We have to acknowledge that this quartet called Il Divo is one of those creations of the postmodern industry that works not only due to all the marketing operation that surrounds it but also because of the musical quality of its members. Grouped, without previous contact, by Sony Records, Il Divo answers not only to a contemporary version (a sweetened one, perhaps) of classical music but also to an elegant way of performing art.

Composed by very young tenors and baritones from all over the world (Urs Bühler from Switzerland, Carlos Marín from Spain, Sébastian Izambard from France and David Miller from the USA), they´ve already sold over 25 million copies and have had released a dozen albums. Anyhow, these prodigies that take us back to the golden era of Frank Sinatra will be performing live on the 20th of September at Arena Budapest, that arena that can organize anything from a basketball match to a performance of the Cirque du Soleil or even a big concert, such as the Il Divo one.

Despite that they´re practically bringing nothing new, they´re still a sales hit. As it happens, the songs are taken from classical opera repertoires or from classic popular songs from many countries, without counting the songs from the sacred Christian liturgies that can be found sporadically in their albums. Also, the idea isn´t new because something similar was done by Luciano Pavarotti with his famous ´Three Tenors´ concerts, where he was joined by Josep Carreras and Plácido Domingo. And, if Il Divo will allow me to say so, those were true prodigious and gifted voices, especially the Italian one, so powerful and beautiful that it reconciled you with humanity. 

However, it seems that it´s precisely that they´re not a novelty that makes them successful. The public of this relatively new 21st century, sometimes, goes for acknowledgment rather than novelty and, also, they´re hungry for art that reaches directly to the heart without unnecessary experimentations. And so, they achieve happiness in its most pure state, without intermediaries, with the songs of yesteryear and today, with the chords that have been playing for decades. If you want a taste of Il Divo, I suggest that you watch the video that we´ve attached to the end of this article.

Budapest, aside from its unquestionable inherited artistic legacy, is a city that´s all for all possible festivals, and its concert offer is truly unbelievable. In spring, you can enjoy one of the most highly-awaited festivals, the predictably labelled Spring Festival, or the open-air classic film cycle Belvárosi Filmvíkend, but in autumn, the offer continues with frenetic musical activity. Visit this beautiful city on the shores of the Danube and attend the concert of Il Divo, which will coincide with an excellent exhibition at the Ludwig Museum called ´The hero, the heroine and the author´.

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Also, don´t leave home without having booked apartments in Budapest. The city shines divinely with the golden lights of autumn. The problem will come when you have to go back to your everyday life.

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In recent weeks, I´ve been reading recommendations (which are useless, by the way) with regard to changes in the contemporary world (to put it kindly since we are here for fun) by the so-called experts of enterprises and new initiatives. Without getting too involved (I’ll just use a few sentences), today I aim to advertise wherever and by whatever means the story (with its inception and path) of the Hungarian festival. I mean the Sziget Festival in Budapest, which has been celebrated since 1993 without interruption and with great success, in a city that boasts successful festivals of all kinds.

The Berlin Wall had fallen. The communist regime ended abruptly in Hungary. Rock groups that had been living solely on the wages of state (there was no other way, you’ll remember) were suddenly without funding, without promoters, lost in a business world that was not new. But neither the musicians nor their fans were daunted by that disaster. Due to the lack of funding, they had to rely on their talent and initiative. The result was the Sziget Festival, which has been celebrated for almost 20 years in an area of the northern section of the Buda. As a result of its growing success, it has been dubbed the Eurowoodstock, in honor of that well-known hippy/flower power get-together.

Not only is this festival’s audience growing each year, but the vast majority of viewers are from places outside Hungary. People from France, England, Germany and throughout Eastern Europe board trains to come hear the festival’s good music during the first weeks of August. Although at first they catered to electronic music, now the Sziget Festival incorporates everything: from promising new national groups to jazz, blues, pop, rock or even heavy metal. There is a comprehensive list on the festival’s website, where the organizers give information on their blog, including news, practical information, and access or ticket prices: http://www.sziget.hu/fesztival

On August 12, the closing date of the festival, the American boy band The Killers will perform. The organizers have reserved it as the highlight and since they have sold millions of copies worldwide, the audience is guaranteed to be full of fans. Check out this video to give you an idea of what to expect.  They will play tracks from their latest album, Battle Born, which was released earlier this year, and other previously recording songs. Led by Brandon Flowers, the group is rounded out by guitarist Dave Keuning, drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. and bassist Mark Stoermer.

