Kodály, Zoltán

(1882-1967)

Hungarian composer, folk music collector, and music educator, born in Kecskemét, and educated in Budapest.

 Beginning in about 1905 he and the Hungarian composer Béla Bartók collected and popularized Hungarian folk music, which until then had never been the subject of systematic musicological research. In his compositions Kodály quoted or imitated the forms, harmonies, rhythms, and melodic shapes of Hungarian folk music.

His finest works include the Psalmus Hungaricus (1923), for tenor, chorus, and orchestra; the opera Háry János (1926); Dances of Galánta (1933), for orchestra; and the Missa Brevis (1945). After 1945 he developed a system of music education for the public schools of Hungary.

His method, which emphasizes the singing of songs either borrowed from or based on folk music, has been adopted by schools in many countries.