Bartók Béla, ifj.: Chronicles of Béla Bartók's Life (Budapest, 2021)
Economic Crisis (1932–1933)
1932 CHRONICLES OF BÉLA BARTOK'S LIFE 20 January - First concert of Üj Magyar Zeneegyesület (New Hungarian Music Society) which presents itself after a silence of 2 decades as successor of the first UMZE. The programme contains some numbers of the Violin Duos. On this occasion Bartok writes about the aims of this work: “...let pupils in their first study years get performance pieces which have both the natural simplicity of folk music and its melodic and rhythmic peculiarity”. He didn’t attend the concert itself. 23 January - He acknowledges with joy Constantin Briloiu’ s reply to his letter of the 13th, which clarifies that the matter of the kolindas is not halted after all. 25 January - He attends with his mother the concert of Massimo Freccia who conducts Transylvanian Dances and Hungarian Pictures. Bartok is dissatisfied with the performance, thinking that rehearsals were too few. 27 January - He travels to Pozsony (via Szob) where in the Government Palace he participates at the concert of the Béla Bartok Singing Association. His programme: PurceWsPrelude-Air-Gavotte-Hornpipe- Prelude, Bartoks Tambourine, AUVngherese, and The Nights Music, Kodálys Dances of Marosszék. - He stays at the Sándor Albrechts ’. 28 January - He leaves for Vienna where at the Österreichischer Kulturbund he gives a lecture entitled Folk Music and Art Music of Newer Times. 29 January - He writes his mother from Vienna: “It went well in Pozsony, too”. Then he leaves for Frankfurt. 30 January - He writes his wife: “I will not play at Radio London ever again”. (They had called off more of his appearances in this period, however, he changed his decision later on.) 31 January - At Radio Frankfurt he gives a lecture about folk song research in Hungary, then gives a concert of pieces by Purcell and Rossi beside his own compositions, among which Suite, Allegro barbaro, Dirge, 336
