Liszt Ferenc Zeneakadémia (Franz Liszt Academy of Music)

Liszt Ferenc Zeneakadémia (Franz Liszt Academy of Music) Review

This magnificent Art Nouveau music academy presides over the cafés and gardens of Liszt Ferenc tér. Along with the Vigadó, it's one of the city's main concert halls, hosting orchestra and chamber music concerts in its splendid main hall. On summer days the sound of daytime rehearsals from inside adds to the sweetness in the air along the pedestrian oasis of café society, just off buzzing Andrássy út.

The academy itself has two auditoriums: a green-and-gold 1,200-seat main hall and a smaller hall for chamber music and solo recitals. Farther along the square is a dramatic statue of Liszt Ferenc (Franz Liszt) himself, hair blown back from his brow, seemingly in a flight of inspiration. Pianist Erno (Ernst) Dohnányi and composers Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály were teachers here.

You can purchase tickets to all performances and classical music concerts held at the academy through the ticket office. It's sometimes even possible to grab a standing-room ticket just before a performance.