Virtual Christmas Concert hits all the right notes

The first ever virtual Welsh-Hungarian Christmas Concert, hosted via Magyar Cymru, has been well-received by Hungarian and Welsh music lovers alike, clocking up hundreds of views throughout the Christmas period.

The virtual concert featured a range of musical performances from across Wales and Hungary, including Hungarian singers performing Welsh-language hymns, Welsh kid violinists playing Hungarian Christmas carols, and more.

"This Christmas is like no other," the organisers said on the project's webpage. "As COVID-19 takes its unpredictable course and we watch the events unfold from the comfort of our homes, we invite you to join us for a range of Welsh and Hungarian musical performances, available on-demand."

Performers included WHCA Chair and classical singer Elizabeth Sillo, Welsh tenor Ceri Davies, as well as pupils from Dorothy Singh's Kodály Violin School in Carmarthenshire. All performances are available to watch here.

Before the pandemic, we have been coming together in Cardiff and Kunágota – Hungary’s “Welshest village” – every year to celebrate the friendship between our two cultures, and to build bridges through the one language we have in common: music.

Kunágota melted the hearts of Welsh readers last Christmas and has since forged a beautiful friendship with Trefaldwyn/Montgomery in Powys - a town with fascinating cultural links to Hungary.