Candela Vizcaíno

It´s a good idea to reserve accommodation in Budapest in advance if you plan on attending the Sziget Festival. There are many good options that you can share with your friends but which will still leave you plenty of room.

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David Bowie invented the 80s. After his space odyssey with his character Ziggy Stardust, the perfect invention of a rock and roller from outer space who arrived to Earth with his band to save the planet from the apocalypse, Bowie completely changed his look and style in a radical way and without asking for anyone´s permission. Very short and gelled hair, a flick of brown hair loose which caressed his forehead, dark and tight clothes and black loafers: Bowie shaped up as the first ´new romantic´ or ´new waver´, the first post-punk icon without punk ever being invented. His three Berlin records made with Brian Eno and Robert Fripp, ´Lodger´, ´Heroes´ and ´Low´, were prominently new ave before the 80s arrived. The Bowie who invented and exploited glam rock had disappeared. Bands such as Joy Division, Bauhaus, The Cure and The Fall picked up the spirit of transformed Bowie with a clear punk influence, and were to define the dark sound of post-punk. At the same time, other more glamorous bands, such as Japan, OMD, Human League and Duran Duran, paved the way for another sub-genre inherited from glam rock, ´new romantic´.

 

Out of these four bands, Duran Duran would be the one that caused the most attraction in fans from around the world. Its casual style, filled with fashion and elegance, turned them into pop icons and metrosexuals with musical instruments. Their music, a rock´n´roll styled from synthesizers, sensual vocals and dancefloor rhythms, made this Birmingham band into a revelation during the 80s, being also one of the favourite bands of the new music television MTV. Songs such as ´Planet Earth´, ´Rio´, ´Girls on Film´, ´Notorious´, ´Hungry Like The Wolf´ and ´The Reflex´ are already 80s and new wave classics. The following high point of the career of Duran Duran came in the 90s, with the stylish and remembered album ´Duran Duran´, edited in 1993. Also known as ´The Wedding Album´, this album meant an important return for the band, who recovered their best melodic, pop and romantic style. Their singles ´Come Undone´ and ´Ordinary World´ are today classic anthems of this English band.

Even with band member changes, returns to their original formation, break-ups and tours, Duran Duran carried on recording albums during the 90s and has done so for most of this decade too. Despite not having the same success as they had in the 80s, Duran Duran is a band that has never left the scene during its over 30 years of existence. For more information on Duran Duran and their current tour, visit their official website here: http://www.duranduran.com/

Alexa Ray

Get apartments in Budapest and enjoy a Duran Duran concert on the 28th of June. Don´t miss out on the chance of seeing one of the most important 80s bands live in the Hungarian capital. Budapest awaits you filled with magic and music this summer.

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New wave can be understood as the stylization and magnification of punk sound. Many bands of the “underground” in the late 70´s, were lucky and were able to take the right jump into the big leagues, where million dollar contracts and distribution throughout the world and constant broadcasting on the radio happened after years in the underground making music in a creative and dignified way . The best example of this phenomenon are Talking Heads, who, after creating some of the most iconic albums of the punk scene in the infamous CBGB in New York, they shot to global fame. Talking Heads, never lost their distinctive style and never sold out  to the record industry, on the contrary, they further established their music as new wave standards, and were later imitated by many. After an intense career by the incredible hand of producer Brian Eno, ten albums in ten year career, Talking Heads would separate forever.

The Police was one of those bands that made the leap to stardom from the quarries of new wave. Of course, there is no comparison between the accomplishments of Talking Heads and The Police, and that is what made The Police  different and unique for its time. Formed by Sting on vocals and bass, Andy Summers on guitar and Stewart Copeland on drums, this London band mixed the simplicity of punk , the lightness of jazz and a reggae intonation in a product that no doubt was musical honey from many radio stations during the late seventies and early eighties. Their career began back in 1978 and they just recorded five albums, they split in 1983. Songs like “Roxanne,” “Do not stand so close to me” and “Every Breath You Take” are still programmed daily in many radios all over the planet.

