Classical concert · Buda Castle Hill
Strings and a solo violin beneath Gothic vaults where Franz Joseph was crowned King of Hungary in 1867.
Painted Gothic walls, a roof of coloured tiles outside and a string orchestra in the church where Hungary's last two kings were crowned.
The church
Franz Joseph and Elisabeth were crowned here on 8 June 1867, and Charles IV and Zita on 30 December 1916. Liszt's Hungarian Coronation Mass was performed for the first time at the 1867 celebration. Sitting in the nave for a concert puts you in a room that has been part of Hungarian ceremony for centuries.
The diamond-pattern roof tiles come from Frigyes Schulek's late 19th-century rebuilding, and Zsolnay ceramics are on the roof. Inside, Bertalan Székely and Károly Lotz directed painted decoration over the Gothic walls, so the room around the orchestra is as colourful as the music.
The church stands on Holy Trinity Square beside the Fisherman's Bastion. A concert of about an hour leaves an evening free around it, and a guest writes of seeing the Bastion lit up afterwards, a different mood from the hill by day.
The programme
The booking page shows a programme called Best of Classic, built from well-known baroque and romantic pieces for a string orchestra and a violin soloist. Six of its pieces are described here, each with a fact worth knowing before you hear it.
Programmes vary by date, so read these six as the flavour of the evening rather than a promise, and check the booking page for your own date.
Pachelbel
Written for three violins and basso continuo, and paired with a gigue. The date is unknown, with estimates from 1680 to 1706. Listen for the same tune entering again and again, two measures apart, over a repeating bass.
Vivaldi
Four violin concertos published in Amsterdam in 1725, each paired with a sonnet. Winter's second movement is a slow Largo in which the violin sings over quiet strings.
Bach
August Wilhelmj's 1871 arrangement of the second movement of Bach's Orchestral Suite No. 3, moved down to C major so the melody can be played on the violin's lowest string.
Handel
First performed on the Thames on 17 July 1717 for King George I, who liked it enough to have it repeated several times. The F major suite is HWV 348.
Saint-Saëns
Part of The Carnival of the Animals, composed in 1886 for cello and two pianos. Saint-Saëns held the rest of the suite back and relented only for this movement, published in 1887.
Massenet
The entr'acte for violin and orchestra played between scenes of the second act of Massenet's opera Thaïs, first staged at the Palais Garnier in Paris in 1894.
Four chapters
Matthias Church has been rebuilt, repurposed and restored more than once. The church's own history page and Wikipedia give the main turns, and these four mark them.
A charter of the Veszprém Cathedral Chapter mentions the church as under construction, so the church places its foundation in 1246 or 1247.
Matthias Corvinus attended a thanksgiving Mass here after his election in 1458 and married Catherine of Podebrady in 1463 and Beatrice of Aragon in 1476. His coat of arms marks the tower finished by 1470.
Buda fell to Suleiman the Magnificent in 1541 and the church became a mosque. Allied forces retook Buda on 2 September 1686.
Franz Joseph and Elisabeth were crowned here on 8 June 1867, and Charles IV and Zita, the last king of Hungary and his queen, on 30 December 1916.
In pictures
The nave, the altar, the roof tiles, the pulpit, the organ loft, the Holy Trinity Column, the Fisherman's Bastion and the apse roof.
Compare the concerts
Concert on Castle Hill
The card opens the concert in Matthias Church, and the calendar under it lists the dates. A strip of further Budapest bookings follows, and whatever the booking calendar shows for dates, times and fares is what applies.
An hour or so of classical strings in the Gothic coronation church on Castle Hill, with three seating categories and free cancellation until 24 hours before.
Check dates ↗Other Budapest bookings
Plan the evening
The booking page gives the church itself as the meeting point: Szentháromság tér 2, on Holy Trinity Square, Buda's Castle District. Look for the tall spire and the coloured roof beside the Fisherman's Bastion.
Castle Hill can be reached on foot, by road or by the funicular from Clark Ádám tér. Check the funicular's hours for your date, especially for the ride down after the concert.
Shoulders and knees must be covered, the church says, and costumes are out. Dress to that standard and bring a light layer for a big stone church after dark.
There are three seating categories. A guest who chose VIP describes the front three pews, and another felt the gap to regular seats was small. Booking early keeps the full choice.
No eating, alcohol or smoking, and photography or filming needs the church's permission in advance. Treat the hour as one for listening.
The Fisherman's Bastion and the Holy Trinity Column are next to the church. Book dinner for after the concert and decide how you will come down the hill before you go up.
The church, the hill and the music
Which seat, and how to book How to book a classical concert in Matthias Church on Buda Castle Hill: what the ticket is, which seat category to pick and what the evening is like.
Open the guide → Castle Hill, the funicular and dress How to reach Matthias Church on Buda Castle Hill for an evening concert: the address, the funicular, what to wear and what to do either side of it.
Open the guide →FAQ
Around an hour: 70 minutes on the booking page, with a start time set against every date in the calendar.
To Matthias Church, Szentháromság tér 2, on Holy Trinity Square in Buda's Castle District. The ticket names the church as the meeting point.
There are three categories. A guest who chose VIP describes the front three pews, while another found little difference from regular seats. Book early for the full choice.
The booking page shows a programme called Best of Classic, with Pachelbel, Vivaldi, Bach, Handel, Saint-Saëns, Massenet, Franck and Mozart. Programmes can change by date.
Yes. GetYourGuide refunds in full when you cancel a full day or more ahead of the concert, and you may reserve now and settle the fare later.
The church's visitor rules ask for covered shoulders and knees, and do not allow costumes. Dress to that standard and bring a light layer.
No. It is a concert ticket. Daytime visits to the church are arranged by the church and have their own rules.
The ticket is for the concert. Plan your own way up Castle Hill, and book dinner separately for before or after.
Neither. This is an independent guide. Tickets are sold by GetYourGuide for a concert in the church.
The fare is quoted per adult in US dollars and becomes your home currency on the booking page.