Whilst in Paris, Frédéric Chopin became friends with the eminent Hungarian composer Ferenc Liszt. It is difficult to say definitively to what extent the Hungarians’ interest in Chopin’s music was influenced by his friendship with the ‘national composer’. Nevertheless, in the Hungarian capital, we can observe a special regard for commemorating our distinguished compatriot. Liszt himself was a promoter of Chopin’s work, including in Budapest.

The best-known and, from an artistic point of view, most interesting is undoubtedly the monument in Gödöllő by the Hungarian sculptor Ede Margó, dating from 1929, which was created as a result of a competition announced in the mid-1920s by the Budapest authorities. The sculpture of Chopin was intended to be erected in the Horváth-kert garden; however, the nature of the work—in which, alongside Chopin, we see a pair of young, naked people – a woman and a man – immersed in an ecstatic, half-erotic, half-musical, dance-like rapture, or perhaps an ecstatic fainting spell, sparked controversy. Initially, the city refused to purchase the work or display it in public. Perhaps it was not only its ‘obscenity’ but also its Art Nouveau style—which was decidedly out of fashion by the late 1920s—that prompted the refusal. Ultimately, however, in 1931 the city purchased the monument, and its bronze cast was placed away from the city centre, on Szent László Square in the Kőbánya district. Although its composition differs, the Chopin monument may have been inspired by the sculpture of Chopin in Parc Monceau in Paris.

In 1948, the monument was presumably deemed too vulgar and incompatible with socialist aesthetics, and was dismantled, with plans to use it – along with others – for a monument to Stalin. Fortunately, Ferenc Pálfalfi, founder and president of the Hungarian Fryderyk Chopin Society, learnt of this and hid the sculpture. It is not known exactly when the monument ended up at Károlyi Palace, later at the Kiscelli Museum, then at the Budapest Gallery’s Sülysáp branch, and finally at the Szentendre Sculpture Garden. On 12 December 1983, the monument was erected in the park next to the Fryderyk Chopin Music School in Gödöllő. In 2009, a decision was taken to carry out conservation work, which was completed in 2010 (thanks to financial support from the town of Gödöllő and the Polish Institute in Budapest), at which point it was unveiled once again. Its location was changed at that time; it was originally situated in the school courtyard but now stands in front of the entrance.

The monument depicts Frédéric Chopin seated at a piano, absorbed in his playing. The composer’s head is gently bent over the instrument, whilst his hands, actively engaged in playing, rest on the keyboard. He is dressed in a long coat, the contours of which follow the shape of his body. Next to Chopin stands a nude couple – a woman and a man – in a dynamic pose. The man is leaning forwards, his torso slightly turned towards the woman. His left leg is stretched out behind him, whilst his right leg – on which most of his weight rests – is bent at the knee. His left arm is extended backwards, whilst his right arm is raised to shoulder height and bent at the elbow, reaching towards the woman; his head rests on his hand. The woman is kneeling to one side, with her left leg drawn back slightly; her head is tilted back and her hair falls loosely down her back. Her hands are raised in front of her. The statue stands on a granite plinth bearing the inscription ‘CHOPIN’ on the front. Ede Margó also created busts of Chopin.

Budapest’s second Chopin monument was erected in the early 1960s and is situated in what was then Tchaikovsky Park in the 10th district. The park was created by redeveloping the area around the former Dreher villa. The name of the site was later changed to Tchaikovsky Park, which features, amongst other things, an open-air concert shell and monuments to famous composers, including Frédéric Chopin. The limestone sculpture was unveiled in 1961 and was created by the Hungarian sculptor János Konyorcsik.

The third, and also the earliest, trace linked to Chopin is Richard Füredi’s sculpture ‘Polonaise’, erected in 1866 in the Vigadó concert hall. It commemorates the concerts of Chopin’s Polonaises, which were performed by Liszt. This Hungarian composer not only wrote a book dedicated to Chopin, but is also said to have donated a marble sculpture of Chopin’s left hand to the National Museum. He also commissioned a bas-relief portrait of Chopin from the Swiss artist Antoine Bovy in 1837, which is said to be in the Liszt Museum today.

The building of the Academy of Music houses a bronze portrait of Chopin by Ksawery Dunikowski. Szigfrid Pongracz (1872–1929), meanwhile, created a bust of Chopin, which is housed in the Hungarian National Gallery. The 2011 monument, meanwhile, is situated in Horváth-kert in the Krisztinaváros district, where a monument to Ede Margó was originally intended to stand. It is a replica of the 1899 bust of the composer by Bolesław Syrewicz, which stands in the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris.

In 2023, a ‘smart bench’ was installed in Budapest, which not only measures temperature and air pollution but also allows visitors to listen to excerpts from works by Chopin and Liszt.