Certainly when it comes to The Police, we can not say that their success was due to the high level of their production or their incredible creativity, but rather in particular due to Sting singing with his super British accent, he could sing melodic pop style songs with reggae phrasings . Of course, the guitars of Andy Summers, came also from ska and the combination was more than perfect. Sting managed to strike some success after the dissolution of The Police, songs like “We´ll be together”, “Fragile” and “Englishman in New York” are remembered today.

This year Sting is back out on tour for the delight of his fans. If you love the eighties, you can not miss this important singer in Budapest this June 26. Sting will be performing in the Budapest Arena. For more information about his career and to get tickets to this fabulous concert, visit the following website: http://www.sting.com/

 

Alexa Ray

Rent apartments in Budapest and do not miss this important Sting concert . Budapest is one of the most beautiful cities to visit during the summer. The Hungarian capital is waiting for you full of history, culture and nightlife.

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One of the most traditional spring activities in Budapest is held every year at Óbuda square: the Spring Wine and Jazz Festival. People from all over Hungary and many tourists from around the world will enjoy two days of wine and the best Hungarian jazz bands.

Although the grape harvest in Hungary is in September, the wine festival takes place in spring, because the rolled grape juice has decanted and turned into a delicious wine or sparkling wine. It also welcomes the sun and warm longer days; they leave in oblivion the cold winter.

Wine and jazz are together in this festival as they are also intimately linked by history. Just as jazz is passion, rhythm, character and sophistication, wine is the ideal complement, because it exacerbates all the emotions and stimulates the passions. Nothing better than listening to blues and dixie in the beautiful old town square: live music and a nice glass of wine in hand.

During two days in April you will have the chance to taste the best wines in Europe, and buy some offers to enjoy it at home. But most importantly, taste the wines of the house, as Hungarian producers strive to have very good quality wines at very cheap prices.

Hungary is famous for its delicious wines that complement its culinary culture. Tokaji wine is known to come from the region of Tokaj-Hegyalja. Roumor has it that the countess Susana Lorántffy, wife of the Transylvanian Prince George Rákóczi, personally took care of the vineyards, but one year , and due to the constant wars with the Turks the harvesting was postponed until November, resulting it in a sweet and concentrate wine, which identifies the Tokaji wine.

The Bikavér is a cuvée, the bull´s blood of Hungarian wines. This wine is a real treasure among Hungarian wines that comes from Szekszárd and has a law to protect production, which is a regulation to produce wine and grapes of the kind needed to its production.

Also Szamorodni wine is produced from the grapes affected by the Botrytis cinerea fungus. When the grapes have lost water and have a greater amount of sugar, the wine is produced with a higher quantity of alcohol than normal.

Then there is also the wine manufactured with Eszencia aszú grapes, It is pretty sweet and also considered as one of the most expensive wines in the world. There is also the Fordítás, a sweet wine and wine Máslás.

This festival brings together elements that are part of the Budapest culture, that is why everyone waits for the Spring to celebrate the arrival of the spring and the beginning of a new production of fine wines.

For more information: http://visitbudapest.travel/budapest-events/budapest-spring-wine-jazz-festival/

Nancy Guzman

Rent one of the apartments in Budapest this spring, and don’t miss this outdoors celebration of jazz and wine in one of the most beautiful cities in Europe.

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On March 19 the American rock band Rise Against will perform at the PetÅ‘fi Csarnok in Budapest. Rise Against was formed in 1999 in Chicago, under the name “Transistor Revolt.” The band consists of vocalist Tim McIlrath, bassist and singer Joe Principe, Brandon Barnes on drums, and Zach Blair who considered the leader of the group.

Their style, labeled as hardcore punk or  melodic hardcore punk rock has made them to be considered one of the best bands of the last decades of its kind.

Rise Against´s name appeared in 2001 with their first album Unravenlig, produced by Mass Giorgini. Two years later, their second album Revolutions Per Minute was released. These were years of great effort to enhance their early work, being the opening act for bands like Strung Out and No Use fora Name.

