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The Philosophical Reasoning of the Kodály Concept

Kelly MeyerFoundations of Music Education I:

Philosophy and HistoryOctober 19, 2009

Kelly Meyer 2

During the twentieth century, Zoltán Kodály developed what would eventually

become known as the “Kodály Concept.” The concept, though, is not a method, as many

theorists and educators would believe, rather it is a pedagogical, historical, and

developmental philosophy. It is based on Kodály’s influences, socially, historically, and

personally. It is a combination of Kodály’s belief in past initiatives, passion for his home

country of Hungary, and his never-ending love for music that created the philosophical

groundwork. These pedagogical philosophies are what Jenö Ádám eventually turned into

a pedagogical approach.

“What is it about my work that really matters?”1 This quote by Bennett Reimer is

the underlying purpose of a philosophy of music education. A philosophy of music

education is a guideline for not only what should be included in a music curriculum, but a

philosophical position on the pedagogical aspects of music education. It is, then, a belief

in a skill set and a conviction for its transference. Phillip Alperson states that a

philosophy “helps us to comprehend and assess the presuppositions and content of our

understanding of the world.”2 A philosophy of music education, then, would “provide a

reasoned account of the goals, techniques, and values of music education in particular.”3

Through the twentieth century, there have been many philosophies of music education,

but few have equaled the temperament and unequivocal conviction of that of Zoltán

1 Bennett Reimer, A Philosophy of Music Education: Advancing the Vision, 3rd ed. (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2003), 4.

2 Philip Alperson, “What Should One Expect From a Philosophy of Music Education?” Journal of Aesthetic Education Vol. 25 No. 3 (1991) 218.

3 Ibid.

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Kodály. Like all philosophies, Kodály’s is influenced by historical events, prior

educational reform, and personal growth.

Prior to Kodály, Hungary had already established a precedent in the importance of

music education within the public schools. The groundwork had already been laid by

1777 by Empress Maria Theresa who issued “Ratio Educationis,” a law establishing

public education in Hungary and listed music as an important aspect of the curriculum.

The music taught, though, was German in content and was taught with German

techniques. Philosophies of music education were found in textbooks in 1871. Sámuel

Kohányi's Gyermekdalok (Children's Songs) contained mathematics and geography in the

contents as well as a “presentation of Aristolian philosophy; all the subjects are

introduced by means of rhymes according to principles established by Friedrich

Froebel.”4 Froebel, though, was a German educator and founder of the kindergarten

system. All of the songs used were of German origin but contained Hungarian words.5

The historical initiatives affected Kodály in that his own students were void of

their own musical heritage. Choksy states that “Since they [students] had grown up in the

aftermath of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, a time when only German and Viennese

music were considered ‘good’ music by the elite, the only exposure these students had

had to the vast wealth of Hungarian folk music was through the distorted and diluted

versions played by gypsies in cafes.”6 These popular songs were the only feeling of

nationalism Hungary experienced in the early part of the nineteenth century. The country

4 Lorna Zemke, The Kodály Concept: Its History Philosophy and Development (Delaware Water Gap, PA.: Shawnee Press, 1977), 3.

5 Ibid.

6 Lois Choksy, The Kodály Method (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1988), 3.

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lacked a popular view of folk songs with the exception of folk melodies incorporated into

popular music.

The vast wealth of Hungarian folk music was relatively hidden until research

began with Béla Vikár in the 1890s and concentrated on text and poetry. Kodály was

then introduced to the recordings of Vikár and influenced by not only Hungarian folk

song, but by Hungarian nationalism as well. Kodály began collecting folk song in 1905

with the encouragement of Vikár, and ultimately, the assistance of Béla Bartók, with the

purpose of exposing the pure Hungarian folk song. Eösze stated that at the conclusion of

Bartók and Kodály’s research, thirty-two years later, Kodály had eluded to a key function

of a culture’s folk music, and ultimately a cornerstone of his philosophy:

Like our language, our music is laconic and lapidary: a series of masterpieces,

small in size but of great weight; themes consisting of few notes, which, as though

they had been carved in stone, have weathered the storms of centuries. . . Broadly

speaking, Hungarian music is active rather than passive, an expression of the will

rather than of the feelings.7

It was during this time of research that Kodály realized the importance of being

Hungarian and the role that folk song played in creating and solidifying that identity.

