Welcoming Europe
Budapest gears up for its prestigious Spring Festival
written by Marta Karenova

Between March 19 and April 4, Hungary's capital will come alive with the 24th Budapest Spring Festival - a leading cultural event that has gained worldwide acclaim in recent years. This year, the festival's art menu offers more than 200 programs, covering a vast territory of the performing and visual art genre. Over the course of two weeks, nearly 60 different art venues will host classical, jazz and folk music concerts, opera, dance, theater and piazzolla evenings as well as various exhibitions. While trying to consolidate a more lasting partnership with business sponsors, the festival's organizers have been heavily relying on government support.

Budapest’s annual Spring Festival kicks off March 19, with this year’s title: "’Welcome Europe"’

With European Union (EU) membership approaching fast, the upcoming Budapest Spring Festival has particularly high ambitions. Its organizers have set out to avow Hungary's roots in the wider notion of "Europeanness," while spotlighting the country's distinctive cultural and intellectual traditions. The festival, with its timely motto: “Welcome Europe,” will not only act as an important instrument of inter-cultural dialogue but will also contribute to strengthening Hungary's position amid Europe's cultural diversity and competing heritages.

It’s more than attracting tourists
Since its inception in 1981, the festival's main premise was not only to promote Hungarian art and attract international performers, but stimulate the local tourist industry. In fact, the festival was initially launched by the Hungarian State Tourist Office in an attempt to boost tourism and fill the otherwise empty hotels and restaurants during off-peak season, and before the start of other European spring festivals. The Budapest Spring Festival gradually positioned itself among Europe's prominent art events, which enabled organizers to expand its agenda. It gave Hungarians the rare opportunity to see visiting foreign orchestras and performing artists, but more importantly, brought back the long absent Hungarian émigré artists. Over the years the event has played host to such icons as the conductor Antal Doráti, pianists György Cziffra, Péter Frankl, Tamás Vásáry and András Schiff, opera singer Éva Marton, painter Viktor Vasarely and sculptor Amerigo Tot.

Since 1996, the festival's organization has been in the hands of the Budapest Festival Center, (BFC) which is also responsible for the Budapest Búcsú Open Air Festival and the Autumn Festival. Over the years, BFC has not only lured thousands of art lovers, tourists and artists to Budapest during off-peak season, but also managed to multiply the Spring Festival's income. Central to BFC's activities is government support. "The government partnership has been crucial for us. Our finances have been finally guaranteed because of an agreement between our main government supporters: the Ministry of Economy and Transport, Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Municipality of Budapest and the Tourist Board," says Zsófia Zimányi, festival director. According to the agreement, the government bears half of all festival costs. Given the consistent downturn in budgetary funding of the arts, BFC does not take its fortunes for granted.

In search of financial opportunities
With the government’s footing 50% of this year's HUF 800 million budget, organizers are consumed by a constant pursuit of sponsorship opportunities to cover the other half. Even though the budget is pale in comparison with other international festivals, it represents a considerable sum by local standards. The situation is further exacerbated by an unfavorable corporate climate in sponsoring cultural events. Sponsorship is still a relatively new concept in Hungary and it is only recently that businesses have started to embrace it as a regular feature of their marketing platforms. The absence of better tax incentives in Hungarian tax legislation that would boost private and business sponsorship of the arts is another side of the coin. Despite the obstacles, BFC has risen to the challenges and demands of financial sustainability as it continues to deepen its links with the private sector.

Verdi: Requiem. An Italian philharmonic concert performed with the Hungarian national choir to be held March 24

For the fifth consecutive year, BFC managed to sustain its vital partnership with Siemens - the festival's main corporate sponsor. With arts sponsoring being a proven, cost effective and highly visible strategic marketing tool in the West, Siemens has recognized the Budapest Spring Festival as an opportunity to reinforce its corporate image and strengthen its links with the community. "A big international company has tasks for the community. We ourselves have set the goal of improving the quality of life … our products and services also serve this goal and our extensive sponsoring activities belong here as well ... the possibility to become acquainted with first class Hungarian and foreign attractions - all these bring pleasure to so many people that we could even regard our support as an investment,” said Péter Hetényi, chair and CEO at Siemens Regional Company, in his address to festival visitors. Other business sponsors include Deutche Telekom, ÁB Aegon and Sofitel Atrium Budapest. Some festival events have also been produced with financial assistance by the European Community, the PHARE Program of the EU, the Italian Institute of Culture, the French Cultural Institute and various embassies in Hungary.