In 2004 they released their album Siren Songo of the Counter Culture that will lead them to the Billboards 200 top sellers and to be certified by the Recording Industry Association of America .

During that year they will tour the United States, Europe, Japan and Australia, performing at different festivals: Taste of Chaos, Reading and Leeds, as well as tours of Germany and the UK. The following year they release their fourth album The Sufferer & the Witness, peaking at No. 10 in the US Billlboard and selling over 48 000 copies in its first week. This album was certified gold by the RIAA in 2007.

Appeal to Reaso came the following year and sold more than 60 000 copies, peaking at No. 3 at the Billlboard 200, this being the most successful album that the band has had throughout their career. Always following the line of social criticism but returning to a sound of their earlier recordings, this album kept rising the quality of Rise Against.

In 2010 their sixth album appears, Another Station: Another Mile, with material intended primarily for live performances. A year later Endgame is released with the vocals of several guest artists where as it is usual with the work of the band, the lyrics talk about reality and social and environmental problems,but always with an optimistic and positive view of the struggle to transform injustice into justice.

Among the social activities that the band partake in the social media it is worth mentioning that they are all members of PETA, an organization in favor of animal rights and that is clearly reflected in their video Ready to Fall, which shows the destruction of the environment. The whole band is strictly vegetarian and claim no use of alcohol and drugs.

Their political position has also been very clear in the last election supporting Obama and even claiming on more than one occasion their rejection of the governmental policy during the administration of George W. Bush.

For more information: http://www.lastfm.es/event/3096281+Rise+Against+at+Pet%C5%91fi+Csarnok+on+19+March+2012

Nancy Guzman

If you are considering visiting one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, do not forget to rent apartments in Budapest and have a great time with its musical panorama.

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This Irish band has only eight-year of career playing new sounds in a very particular proposal, “God is an Astronaut”, is an instrumental Post Rock group, which sails for melancholy moods, containing full of strength and fury.

The band formed in 2002, released their first album “The End of The Beginning” the same year. This album was well received by their fans and was broadcasted on MTV while making the band more and more famous. In 2005, after several appearances in European festivals they released their second album entitled “All is Violent, All is Bright”, with a more refined sound that characterizes them; sounds with filled with melancholy inspired in storms and other natural forces that are manifested in the rock. The albums followed after this album are an EP in 2006 and three other albums, one of 2007, “God is an Astronaut” 2008 and the last album of 2010.

The band has its own record label, and always works the lighting, sound and staging of its performances. So far, they have recorded five albums and have built a really solid career in the difficult “Post Rock” scene, these three Irish boys said they have enough material for another album, but in their own words: “They prefer people to get to know them well and understand the music they have done so far”, this in order not to saturate the audience and have better communication with them.

Their concert will take place on the 14^th of March at Dürer-kert that in Budapest, so you know, if you like Post Rock, you can’t miss the concert of its current kings!.

For more information visit: is an astrounaut budapest http://durerkert.com/god-is-an-astronaut-irl-vendegek

Luz Obscura

Rent apartments in Budapest to enjoy the concert of “God is an Astronaut”. Spend a wonderful time in this charming city.

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Whoever believes that heavy metal is a dying genre, knows little about music. Metal is still evolving constantly, both technically, musically and conceptually. From the pioneers Black Sabbath to Electric Wizard, there´s a trajectory which has been through different generations and cultural aspects, historical moments and world conceptions. Despite coming from hard rock, metal incorporates cadences and rhythms which are even more crushing. Impulsed by 70s punk, the dynamic of metal became even quicker without leaving aside being stylized and hard. We just have to think of Iron Maiden, Saxon, Jaguar, Budgie or Diamond Head, are strong messengers of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. From this warp of bands, the also satanic Venom would appear, who from a dirty and casual sound would shape up the term ´Black metal´, which would later become a genre in itself.

