Gyorgy Arato: It's easy to work in Bulgaria

The head of the Hungarian Cultural Institute, Gyorgy Arato, was born in 1955 in the beautiful Hungarian city of Vesprem. “The city of the Hungarian queens. It is a lot like Veliko Tarnovo. Maybe this is why I love your old throne city and often go there.”

Gyorgy Arato graduated in Hungarian philology, culture and aesthetics from the Budapest University “Lorand Eotvos”. He became a tutor first in the Institute for Foreign Students in Budapest, and then in the college “Jozsef Eotvos” (in the meantime he was also a part-time lecturer in the Medical University “Ignaz Semmelweis”). In 1989 fate brought him to Bulgaria. He came to our country along with the changes. He taught one year in the University of Shumen, then four in the University of Sofia (1990–1994, Hungarian philology). And to make his link with Bulgaria unbreakable, he married a Bulgarian, with whom he has two children.

In 1994 he became head of the Hungarian Cultural Institute in Sofia. When in 1999 his mandate ended, he went back to Hungary with his family. For five years he worked in the Ministry of the National Cultural Heritage in Budapest.

Since 2005 he is back in our country – for the second time as head of the Hungarian cultural institute. Something very rare but fully deserved. Because it is very rare to have Hungarians that are so strongly linked with our country as Gyorgy Arato is. Apart from what he did during his first mandate, he is also engaged in the popularization of Hungarian literature in Bulgaria. He is the compiler and editor of several literary and culture and historic collections. He has numerous friends among our cultural and intellectual elite and now along with them searches for new opportunities for cultural cooperation between our two countries. The Bulgarians love him because of his openness, honesty and dazzling sense of humor.

Mr. Arato, it seems that in Sofia you are known to everyone in the field of culture but the more amazing thing is that everybody says only rapturous words about you.
Here many people know me from the years when I taught in the Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”. These were glorious times! Then I became head of the Hungarian Cultural Institute and it got a little scarier. I had more responsibilities but on the other hand more opportunities to work for the popularization of Hungarian culture in Bulgaria. This isn't a very hard task because Bulgarians have warm feelings for Hungarians. In Hungary I always say that it is easy to work in Bulgaria.

During your first mandate as director, the Hungarian Cultural Institute moved in this building in the center of Sofia.
At first we were on the famous Sofia street with many names: Tsar Osvoboditel, Ruski Boulevard, The Yellow Cobbles, etc. But during the changes we had to vacate the premises and spent two years in Lozenetz, near the Seminary. In 1995–1996 the Hungarian property at the corner of Shesti Septemvri and Aksakov streets was restituted. The building was erected during the First World War and till 1994 had been something like a Hungarian club. Guests of the club were often ministers and even the tsar.

Comparing the time between the two mandates, what in your opinion stayed unchanged?
This was an interesting period for Bulgaria, the so-called transition – an extraordinary phenomenon from human, as well as political point of view. The main thing that remained unchanged generally speaking are the old concepts about the Hungarians. The friendship created on the basis of universal values and our national characteristics, which are similar, is good. It isn't very diplomatic to mention this, but the concept that we Hungarians live better than the Bulgarians also remained. The common historical relations, our contacts in the fields of culture and science give a wide scope of joint activities. That is why then my work was easy, but from another point of view – hard. The transition was hard for culture. I wanted to do many more things than we could afford. Now we have better conditions and we can think about a different style of work.

You have already started. “The Hundred Gypsy Violins” in Bulgaria Hall was a great success.
We must develop the fields which are not in the elite part of culture. It is good to organize a couple of Ferenc Liszt and Bela Bartok concerts but also to present the not so well-known in Bulgaria Hungarian folk music, which is much liked. We are encouraged by the big success of the concert “The Hundred Gypsy Violins” performed on the occasion of the visit of the Hungarian Prime Minister in Bulgaria. In May the world famous Hungarian singer Marta Sebestyen gave a concert. For her song in the movie “The English Patient”, she received a Grammy.

We organized jazz concerts in Sofia, Bansko and many other places. We will seek the popular, not only the elite.