Hungarian Folk Instruments

Hungarian Folk Musical Instruments

Kodály Zoltán wrote: „The Hungarians are not especially instrumental music-lovers. Even poor people rather listen to music, than play with their own hands. There fore compared to the richness of folk singing our instrumental music is moderate. However it is extremely significant because of the ancient traits preserved by instrumental music.”

People use self-made instruments (drum, Jaw harp, horn, pipe, bugle, recorder, zither, bag pipe, cymbalom, hurdy-gurdy) and manufactured ones (violin, clarinet, cymbalom, bugle, accordion, harmonica). Folk music and written music is played on both kind. Nowadays Hungarians prefer singing to playing musical instruments. While everybody participates in singing, they mainly listen to instrumental music, although the names of musicians and musical instruments emerging from Medieval records point to a well developed Hungarian instrumental culture in the remote past.

Folk musicians could not make a living from making music, „be cause people do no pay for what they make themselves”. At the beginning of the 20th century even a gypsy musician played only for food, drink, kerchiefs and 5 forints at weddings – all by himself. With the spreading of gypsy musicians, – who at first lived close to cities – the use of instruments declined further.

Russian archeologists excavated sterling silver objects in Staraya Riazan, made by Hungarians before the time of their settlement in the Carpathian-Basin, this is indicated by the designs and figures on the objects. The most significant piece is a bracelet, with the first known portrait of a Hungarian musician, who plays the zither while watch ing a dancing girl. This also proves that Hungarians were fond of instrumental music in ancient times.

WHAT DO HUNGARIANS PLAY ON THEIR INSTRUMENTS?

· Minstrel music

· Slow, sorrowful songs, mainly on recorders

· Songs appropriate for dancing

Hungarians love music and dance since ancient times. This heritage is demonstrated on the above mentioned bracelet. Chronicles write about the Hungarian soldiers’ visit to the monastery of St. Gallen in the 10th century. Their music and dancing was a memorable and joyful event for friar Heribald. The legend of St. Gellért mentions the Hungarian symphony: it is about a girl who is singing while handling a quern (11th century). In a codex it is written, that after the death of St. István (1038) it was prohibited in Hungary to dance, play the violin, pipes and drums. Medieval sources write about minstrels wandering round the country playing the violin, lyre, lute and pipe and accompany sorrowful and joyful songs with their instruments. The list goes on up to the 19th century herdsmen’s artwork.

American Hungarian Museum, No. 77, 2002