Artist database

On 1st May, 1945 the Hungarian State Railways (MÁV) founded its own symphony orchestra. In the autumn of 1947, the Academy of Music was hosting their subscription concert series, the first subscription performance included Bartók´s Cantata profana and Kodály´s Psalmus Hungaricus, while a month later the same program was being given by the orchestra in the Musikvereinsaal, in Vienna. Alongside orchestral performances in Budapest and the provinces, in 1947 the Gördülő (Rolling) Opera also started, with many of the Opera House´s finest artists taking part. It would be impossible to estimate the enormous significance of this undertaking for the communities where this company arrived, providing the opera experience of a lifetime. Meanwhile, the orchestra made significant guest appearances abroad, and in between touring it participated in major international festivals and in concert halls such as the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, the Stuttgart Liederhalle and the Munich Gasteig-Philharmonie. Besides Tibor Szőke and the orchestras other leading conductors: István Pécsi, Miklós Lukács, Géza Oberfrank, Ferenc Nagy, Mark Gorenstein, Tamás Gál standing on the conductor´s podium, the MÁV Symphony Orchestra has also welcomed from many foreign countries such famous names as Franz Konwitschny, Kurt Masur, Arvid Jansons, Hans Swarowsky, Herbert Blomstedt, Carlo Zecchi, Lamberto Gardelli, Kobayashi Ken-Ichiro; soloists: Lazar Berman, Jeanne-Marie Darré, Ruggero Ricci, Peter Damm, José Carreras, Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti vagy Kiri Te Kanawa, Tamás Vásáry, Zoltán Kocsis, Dezső Ránki, István Ruha, Miklós Perényi and many more. From the 2021/22 season the orchestra's new conductor is Robert Farkas. For years now the orchestra has regularly appeared in the finals of Budapest international music competitions, and of the Hungarian Television International Conductor´s Competitions. Hungarian and foreign companies have produced several recordings - in LP and CD - of the orchestra´s performances.

Prizes:
2011 Bartók-Pásztory Prize

Current performances of Budapest Concert Orchestra MÁV
Koncertkalendárium (www.muzsikalendarium.hu)

Year	Title	Publisher	Code	Remark
1962	Eszperantó lemez	Hungaroton		LP
1999	Operanyitányok és Intermezzók (Opera Overtures and Intermezzos)	Hungaroton	HRC 1035	Echo Collection
2011	The 50 Darkest Pieces of Classical Music	X5 Music Group AB	X5CD108	4 CDs
2014	Erkel Ferenc: István király (Erkel, Ferenc: King Stephen)	Naxos	8.660345-46	2 CDs
2016	Weiner Leó: Csongor és Tünde - Ballada - Zenekari művek összkiadás, Vol. 1 (Weiner, Leó: Ballata, Op.28, Csongor and Tünde, Op. 10 - Orchestral Works Complete Edition, Vol. 1)	Naxos	8.573491	Complete Edition
2017	Széchényi, Imre: Complete Dances for Orchestra	Naxos	8.573807	Own Complete Edition / World premiere recordings
2019	Weiner, Leó: Toldi - Symphonic Poem (Orchestral Works, Complete, Vol.2)	Naxos	8.573847	Own Complete Edition
2019	Weiner, Leó: Toldi Suites, Opp.43a and 43b	Naxos	9.70284	Own
2020	Weiner Leó: Divertimento No. 1 és No. 2 - Zenekari művek összkiadás, Vol. 3 (Weiner, Leó: Orchestral Works (Complete), Vol. 3 - Divertimentos Nos. 1 and 2)	Naxos	8.574125	Own Includes World Première Recordings