An important part of the self-image of Hungarians is that we are a nation of culture - Viktor Orbán's speech at the opening ceremony of the House of Hungarian Music.
It's no coincidence that Mayor Gergely Karácsony had other things to do on the day of the opening of the House of Hungarian Music - emphasized Viktor Orbán, stressing that the opposition defended to the hilt everything that was destroyed, inhabited and unworthy in the City Park, and opposed everything that was beautiful, world-class and uplifting. At the same time, the prime minister emphasized in his speech, "crisis here or there, Hungary is in a cultural expansion, in terms of its spending on culture, it ranks first in the European Union. As is well known, ten years ago, the development of Városliget started against a huge opposition headwind, which Gergely Karácsony built his political career to prevent. The protesters even proclaimed the Vegan Republic under the centuries-old trees and wanted to turn the public park into a community garden. However, with the opening, the era of warm beer and cold hot dogs in the Liget came to an end.
Photo: Zoltán Balogh/MTI/MTVA
Europe is going through difficult times, epidemics, waves of migration, and an energy crisis follow each other, Viktor Orbán said at the opening ceremony of the House of Hungarian Music on Saturday. The Prime Minister added that it is precisely because of this that, due to the epidemic, cultural institutions like the House of Hungarian Music tend to decline and shrink elsewhere, but in Hungary
this impressive new institution with a strong cultural aura stands here in its full glory.
He added that the House of Hungarian Music is part of a huge cultural investment, which means
we Hungarians are in a cultural expansion, crisis here or there.
The Prime Minister emphasized that according to the latest data, Hungarian cultural expenditures are now in first place, while in 2010, before the change of government, we were only in the middle. He believed that the fact that Hungary has climbed back to the top in a decade means that
an important part of the self-image of Hungarians is that we are a cultural nation.
It is no coincidence that Karácsony had other things to do
In his speech, the Prime Minister noted that the opposition waged a huge counter-campaign against the renewal of the City Park,
it is not at all a coincidence that the mayor had other things to do today.
As he added,
the temptation to take satisfaction is enormous, because seeing this beautiful building, the packed rows, the numerous international recognitions, it is clearer than the sun that we were right.
He believed that the left tried to protect to the hilt what was destroyed, inhabited and unworthy in Városliget, and opposed what was beautiful, world-class and uplifting. Viktor Orbán noted that there is a great temptation to take political satisfaction, but this is not the right time on the Day of Hungarian Culture, however, we must not forget the attitude of the opposition,
let's just postpone this and rather, to be stylish, withdraw their note in April.
Thanks also go to István Tarlós
Viktor Orbán also spoke about how the City Park is one of the honored places of Hungarian culture, which, however, "was not always worthy of its great reputation". As the prime minister recalled, already during the time of János Arany, the City Park had a period when its luster had worn off, but at the same time, thanks to the millennium developments, the Museum of Fine Arts, the Art Gallery, the Heroes' Square, the Transport Museum, the Vajdahunyad Castle and the Millennium House were built. Viktor Orbán reminded us that during the decades of communism, the City Park was greeted by another bad period, which was only broken by the change of government in 2010, when the civilian government set the goal of
the Liget will once again become a stronghold of Hungarian culture.
This is how the Liget Budapest Project was created, which is Europe's largest cultural investment, and through which the new building of the Museum of Ethnography, the Millennium House and the Rose Garden were built. But other significant cultural investments were also made, such as the renovation of the Museum of Fine Arts, the construction of the National Museum Restoration and Storage Center, the Transportation Museum moving to its new location, or the renovation of the Star Fortress in Komárom. Viktor Orbán praised the former mayor István Tarlós, thanks to whom the investments were able to start, and during whose time, according to the prime minister, the cooperation between the Capital and the Government was oiled,
and the fruits of which will be enjoyed by the people of Budapest even after many decades, and the entire Hungarian nation will be proud of it. Thank you István.
As is well known, although the opposition media only wrote about the concreting of the City Park and the eradication of green areas in relation to the Liget Budapest Project, which started in 2011 - Gergely Karácsony, who was initially the mayor of Zugló and then elected mayor, built his career on preventing the development - the international profession paid close attention to the Regeneration of the grove. The House of Hungarian Music, which was recently handed over as part of the project, was declared one of the most anticipated new buildings of 2021 by CNN and the World Architecture Community (WAC). Already based on its plans, the house was chosen as the best public building in Europe in 2019 at the prestigious International Property Awards in London, which is one of the largest and most widely recognized awards in the real estate industry. And in 2020, it received the main prize for the world's best music-themed development: the award for the best music-themed real estate development in the American Music Cities Awards. Most recently, the House of Hungarian Music was selected as one of the twenty-two best cultural attractions in the world in 2022 by Time Out, one of the leading international program recommendation magazines.
László Baán, the ministerial commissioner responsible for the implementation of the Liget Budapest Project previously told Pesti Sráco House of Hungarian Music, that with the building designed by the Japanese Sou Fujimoto, an institution was created that proves that modern architecture can be world-class, at the same time with the traditions of the City Park to create harmonious buildings, which, organized into a cultural quarter, "will position Hungary on the cultural map of Europe in its unique complexity and for decades to come". András Batta, the managing director of the House of Hungarian Music, emphasized that it is considered unique at the world level that such a complex cultural district could be created in the Városliget taking into account the previous traditions. As he pointed out, in Hungary we take it almost for granted "that new, amazing institutions grow out of the ground, but this is not natural at all, in the West, not even in rich countries".
The House of Hungarian Music welcomes visitors with concerts from Sunday.
Source: PS / Mátyás Susánszki
Featured image: Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and László Baán, ministerial commissioner of the Liget Budapest project, at the opening of the Hungarian Music House completed in the Liget Budapest project on January 22, 2022. MTI/Prime Minister's Press Office/Benko Vivien Cher
