Overview
It is a richly-decorated building and is considered one of the architect's masterpieces. It was built in neo-Renaissance style, with elements of Baroque. Ornamentation includes paintings and sculptures by leading figures of Hungarian art including Bertalan Székely, Mór Than and Károly Lotz. Although in size and capacity it is not among the greatest, in beauty and the quality of acoustics the Budapest Opera House is considered to be amongst the finest opera houses in the world.
The auditorium holds 1261 seats. It is horseshoe shaped and – according to measurements done in the 1970s by a group of international engineers – has the third best acoustics in Europe after La Scala in Milan and the Palais Garnier in Paris. Although many opera houses have been built since, the Budapest Opera House is still among the best in terms of the acoustics.
In front of the building are statues of Ferenc Erkel and Franz Liszt. Liszt is the best known Hungarian composer. Erkel composed the Hungarian national anthem, and was the first music director of the Opera House; he was also founder of the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra.
Each year the season lasts from September to the end of June and besides opera performances the Opera House is home to the Hungarian National Ballet.
The secondary building of the Hungarian State Opera is Erkel theatre. It is a much larger building that also hosts opera and ballet performances during the opera season.
There are guided tours in the building in six languages (English, German, Spanish, French, Italian and Hungarian) almost every day.
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