International dissemination of Zoltán Kodály’s concept of musical education

Abstract

Zoltán Kodály’s music educational concept is regarded as one of the most influential music pedagogies worldwide. In 2016, the UNESCO inscribed the «Safeguarding of the Folk Music Heritage by the Kodály Concept» as an Intangible Cultural Heritage. While the international literature on Kodály’s lifework, and his educational concept within it, is enormous, in non-Hungarian literature little has been written about how Hungarians reacted to the worldwide interest in this important figure. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to outline how Hungarian music educators promoted Kodály’s concept and the music education based on it, through international conferences, symposia, and programmes in Hungary that were held for the foreign visitors. The time-period under scrutiny is limited to 1930-1980. Three main topics are discussed in this article. First, it summarises how the work of Kodály and his followers changed Hungarian musical education between 1930-1960, and how it subsequently gained international acclaim in the second half of the 20th century. Secondly, it focuses on the two summer courses in Hungary (Danube Bend Summer Art University and the International Kodály Seminar), as well as on the Zoltán Kodály Pedagogical Institute of Music in Kecskemét, that were offered as a result of the international interest awakened by his work. From 1968, Kodály’s institutes and Kodály’s societies were created abroad, and in 1975, the International Kodály Society was founded with its head office in Hungary. The third topic focuses specifically on the introduction and development at an international level of these societies in their initial years.

Key words: History of music education, Zoltán Kodály, Kodály Concept, Hungary.