of all time, Freddie Mercury. The artist, who would be 80 years old this year, gave a legendary stadium concert in Hungary forty years ago with his band Queen; it was the first massive rock event held by a Western star band behind the Iron Curtain. This double anniversary gives special relevance to the joint exhibition of World of Freddie, which nurtures the memory of the global star, and the House of Music Hungary. Through several hundred original personal objects and stories, and with the help of experience-based installations, it reveals the lesser-known, human side of Freddie Mercury. At this related guided tour, Peter Freestone, Freddie’s personal assistant, close friend, and the audio commentator of the exhibition – in other words, the “voice” of the exhibition – will tell the stories of the show in greater depth – in English.The language of the guided tour is English, and the ticket price also includes admission to the exhibition.