Bartók Interpretation and National Music
Bartók Interpretation and National Music

Summary/Abstract: There is a popular notion that performers have more knowledge of and sympathy with composers who are their fellow nationals. Put simply "Bartók is only truly understood by Hungarian musicians". Péter Eötvös was asked recently whether people abroad think of his music as Hungarian, and what he thought of his native musical idiom. He said that, right to this day, musical style still develops according to nations and languages, and that you can hear very quickly where a contemporary work was written. He also mentioned that Bartók is often conducted strangely abroad because he is not understood nor is his idiom understood. Eötvös also said that the articulation of the Hungarian language, the patterns in Hungarian folk-songs and Bartók's music are resources that create a detectable community among modern Hungarian composers, to which Kurtág, Ligeti and he himself belong. To perform Bartók authentically do you have to know Hungarian? [...] Zoltán Kocsis Talks to Zoltán Farkas.

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