NEW YORK, NY.- Extremely Hungary, a yearlong festival celebrating contemporary Hungarian arts and culture, kicks off this weekend in New York City with exhibition openings at The Forbes Galleries and the launch of a two-week music series at Carnegie Hall. Organized by the Hungarian Cultural Center, the festival encompasses some 100 programs and events held at leading cultural institutions in New York City and Washington D.C. that trace the roots of contemporary Hungarian culture and introduce American audiences to Hungary’s most influential artists and performers.

Festival programs range from exhibitions, concerts and literary symposia, to more whimsical and non-traditional events as a mustache contest and a modern reinterpretation of an Austro-Hungarian opera ball. Upcoming events include:

Carnegie Hall’s Celebrating Hungary, a two-week festival of Hungarian music featuring classical, folk, and new music beginning January 24. Performances include the New York-debut of famed composer Gyorgy Kurtág, a concert from the Budapest Festival Orchestra led by Iván Fischer, and an evening of music by award-winning composer and conductor Péter Eötvös.

The Forbes Galleries’ presentation of two exhibitions exploring Hungary’s fin-de-sičcle arts, opening January 24: Zsolnay Art Pottery features 160 rare and luminous Art Nouveau ceramics, and Great Paintings, Small Masterpieces showcases early 20th-century Hungarian painting including works by László Moholy-Nagy.

The International Center of Photography’s exhibition of Munkácsi’s Lost Archive at, which opened January 16, featuring modern prints from the recently rediscovered archive of photographer Martin Munkácsi (1896 – 1963), renown for his dynamic images of athletes and models in motion.

Library of Congress’s presentation of a specially commissioned work by György Kurtág, inspired by the music of Hungarian composer Béla Bartók, on February 7.

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ concert featuring Hungarian singer Beáta Palya, a rising star in the international music scene who mixes traditional Hungarian folk and Gypsy melodies with modern jazz and pop influences, on February 8.

Additional events, which further highlight the impact of Hungarian culture on American society, will be held throughout the year at partner venues in New York and D.C., including The Jewish Museum, The Museum of Modern Art, Brooklyn Museum of Art, National Gallery, Newseum and the 92nd Street Y. Extremely Hungary is made possible in part by funding from the Hungarian Ministry of Education and Culture. The festival is co-chaired by George Soros and Kati Marton.

For a full listing of confirmed programs visit http://www.extremelyhungary.org