Interview with Sarolta Kodály

 Summary of the article:

Sarolta Kodály was interviewed on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the foundation of the Kodály Institute and the International Kodály Society.

She said that she had always hoped that it would be possible to restore the state of affairs as it had been in the time of Zoltán Kodály, since at that time the music education system did work as he had envisioned it.

Unfortunately he situation has changed, and the number of these “singing schools” – where the children had daily music lessons, and could experience their beneficial transfer effects in other subjects as well - has declined, even though we still know what should be done; Kodály had explained it properly, we wouldn’t need to invent it again.

The Kodály-method has been applied in many countries of the world with varying intensity. In Hungary it has backslided, yet Mrs Kodály is confident in connection with the initiative of the minister to bring back everyday singing in the schools. Nevertheless, this should only be introduced cautiously, first in those schools where there is demand for it and the circumstances are appropriate.

Then she mentioned several countries where the method is being successfully applied.

The creation of the Kodály Institute was the result of the fact that the leadership of Kecskemét wanted to do something for Kodály. There was a need for an institution of music pedagogy, so the Institute was founded in 1975.

The whole text of the interview can be read in Hungarian here.