On 17-21 May, the Hungarian audience will have the chance to meet international authors, thinkers, musicians and well-known Hungarian authors, at Hay Festival, in Petőfi Museum of Literature, the Central European University (CEU), and Akvárium Klub. The cultural event organized for the first time in Budapest last year offers numerous music programmes in 2013, too.

On 17 May, Friday, at 9:30 PM the Akvárium Klub hosts Dark Dark Dark, an American folk band from Minneapolis. Formed in 2006, the band has toured extensively in the United States and Europe and is known for their blend of New Orleans jazz, Americana, Eastern European folk and pop sensibilities.

Slam poetry has become a significant phenomenon in Hungary in the past two years, somewhat redefining the idea of poem and reading, also renewing the interest for “more traditional” forms of poems. On 18 May, Saturday, 9 PM, at the event organized in collaboration with Libri Publishing House, the audience will be entertained by four prestigious slam poets of the younger generation – Péter Závada of Akkezdet Phiai; Márton Simon, member of the József Attila Kör and Slam Poetry Budapest associations, the bronze medalist of the National Slam Poetry Championship, István Pion and Mátyás Sirokai who got a degree in percussions at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music –, accompanied by Amoeba Band.

Finally, on 19 May, Sunday, 9:30 PM the Finnish band French Films will be introduced to the Hungarian public. The band was formed in 2006, and their music has been strongly influenced by the Ramones, the Beat Happening, the Beach Boys and Jesus and Mary Chain. Their debut album Imaginary Future won the European Border Breakers Award.

Hay Festival was founded in Hay-on-Wye 25 years ago, and it has grown into one of the most significant cultural series of events in the world, with eleven festivals across five continents. The goal of the festival is to make people think together about the world both as it is and as it might be. Hay is a great discussion on revelation and intellectual adventures where participants share their ideas and stories with international authors and thinkers, historians and philosophers, poets and scholars, and at nights we are entertained by famous musicians.

Tickets for the concerts in Akvárium Klub can be purchased in advance for 1,000 HUF at the ticket office of Akvárium Klub and online at www.PORT.hu, or at the venue, on the day of the concerts.

For more information about the complete programme of the 2013 Hay Festival Budapest please, visit hayfestival.org/budapest and hungarofest.hu.