The Eighth Tribe, 1978 (5. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1978-02-01 / 2. szám
February, 1978 THE EIGHTH TRIBE Page 5 most of the goals were achieved. There is now a generation of professional musicians in Hungary, famed around the world, but, more importantly, a new generation of people enriched by their ability to he part of a highly sophisticated musical and cultural experience. Kodály and his associates succeeded in educating the great masses. The effects of the nation’s musical education are totally pervading. There are now thousands of amateur choral groups and ensembles in Budapest alone. In tiiat city of about two million people there are two opera houses, five symphony orchestras, performing daily to capacity crowds. The side effects of this unique movement were just as important. Kodály’s philosophy on music influenced just about every other form of art. The nation woke up to a realization that there are untold riches in its folk heritage in dance, poetry, art, and literature. National dance ensembles were established. Scores of amateur choirs and dance groups sprung into existence. A folk-inspired wing of literature and poetry gained new strength. But that was not all. Kodály, in his musical works went beyond folksongs using them as inspirational material. His scholarly research led him Jo a rediscovery of old Hungarian art music, ancient psalm tunes and church hymns, “flower songs’’; in short, all that was musically valuable from our recent or distant past. All these elements, along with the best results of the Classical masters became part of the spiritual heritage incorporated into a uniquely individual Kodály style. Kodály’s example was followed in every area of artistic and scholarly endeavors. In the process, we developed a nation of connoisseurs in every field of art. The cultural appetite of this small nation, be it in reading hooks, attending theaters, concerts, or exhibitions, is practically without parallel. In a yet larger context, Kodály’s influence is something that can not he measured by publications, artistic successes, and statistical data. He gave us one thing our nation needed the most during the years darkened by Nazi and Communist influences over our country. In times when there was ample reason for despair, Kodály provided us with a sense of pride and self-esteem. When wc seemed to be defeated by acts of war and aggression, our will to survive was helped by a deep belief in ourselves, and in our sense of destiny. Wc held on to our national cultural values to weather all adversity. Kodály not only provided spiritual leadership in those bleak periods, hut actively fought for specific educational-political issues, helped numerous individuals, and used his enormous prestige to steer officials towards the good of the Hungarian people. It was no accident, that in the turbulent days of the 1956 revolution, Kodály’s setting of the rousing patriotic Petőfi poem, the Nemzeti dal was performed as a symbol of the nation’s desire for freedom. He would have probably rejected the position of president in a newly formed republic, even if events would not have negated that possibility, but many people thought of him as the ideal choice at the time, and this testifies eloquently to the fact that the nation considered him far more than just a musical genius. Kodály became a symbol for everything that is noble and true in the Hungarian tradition. ABOUT THE AUTHOR— Dr. Louis Munkachy is a graduate of the Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest, majoring in violin and choral conducting. After graduation he worked in the choral field, and with his ensembles regularly performed on the Hungarian Radio Network, and toured extensively in Hungary and abroad. After the 1956 revolution he emigrated to the U.S.A. Here acquired a Ph.D. in musicology, and eventually became a faculty member at Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, where he is teaching mainly courses based on the Kodály method, as well as music theory. Dr. Munkachy is active as a choral composer, and has published in the field of musicology. He just completed a textbook on counterpoint. Dr. Munkachy is conducting one of the largest church choirs in Western Pennsylvania at St. Bernard Catholic Church of Mount Lebanon.
