Hungary’s capital will resonate with outstanding singing this weekend as two global luminaries of the opera world visit to give major concerts on consecutive evenings in prominent Budapest venues. On Friday night, living-legend Spanish tenor José Carreras packs the Budapest Sportaréna with longtime fans for his final Hungarian performance as part of his career-closing “A Life in Music” tour – and then on Saturday night, premier American soprano Renée Fleming takes the stage at the Erkel Theater for an extraordinary song recital. As of press time, tickets are still available for both shows.

While José Carreras is perhaps best-known as one of “The Three Tenors” along with Luciano Pavarotti and Plácido Domingo, his remarkable career dates back to the 1950s, when he made his debut on the operatic stage at 11 years old. Since then he sang in over 60 roles, earning his greatest renown for performances in the operas of Puccini and Verdi. For his swan-song “A Life in Music” tour, Carreras is traveling to cities around the world to provide final concerts of greatest hits for his international admirers, with his show at the Budapest Sportaréna beginning at 8pm on Friday, January 20th – for tickets, visit this website.

Less than 24 hours later, Renée Fleming – regarded as one of the world’s top opera divas of our modern age – returns to the stage in Budapest at the recently renovated Erkel Theater to sing solo alongside pianist Hartmut Höll, performing highlights of Brahms, Saint-Saëns, Verdi, and several other composers. Fleming will stand in the spotlight starting at 7:30pm on Saturday, January 21st – click on this website for ticket information.As of press time at midday Friday, seats remain available for both concerts – but they will likely sell out fast, so don’t hesitate to purchase tickets if you want to catch either or both of these dramatic performances.