1) The Influence of Folk Music in Bela Bartok's Compositions.

On the evening of September 17th Agnes Kory, the founder-director of the Bela Bartok Centre for Musicianship, gave an illustrated talk with musical examples on the influences of folk music in Bela Bartok's compositions. The ornate reception room of the Hungarian Cultural Centre in Covent Garden was a beautiful and fitting environment to house such a pure concept as permeated the lecture: Bartok's words "Only from the clear springs".

Agnes proceeded to describe Bartok's extensive ethnomusicological research into folk music from Hungary, Slovakia and Romania and the different ways it could be used to influence "art song". These concepts at once became filled with the mysterious power of music when small melodic ideas or scales derived from folk music were sung by a choir from the BBCM followed each time by a piece for solo piano or duo violins which showed the musical idea woven into a complete musical form. Finally, these folk influences were revealed in larger works by Bartok such as "Bluebeard's Castle" and "Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta".

Bartok began his musical field trips in 1905 during the summer holidays whilst he was a tutor at the Budapest Royal Academy of Music. With heavy travelling equipment he would visit villages and encourage the locals to sing or play the "old songs" which he would transcribe. In this way he collected over 7,000 folk melodies which he transcribed and classified. In addition he classified songs in existing transcriptions: thus he classified over 10,000 Hungarian folk songs. Pure passion alone was his primary motivation, as from the 40 years in total during which he collected, wrote and published these musicological studies he was only paid a salary for 8 years. In his ethnomusicological work Bartok was supported by Zoltan Kodaly with whom he also shared the teaching principle that singing should come before instrumental playing.

Bartok theorised three ways that folk songs could influence art song:

1. Basing the work on the folk melody :
   a) Presenting it or changing it slightly and adding an accompaniment.
   b) The folk music acting as a motive.
2. Imitation of folk music i.e. using the intervals, modes, free treatment of triads.
3. The composition being pervaded by the atmosphere of folk music.

During Agnes' presentation these ideas were illustrated by melodic ideas sung by the BBCM choir without rehearsal but by Agnes using the Kodaly handsign method of "sol-fa" and these motives or melodic ideas were then performed in Bartok's arrangement by very young and musically sensitive BBCM students.

To illustrate the first point, the pieces and performers were as follows:
No. 1 from For Children (Children At Play), Hannah Harley piano
No. 2 from For Children (Children's Song), Sophia Dignam piano
No. 2 from 44 Duos (Maypole Dance), Sophia Dignam and Matthew Gold violins
No. 3 from 44 Duos (Menuetto), Daniel Weegmann and Alice Butcher violins
No. 5 from 44 Duos (Slovakian Song), Sophia Dignam and Matthew Gold violins
No. 6 from 44 Duos (Hungarian Song), Daniel Weegmann and Alice Butcher violins

The second point was illustrated with two of the many modes used in folk music:

1. the mixolydian mode which in the key of C would be C_D_E_ F _G_A_Bb_C
2. "The Bartok Scale" which in the key of C would be C_D_E_Fsharp_G_A_Bb_C

Listening to excerpts from "Bluebeard's Castle" Agnes showed how the so called Bartok scale as well as other modal and pentatonic scales, pentatonic cadences and rhythmic formulas from folk music were used by Bartok. Agnes also showed how "Bluebeard's Castle" opened with a melody strongly influenced by a Hungarian folk melody.

In "Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta", the first movement theme was shown to have changing time signatures in every bar similar to Rumanian Christmas Carols which Bartok had collected. The second movement also featured such 'colinda' rhythms. The theme of the third movement had close parallels to a folk song lament and the movement also featured a 'hora lunga' type formless melody and rhythm that were a feature of folk music that Bartok had collected. The rhythms of the fourth movement have influences of the six syllable lines of Hungarian folk song lyrics.

Thus a listener of the rich and lively music of Bela Bartok was able to catch a glimpse of "the clear Springs" from which it came. Many thanks to Agnes for her extensive research!

Seanine Joyce
Royal Academy of Music London and BBCM adult class

2) Audience reception and acknowledgements:

Audience reception of our Bartok presentation was mixed. Though the majority of the full capacity audience (of 65 people) was delighted with the content of the evening, there were some critical comments too. Everybody (including myself) was delighted with the impromptu BBCM mini choir and with the prepared performances of the Bartok pieces from For Children, Microcosmos and Duos for Two Violins. Some people felt that the actual material presented as well as the length of the evening should have been shortened: one and a half hour without a break (after a delicious but heavy glass of Hungarian vine) proved too much for some of the participants. Indeed, an experienced music lover said that in such a warm room we should have had a proper break half way through. Some of the audience (in particular the musicologists) were taken back by the numerous aural examples without any visual aid (making thus the presentation both informal but also hard work for the listener) though BBCM students and ex-students (as well as some other members of the audience) were able to comprehend and enjoy. Indeed; Judith (a BBCM mother) was particularly delighted that within one hour and a half, the content of possibly a week long intensive course was presented (though she would have liked to hear more about the influence of the lament on Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta). Judith has also pointed out that our presentation of the Bartok scale in four-part polyphony has thrown a new light on Bartok's musical world.

Below follows a selection of comments:

Peter F; informed music lover:
'Your examples about the deepseated Hungarian folk melody fragments in the work (Bluebeard) which you highlighted may convince musicologists or ethnomusicologists but for the average listener they are not recognisable'. 'It was in fact a very informative and interesting evening and your ability to pull songs out of your unsuspecting students was remarkable!'

Shay L; musicologist:
'I found that the presentation of Bartok's folkloristic influences through the playing of children was rounding up in a powerful way everything that he stood for.' 'The highlight of the evening for me was when you sang the acoustic /Bartok scale in four parts. I think the response of the audience was quite spontaneous. Without a doubt, the strong point of the presentation was the student concert. It illustrated quite well the folk sources. The Bluebeard / Music for Strings part had already exceeded the attention span of the audience, in my opinion. It is a pity, because I know this part was your original presentation, and perhaps the main point you wished to make.'

Peter F; ex-singer and artists' agent:
'Thanks for the insight! Thank you so much! That was very impressive and informative, and those children were so good.'

Sonia N; Royal Opera House:
'The tuning of the BBCM choir was very inspiring'

Agnes H; School of Oriental and African Studies:
'It was a very inspiring evening. I am now organising a choir for folk songs in SOAS'

Acknowledgements:

I am grateful to the Hungarian Cultural Centre for their generous hospitality (though I wish they would have spoiled us with their delicious wine AFTER and not before the presentation).

I would like to thank Ian Morrison for making us aware of a selection of CD-s with East European folk music. For information check www.passion-music.co.uk or www.passiondiscs.com, info@passion-music.co.uk, telephone: 01256 7707747.

At last but not least my most grateful thanks go to BBCM participants of the event: Rose Bungener, Paul Christensen, Ryan Davies, Sophia Dignam, Becky Galfalvi, Matthew Gold, Hannah Harley, Minerva Saner, Daniel Weegmann, Maggie Boyd, Alice Butcher and Sui Ming Chung.

Agnes Kory