The Central Band of the Hungarian Defence Forces will join the international bands at the 2025 Tattoo.
The band is Hungary’s biggest military orchestra and their primary mission is to provide music at the highest-level at national, military and social events. The band has represented the spiritual and cultural values of the Hungarian National Defence Force and Hungary’s national traditions over 100 years. The history of the HDF Central Orchestra began when its legal predecessor, the 1st ‘Honvéd’ Infantry Regiment’s Band was formed in 1896. This event marked the establishment of Hungary’s first independent professional military band in Budapest.
Following World War II, the orchestra functioned as the 1st ‘Honvéd’ District Central Band until 1947 led by Capt. Géza Pongrácz, who was first conductor. Due to various reorganizations, after 1956 the orchestra was merged into the service bands set up at that time, so the central orchestra was discontinued for some years. The top leaders of the Ministry of Defence proposed that an orchestra be set up again in 1961 which was to be assigned several tasks related to state protocol ceremonies, outstanding social events and international cultural relations. This was how the Hungarian People’s Army Central Orchestra was formed in 1962, which performed the tasks assigned to it by the army until the change of regime in 1989.
Changing only in name, the orchestra has been active since 1989 up to the present, known as the Hungarian Defence Forces Central Orchestra. The orchestra receives lots of invitations to make guest appearances abroad around Europe, where it represents Hungarian military traditions and the cultural values of the country.