Hungarian Folk Music

Centrally located in the middle of Europe with a cultural heritage that reaches from central Asia to western Europe, Hungary sits at a musical crossroad that has fostered an exuberant music tradition. The pioneering fieldwork of composers/musicologists Zoltán Kodály and Béla Bartók-along with many others before and since-has left Hungarians a legacy of folk music recorded in massive folk music collections and treatises. Still somewhat fresh from the reign of the Soviet Union, Hungary has experience a surge in interest in folk music that includes new explorations of Hungarian music from within and without the borders.

The modern history of Hungary began with the migration of the Magyars from Asia in the ninth century A.D. Related to the Finns and Estonians, the Magyars (as Hungarians refer to themselves) have a distinct language from the surrounding countries and cultures. Their own culture bears more influence from Europe and the ancestral traditions, but Hungarians a fiercely proud of their Magyar heritage. In addition to the Magyars, there is a significant population of Roma (Gypsy) who have contributed more than their share to the musical heritage of the country.

Folk Legacy

Beginning in 1905 and 1906, Kodály and Bartók began an odyssey of collecting folk material that would last the next 50 years, influence countless musicologists in countries and wide, and help contribute to the birth of a new discipline-ethnomusicology. Their collections show a vibrant and exhaustive folk music repertoire. Even before their pioneering work, other Hungarian composers like Franz Liszt and Ernest von Dohnányi noted the power of folk music and incorporated it in their compositions. Their interest included not only Hungarian music, but also Hungarian Roma music and musicians as well. Rather than face persecution as elsewhere in Europe, the Roma musicians of Hungary were celebrated for their virtuosity and musicianship.

Though the Hungarians' ancestors migrated from Asia, Hungarian music has been most influenced by Western European music. In fact, for more than 100 years Hungary was politically joined to Austria, its western neighbor. The Christian church was established by A.D. 1000, and with it came its musical influence. Original drone-style melodies and solo bagpipers of early Hungary came to be replaced by Western European harmony, rhythm, form, and instrumentation.

Roma Influence

The Roma, often called Gypsies, have historically been an essential component of Hungarian music. First noted in Hungarian historical writings of the fourteenth century, Roma musicians became famous during the 1700s when they began to perform at social events for the upper classes of the country. Roma musicians helped develop verbunkos music during this time to entice recruits for the army, and it has remained as an enduring style to this day. Like most Roma styles, the verbunkos ensemble generally features two violins, a bass, and a cimbalom-a type of hammered dulcimer. Composed and performed almost exclusively by Roma musicians, this music genre combined dances and song lyrics that extolled the virtues of military life. Verbunkos appeared in classical works by Hungarian composers, such as heard in the Rákóczi March by Liszt.

Interestingly, when the Roma play for themselves, there is far more singing than playing. Much of their music is intended for the Roma only, and for this reason less is known about Roma community music. In general, though, there are many slows songs about the difficult life of the Roma mixed with joyous, upbeat dances.

Folk Music Today

Today Roma music and musicians are still at the heart of Hungarian music. Visit any city in Hungary and you will hear the sounds of Roma ensembles floating out of countless restaurants.

Hungarian folk music has made a strong comeback in recent decades. A type of folk music club called a táncház has sprouted throughout the country, mainly in cities and urban areas. These clubs strive to keep the folk music and dance of Hungary alive. Club members often travel to the countryside, and even to Hungarian communities in other countries, to collect new folk material to share and perform at the táncház. A typical ensemble at a táncház might include the two violins, a bass, cimbalom, as well as a clarinet and a cello. Like Kodály and Bartók before them, the musicians of the táncház movement are helping to keep a tradition vibrant while maintaining a cultural pride and distinct heritage.

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