Bartók Béla, ifj.: Chronicles of Béla Bartók's Life (Budapest, 2021)
After World War I (1920–1921)
AFTER WORLD WAR I (1 920-1 921) 1921 1921 Bartók is also taking part in the reviving concert life, he is making appearances more and more frequently. 7 January - Composers evening at the Music Academy. The Waldbauer String Quartet play String Quartet No. 2 and the early Piano Quintet with Bartok, Ernő Dohnányi performs Burlesque No. 2 (A Little Tipsy), one of the 4 Dirges, Bear Dance, and Evening in Transylvania. Even Zsigmond Móricz and his wife listen to the concert, although otherwise not often attending such events. 8 January - The Bartoks write a long letter to the widowed Mrs Béla Bartok in Pozsony, sending it by Flóra Selevér via Vienna. They are satisfied with the great success of the previous days concert. Of the reporters Mrs Bartok dwells especially on 22-year-old Aladár Tóth, an enormously talented musician, working for the Üj Nemzedék (New Generation). Bartok on the other hand gives an account of the steadily increasing western appreciation; he cites from Tempo, the paper writing with the “warmest tone”: “ Béla Bartok is among the leading ten composers. Composer hardly ever reaches such perfection”, and from Sackbut of London “with decidedly sensational contents”, adding: “they attach more importance to Hungarian art music than either to the Polish or the Czech, not to mention the Southern Slaw or Romanian ones”. - In the evening Mr and Mrs Bartok attend Ernő Dohnányi ’ s concert. Artist Ervin Voit (Bartoks nephew who had already made his bust in 1902) paints Bartoks portrait, commissioned by József Lukács. 9 January - At first Bartok sits for Ervin Voit in their flat. (After the picture by Vedrődy in 1905 and the one by Berény in 1913, this is the third and last painting for which Bartok posed. József Lukács bought the picture, and in 1923 gave it to Béla Bartok Jnr as a present.) 10 January - The Bartoks probably listen to the premiere of Kodály ’s Two Songs at the concert of the Philharmonics. 197
