On Kodály's Children's Choruses [antikvár]

EDITOR'S PBEPACE The following study of Lajos Bárdos first appeared in the 1972 and 1973 issues of the journal 'Az ének-zene tanítása' /The Teaching of Singing and Music/ in seven parts. In 1974 the paper was included in the Bárdos TOlume 'TÍz újabb írás' /Ten Recent Studies/ published by Zenemökiadó /Editio Musica/. Budapest. The present translation is based on the text of the latter edition. Por the si^;gestion of Professor Bárdos, however, some small changes were made in the text and Chapter IV of the original /Texts - prosody, verse foims/ was left out. The understanding of this chapter requires an efficient Imowledge of the Hungarian language. On the other hand, the study was completed with an Appendix. It contains those Hungarian foUisongs referred to by the author which are arranged neither in Kodály's singing exercises nor in the choral pieces dealt with in the present study. The data of Bicinia Hungarica, the other two-part exercises /II, 66, 55, etc./ and Tricinia are given on the basis of the English /Boosey and Hawfces/ editions. To the thorough exspination of the choral pieces, however, the Hungarian edition of Kodály's Children's and Pemale Choruses /Gyermek- és nőikarok. Zenemukiadó, Budapest, 1972/ is indispensable. The titles of choral pieces published in the volume were written only in Hungeirian in the English text. Some of the pieces were published in English by Oxford University Press or Boosey and Ilawkes. As not all of i r, them appeared in English and some have several versions, we had to use the líungarian titles to ensure correct reference. The list of titles with English translations can be found on peiges vii-ix. In the paper the reader will meet terns of music theory which are not generally known or Professor Bárdos coined them himself. The puthor, who was Kodály's disciple in composition, is an outstanding choral composer, conductor, and teacher. At the same time, he is a great personality of Hungarian musicology. This paper of Bárdos, published for the 6th International Kodály Seminar, gives only a sample of the English volume which will appear by the end of next year on the occasion of the author's 80th birtliday. The volume will comtain several important essays on the music of Liszt, Bartók, Kodály, and on other topics. H, ^