Heirs of this tradition, the ´Big Four´ of the San Francisco Bay area, Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax, would be the pioneers of Thrash Metal Despite being influenced by the most extreme punk and hardcore, these bands were to maintain the technicalities in their compositions, with complicated and frenetic melodies. Further forwards, the dynamic of the guttural voice would become Death metal, even quicker and darker. Bands which were pierced by the horror of the Cold War used Metal as the spokesman for apocalyptic lyrics which surround the global crisis, an imminent clash of forces and the end of the world. The aesthetic of Black Metal with its search for ancient paganism and the rejection of Christianity, would cause many problems for the members of bands such as Darkthrone, Mayhem and Emperor, rooted deep in Norway.

Today the metal dynamics have changed and its explorations are different. Also conditioned by an open market, Internet and independent music downloads in different blogs, the genre has seen the spread of new styles and faces, allowing that hipster kids from Brooklyn like the band Liturgy play extreme metal which borders experimentation and post rock, without paint on their faces, leather or blood thirsty faces. These are post modern times and we can´t forget that. There´s no sacred discourse or purist art genre; purisms are something which belong to the past century.

Amorphis is an example of a band which has known how to mutate down the years and that, in its way, carries on exploring the paths of metal like it has done for many years. Formed in Finland, they´ve explored genres such as death, progressive, heavy and folk metal. Highly influenced by Kalevala, that epic poem on Finnish tradition, Amorphis arrives in Budapest on the 8th of January 2012 to play a concert which will give plenty to talk about. For more information on the concert and the band, visit their official webpage here: http://amorphis.net/

Alexa Ray

Get apartments in Budapest and enjoy this concert as well as the varied musical and underground scene in the Hungarian capital. All the styles are in Budapest, check them out for yourself.

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Translated by: aleixgwilliam
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If you don´t want to miss this concert at the Matthias Church, you can rent apartments in Budapest and you´ll be close to all the tourist attraction points in the city, such as monuments, museums and even the best restaurants.

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Translated by: aleixgwilliam
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Next year will be better, or so they say. On 2012 there are thousands of sensational speculations that have been there for two or three years. Among many, that the Mayan calendar predicted the end of the world for the beginning of 2012. That´s not happened nor will it happen. Maybe, something that the calendar was right about was in the change and the end of many ideas that we´ve had on reality and its structure, on the inconsistent way in which capitalism hasn´t been able to control its networks and, from the United States to Europe and back, due to the bad handling of investments of many thousands of people, as well as political abuse against the working rights of many people, we´ve reached a global crisis.

The word ´crisis´ is today one of the most widely used in global language. This can be translated with some Google and seeing the results on social networks. Inadvertently, the social networks have unleashed a wave of text and information exacerbating the crisis from a problem which was essentially economical. And it´s not about dis-informing, of living in denial about what´s happening or turning one´s back on things, but more about understanding that the essence of the problem is in the language, and therefore we have to be alert towards other things such as music, art or travelling. There are ways of getting rid of the problems, which aren´t necessarily expensive and totally accessible.

The New Year´s Eve parties are usually a moment of excess around the world. We believe that, getting ridiculously drink and dancing, we will leave behind a year which hasn´t gone according to plan with our wishes. But a party is a party and it can happen on any day. Maybe the best thing to do to celebrate and say goodbye to the year gone by is to pay attention to music and see what it says to us, which new options it offers us and think a bit about it. Being drunk and dancing is very easy, but listening to beautiful melodies is more important.

For that, the concert of Amadinda and Gábor Presser on the 31st of December is an option to unwind from the noise of the party and enter another musical dimension. Amadinda is a unique percussion band who began their career in Budapest in 1984, and since then present compositions of contemporary Hungarian music in different formats, from the most traditional to the most minimal. Gábor Presser is another experimental musician who remains classic. He makes electronic compositions of classical and modern pieces. This concert is a chance to get to understand that the frontiers of traditional and improvisation are very light and, on the contrary, can go hand in hand in such an important place like the Palace of Art in Budapest.

It will undoubtedly be a night of the best contemporary Hungarian music. Recommended for fans of international contemporary music and experimentation. For more information visit the following website: http://mupa.hu/en/

Alexa Ray

Get apartments in Budapest and enjoy this fabulous concert to send the year off.

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Translated by: aleixgwilliam
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