In no other country east of Germany will you find a musical identity as potent as that of Hungary. In the nineteenth century, Hungarian musicians imitated the Viennese, producing good habits in teaching and playing, but bad ones in composition.

At the turn of the century, young composers began seeking an alternative, and Bartók and Kodály finally provided one by setting out to document the living folk traditions of Greater Hungary. What began as ethnography unexpectedly led to contemporary Hungarian music finally losing its German accent. Bartók is now recognised as one of the giants of twentieth-century music.

Kodály's music is more overtly Magyar and he is the more popular composer with Hungarian audiences - his international renown is as the inventor of a system of musical education based on folk melodies that has shaped musical appreciation in Hungary and elsewhere.

The Communists lavishly sponsored musical culture. Cynics say it was a way of keeping the masses happy. Others argue that it shows Communism had its good points. Either way, audiences could enjoy a musical life comparable with any in Europe, and such great names as Richter, Stravinsky and Bernstein were welcomed as guests. The authorities also made laudable attempts to bring musical culture to the masses. Young musicians such as pianist András Schiff were allowed to build reputations abroad. In return, they were contracted to give 20 concerts a year in community halls to audiences very different from those found at the Zeneakadémia. All this ended when Communism collapsed and local musicians found themselves fighting over dwindling subsidies.

You can count on two or three concerts every night of the week during the concert season, which runs from late September to early June. In summer, the major orchestras pack up for either holidays or foreign tours, leaving smaller ensembles and ad-hoc groups to entertain the tourists.

A free monthly listing of classical and opera events, Concert Kalandárium (only in Hungarian), is available at all ticket agencies and some record shops. Listings in English can be found in the Budapest Sun.