Pulling in visitors from around the globe
With the arts becoming a buyers' market, festival organizers know they have a product to sell. The Spring Festival plays an important role in attracting tourists to Hungary. Foreigners make up around 30% of festival audiences, out of which 68% are Western Europeans (mostly Germans, British and Austrians.) The rest comes from regions other than Europe, most notably North America and Japan. Over the years, festival visitors have generated a considerable tourism income not only for the Municipality of Budapest but for other Hungarian cities and towns that have joined the Spring Festival with their own programs. Organizers expect the income generated by the Spring Festival to increase steadily with EU membership. Yet, joining the rich countries’ club will also mean higher costs for the festival as well as its visitors. "The EU will bring higher prices to our market … we have not raised the ticket cost this year because we felt it would be pushing it. But next year we will have to increase the prices to keep up with inflation and the new VAT system," says Zimányi. This year's ticket prices, averaging at HUF 6,000, range from a few hundred forints to HUF 13,500 for the most expensive performances. In an attempt to make the festival as widely accessible as possible, organizers made sure to include free events as well as ticket giveaways for some events. Given the average monthly income in Hungary of around HUF 80,000, the Spring Festival is a luxury many Hungarians cannot afford. With ticket prices comprising approximately 20% of the festival’s total income, organizers walk a tight rope trying to adjust costs to the local market yet break even at the same time. Despite high ticket prices, festival attendance has been growing.

Star cast this year

Claudio Abbado will conduct the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra at the Spring Festival in Budapest April 4

At any rate, ensuring increased public attendance and involving new audiences as well as artists does not come easy. Although one of the main goals of the Spring Festival has been to promote tourism during a slow season, its timing has also had some unfavorable effects. "One of our main problems has been bringing eminent overseas orchestras and artists, namely from North America. Unfortunately, most of them are engaged at home during our festival," says Zimányi. Other renowned European festivals that start later in the spring, such as the Prague Spring International Music Festival, have been in a more fortunate position since at this time, North American symphony orchestras and performing artists are already touring Europe. "The Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra will most likely join our festival next year. This will attract more attention and put us in a much better position," says Zimányi. Yet, art lovers do not have to look into future events for cultural excitement as this year's Spring Festival has plenty to offer. Among the highlights will be Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, conducting the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini which will play Verdi’s Requiem, as well as the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir conducted by Zoltán Kocsis, featuring famed opera singer, Éva Marton. Furthermore, conducted by the contemporary Hungarian composer, Péter Eötvös, the Dutch Radio Chamber Orchestra will perform Eötvös' own compositions. Visiting West European musicians include the English Chamber Orchestra, the Hagen Quartet, the Clemencic Consort from Austria and the Concerto Copenhagen, to name a few. The symbolic tone of this year's festival will be underscored by various events featuring performing artists from the 10 EU accession countries. While the festival will welcome back music veterans such as the Bartók and Kodály String Quartets, several performing artists will make their debuts, namely the Slovene Octet and the Baltic Trio. As in the past, young performers will be featured, most notably the chamber recital by Barnabás Kelemen on violin and Gergely Bogányi on piano. Theater aficionados have also plenty to look forward to, particularly the Budapest premiere of Frayn's “Noises Off,” directed by Oscar-winning Czech director, Jiri Menzel. In the field of jazz, legendary vibraphonist Gary Burton will team up with Japan's Makoto Ozone on piano. Other highlights include international star Julia Migenes, made famous by her film role in “Carmen” where she co-starred with Placido Domingo, as well as the celebrated 100-member Gypsy Orchestra.

Emanuelle Grizot (left) and Viviana Franciosi of the Ballet Ensemble of the Bordeaux National Opera will perform Moore’s Dance March 29

While a number of church concerts will take place throughout the city, there will also be a wide range of exhibitions. "Our Spring Festival is not only about attracting international stars ... it is also meant to show the situation of Hungarian arts ... united Europe will not bring us more money, as some people like to think, but it is a good news for the arts as our culture will be more visible on the continent," says Zimányi. While Hungarian culture is as old as Europe itself, some Hungarians feel that their country is facing a challenge of proving its worth to the critical eye of its Western neighbors. They like to evoke Hungary's pre-war glamour - a time when Budapest came of age as one of the great economic and cultural centers in Europe. "The Budapest Spring Festival is one event that can remind Europe that we have a lot to offer," notes 43-year-old Margit Kiss, a regular festival visitor.