Béla Bartók
Not just a composer, Béla Bartók deserves credit as one of the founders of the field of ethnomusicology, and as a researcher into the true origins of Hungarian folk music. Born in 1881 in Transylvania, Bartók studied piano and composition at the Royal Academy of Music in Budapest from 1899 to 1903. While at the Academy, he met Zoltán Kodály. The two men quickly became lifelong friends and coworkers. While initially influenced by Richard Strauss, the music of Claude Debussy became a larger influence upon Bartók as his career progressed. Influences were not limited to other classical composers: in 1908, Bartók and Kodály went into the countryside to research old Magyar folk melodies, and incorporated this research into their music. Contrary to what had been commonly supposed until then, Bartók and Kodály found that these melodies had little or nothing to do with Gypsy music, and instead were more closely connected to melodies from Oriental folk music, based upon pentatonic scales. In addition to a rich output of orchestral and chamber music, Bartók also produced an opera, Bluebeard's Castle, and two ballets: The Wooden Prince, and The Miraculous Mandarin. His works for piano and violin have been particularly influential upon other modern classical composers. Throughout, Bartók maintained a delicate balance between accessibility and complexity in his works, reflecting at once his pioneering modern spirit, and his respect for folk music. World War II forced Bartók to emigrate to the USA. After a difficult period of adjustment, Bartók resumed his rich musical output, which was sadly cut short by his death from leukemia on September 26, 1945. His Concerto for Orchestra, composed during these final years, remains as a legacy that continues to enthrall audiences and draw them into the world of modern classical music today.
