Iván Fischer realized his dream when he founded the Budapest Festival Orchestra in 1983 together to Zoltán Kocsis. Thanks to its innovative approach to music and the unstinting dedication of its musicians, the BFO has become the youngest ensemble to enter the top ten symphony orchestras in the world. In addition to to Budapest, the orchestra regularly performs at some of the most important concert venues on the international music scene and is also featured on international streaming platforms. Since its inception, the BFO has been awarded from "Gramophone," the prestigious British music magazine, three times: in 1998 and 2007, the magazine's jury awarded the BFO the prize for the best recording, while in 2022, thanks to public votes, it was named Orchestra of the Year. The BFO's most important achievements are related to Mahler: the recording of Symphony No. 1 was nominated for a Grammy Award. In addition to its recording successes and acclaimed tours, the BFO has also become known to internationally through a series of particularly original concerts. The Autism-friendly Cocoa Concerts, Surprise Concerts - also appreciated at the London Proms -, music marathons, youth-oriented Midnight Music performances, outdoor concerts to Budapest, free Community Weeks, and the Bridging Europe Festival, organized in cooperation with Müpa Budapest - are all unique events to their own way. Another unique feature of the Orchestra is that its members regularly sing during concerts. Each year the BFO, in cooperation with the Iván Fischer Opera Company, Müpa Budapest, the Vicenza Opera Festival and Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, stages an opera production. Performances have been invited to New York's Mostly Mozart Festival, the Edinburgh International Festival and Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie; in 2013, The Marriage of Figaro topped New York Magazine's ranking of the year's best classical music events. The Vicenza Opera Festival, founded from Iván Fischer, debuted in fall 2018 at the Teatro Olimpico.