In the early twentieth century, Bela Bartók and his circle argued for a new definition of "Hungarianness," one which centered around folksong rather than the "Hungarian-Gypsy" style relied upon by Franz Liszt and his contemporaries. This book traces the historical process that defined the conventions of Hungarian-Gypsy style, and reveals through this decades-long debate what it meant to be Hungarian, European, and modern.
This edited volume examines manele (sing. manea), an urban Romanian song-dance ethnopop genre that combines local traditional and popular music with Balkan and Middle Eastern elements. The genre is performed primarily by male Romani musicians at weddings and clubs and appeals especially to Romanian and Romani youth. It became immensely popular after the collapse of communism, representing for many the newly liberated social conditions of the post-1989 world. But manele have also engendered much controversy among the educated and professional elite, who view the genre as vulgar and even “alien” to the Romanian national character. The essays collected here examine the “manea phenomenon” as a vibrant form of cultural expression that engages in several levels of social meaning, all informed by historical conditions, politics, aesthetics, tradition, ethnicity, gender, class, and geography.
This volume explores a selection of significant and topical elements from the vast amount of Romanian folkloric and mythological material. It sheds light on the mythical-ritualistic aspects of three complex calendar holydays (specifically The Lads of Brașov, Călușarii, and Sânzienele), whose ritualistic sequences, laden with mythical-symbolical reminiscences, were lost during the Communist period and are known today thanks to their spectacular features. Such aspects include demonic mythical beings (such as Iele, Rusalii, Știma Apei, The Woodwoman, and Strigoi) that define the collective imaginary; significant myths that have found their artistic expression in fairytales and legends; and the role of women in traditional Romanian society.
Szekely's story - his childhood in rural Hungary, his rise to fame as a concert violinist, his involvement in the new music movement in prewar Europe, and his work with the Hungarian String Quartet - unfolds through the violinist's own recollections and those of his wife, Mientje, and other longtime colleagues. Bartok's profound influence on Szekely's life and work reveals itself through Szekely's voice and in correspondence. Szekely and Bartok: The Story of a Friendship provides an intimate view of concert life in mid-twentieth-century Europe among such artists as Ravel, Dohnanyi, Hindemith, Milhaud, Honegger, Castlenuovo-Tedesco, Kodaly, and others. The book contains previously unpublished Bartok letters, Szekely's firsthand accounts of Bartok's interpretive preferences, comprehensive listings of Szekely's compositions and first performances, and the complete story of the Hungarian String Quartet from its founding in Budapest in 1935 to the final concert at Dartmouth College in 1972. From 1973 to 1993, Szekely's role as violinist-in-residence at the Banff Centre in Canada was the culmination of a long and distinguished career, and helped establish the institution as a world center for chamber music study. Written from personal recollections and original documents and research, this book is destined to occupy a prominent position in the chamber music literature.
A collection of 3 classic Hungarian folk songs originally published in 1908. Songs include: 1. The Peacock, 2. At the Jánoshida Fairground, 3. White Lily. Classic Folk Music Collection constitutes an extensive library of the most well-known and universally-enjoyed works of folk music ever composed, reproduced from authoritative editions for the enjoyment of musicians and music students the world over.
This is an extensive work on international folk dancing as practiced in the United States. It tells how to do the hopak, czardas and the bamboo pole dance; plan an international folk dance program; do the little finger hold and the hambo swing. International Folk Dancing U.S.A. presents historical vignettes on pioneer folk dance leaders; instructions for 180 dances from 30 countries; contributions from 60 folk dance authorities; easy-to-follow dance step descriptions; a Glossary of folk dance terms; many helpful illustrations.
This set of six pieces is based on folk song melodies and dance forms from Transylvania which was annexed to Romania in 1920. The contrasting melodies were originally for violin or shepherd's flute, but the unusual harmonies are original with Bartók. The performance time for the complete set of dances is approximately 4 minutes, 15 seconds.
One of the greatest challenges during the enlargement process of the European Union towards the east is how the issue of the Roma or Gypsies is tackled. This ethnic minority group represents a much higher share by numbers, too, in some regions going above 20% of the population. This enormous social and political problem cannot be solved without proper historical studies like this book, the most comprehensive history of Gypsies in Romania. It is based on academic research, synthesizing the entire historical Romanian and foreign literature concerning this topic, and using lot of information from the archives. The main focus is laid on the events of the greatest consequence. Special attention is devoted to aspects linked to the long history of the Gypsies, such as slavery, the process of integration and assimilation into the majority population, as well as the marginalization of Gypsies, which has historic roots. The process of emancipation of Gypsies in the mid-19th century receives due treatment. The deportation of Gypsies to Transnistria during the Antonescu regime, between 1942-1944, is reconstructed in a special chapter. The closing chapters elaborate on the policy toward Gypsies in the decades after the Second World War that explain for the latest developments and for the situation of this population in today's Romania.
This book brings together a selection of scholars to show the range of approaches in circulation at the time the wall between East and West came down. After the introductory chapters, the chief divisions of the volume are drawn according to musical genre - piano, chamber, stage, vocal and orchestral - and internally organized according to chronolgy of creation.
