© timtak

A Hungarian song has been chosen by internal selection for the Eurovision Song Contest this week. Hungary announced their choice along with France and Israel which also chose songs this week. Wolf Kati, a former contestant on the Hungarian version of The X Factor, will sing the song "What About My Dreams". This will be an English translation of her hit "Szerelem, miert mulsz".

Hungary missed last year's Eurovision contest due to financial constraints, but this year they are set to compete in the first semi-final on May 10. Israel will compete in the second semi-final on May 12, with the winner of their national selection final KDAM as their representative. This year Dana International won the title with the song "Ding Dong". Dana International was a 1998 Eurovision winner, and the fifth veteran in this year's competition.

© TingChang

The Hungarian songs and music of Ferenc Liszt will be celebrated this year at the Budapest Spring Festival, which begins in March and will last over 17 days. There will also be a concert of Bela Bartok's work. Liszt was a dazzling pianist and composer in the courts of 19th century Europe, and some of his correspondence also suggests that he may have been a spy. He was known for his political skills, and these aspects of his life will also be showcased at the festival.

For example, a new opera by Gyula Fekete will be presented that centers around an especially intense and tormented period in Liszt's life. The Budapest Festival Orchestra will give a rendition of one of Liszt's most famous works, his A major concerto, while the Csokonai Theatre of Debrecen will perform scenes from the Christ Oratorio in the Palace of Fine Arts.

© halighalie

Peter "Peet" Ferencz loves using a violin to explore and perhaps destroy the boundaries of jazz music. His band the Peet Project give new meaning to fusion as they creatively weave together jazz, funk, dance and classical on their new album Pink Spirit. They have released this album under the Beagle Beat Records label in their native Hungary. Music fans there have embraced the album as hit singles like "Be Free" have climbed the radio charts. In this single, for example, Ferencz merges violin with '70s disco.

This unique vision for music synthesis came out of Ferencz childhood experiences, of being raised up on pop, rock and house music. He later got deep into studying music production and embraced the world of R&B, funk, and smooth jazz. So he decided to find a way to incorporate these quite distinct music styles together into something new.