László Lajtha (1892-1963) was one of the greatest Hungarian composers of the first half of the 20th century who pursued an activity of great importance in the fields of ethnomusicology, music pedagogy and international cultural diplomacy as well. Togeteher with Bartók and Kodály, who were a decade his seniors, he was referred to—especially in France— as "the three great Hungarians" [les trois grands hongrois] during his career. Due to his opposition to communism his compositions were hardly performed in Hungary after 1948. The last decades, however, have brought the re-discovery of his oeuvre having significance in music history and showing a quite individual profile both by expert musicians and the audience. His consequence and moral attitude can set a good example even today.

By opening the László Lajtha Memorial Room, Hungarian music life pays off again one of its debts. The memorial space has been set up using Lajtha's personal belongings and pieces of furniture; based on photographs it seeks to restore in original form an upper middle class style room from Lajtha's Váci utca apartment in Budapest, as a snapshot of an ordinary day of the composer. One can see Lajtha's Bösendorfer piano still in good condition today, his writing desk and his typewriter with French keyboard, a Biedermeier inlay table, and two bookcases packed with books and scores obviously belonging to a widely-read creative personality having much knowledge about a wide range of subjects.