Kodály was careful not to let nationalism be construed by chauvinism. He stated that

every culture has the same piano, but the techniques and the sounds differ from one

culture to the next.8

7 László Eösze, Zoltán Kodály His Life and Work (London: Collet’s Holdings, 1962), 56-57.

8 Zoltán Kodály, The Selected Writings of Zoltán Kodály (London: Boosey & Hawkes, 1974), 152.

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Zoltán Kodály became a respected ethnomusicologist, composer, and educator,

having spent a greater portion of his life on each. Kodály was also a pioneer in the area of

music education, having developed a growing concern “that his harmony students at the

Liszt Academy, whilst technically proficient, could not hear the music in their heads”9

This concern was only exemplified during one of his walks in the Buda Hills. Kodály

happened upon a group of student teachers and noted that the songs being sung were not

worth singing. Kodály then “threw himself into the cause of education with characteristic

fervour and tenacity.”10

Kodály’s goal was to not produce professional musicians, but to create a

musically literate Hungarian people who would understand and appreciate fine music, as

well as develop an increased awareness and love for their home country. “Kodály felt

deeply that it must be his mission to give back to the people of Hungary their own

musical heritage and to raise the level of musical literacy, not only in academy students

but also in the population as a whole.”11

Kodály realized a need and developed an initial objective in the desire to create a

musically literate nation in the peoples of Hungary. He began the movement with his

own students, many of whom grasped Kodály's objective and worked towards its end.

Kodály soon realized the compromise of educating pre-service teachers. He believed that

for music education to be successful, teachers must be well-trained. Kodály also realized

that in order for the youth to appreciate good music, they should be trained to do so.

Kodály once stated in an open letter to the minister of finance that “it is no use organizing

9 Cyrilla Rowsell, “The Kodály Approach,” para. 3.

10 Percy Young, “Kodály as Educationist.” Tempo No. 63 (1963) 38.

11 Lois Choksy, The Kodály Method (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1988), 3.

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youth concerts if the young people are not taught to listen.”12 In order for Kodály to

achieve such a goal as a musically literate nation, he held a firm belief that music should

belong to everyone. He ultimately held that responsibility to the schools; to not only

provide music education, as directed by the philosophies of Empress Maria Theresa and

Sámuel Kohányi, but to provide quality musical opportunities for the student. Kodály

wrote in the Civil Rights for Arts in Hungary:

Music education should become a subject that provides a key to music for

everybody. If the eternal treasury of music is to be opened with this key, it can be

done easily; however, if this opportunity is not desired-then it is lost. No one

should be deprived of music because their parents were too poor and thus unable

to provide music lessons.13

This belief in, or rather the responsibility of, the public educational system continued to

set the framework for the Kodály Concept.

Kodály posed two main objectives of his philosophy of music education: to

arouse a musical interest and to develop musical abilities.14 Based on these main

objectives, we are able to delineate Kodály’s philosophy into three general factors: Music

and Human Development, Folk Song and Music Education, and singing as the foundation

of the musical experience, each replete with ideologies and philosophies gathered through

his experiences.

12 Zoltán Kodály, Music Should Belong to Everyone: 120 Quotations From His Writings and Speeches (Budapest: International Kodály Society, 2002), 43.


14 Zoltán Kodály, “The University of Southern California Interviews”, Collection of Sister Lorna Zemke.

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The first factor, Music and Human development, is at the heart of Kodály’s

philosophy. After Kodály’s death, Mrs. Zoltán Kodály stated that it is “centered around

the realization that music plays a fundamental role in the development of man.”15 It was

Kodály’s belief that music was at the very core of the existence of man. Kodály held that

music, as an independent language, can not be accurately interpreted by another

language. Therefore, it is impossible to accurately write about music, just as it is

impossible for music to articulate logical notions which are expressed with language.

Kodály continually expressed his belief in the natural existence of music within the

human spirit. He writes:

The purpose of music is not that it should be judged, but that it should

become our substance. Music is a spiritual food for which there is no substitute;

he who does not feed on it will live in spiritual anaemia until death. There is no

complete spiritual life without music, for the human soul has regions which can

only be illuminated only by music.

The purpose of music is to understand better: to evolve and expand our

inner world. Legends of many peoples deem music to be of divine origin; thus,

when we have reached the boundaries of human understanding, music points

beyond, into a world that cannot be explored but merely guessed at.16

Kodály’s belief was that music must belong to everyone for it is a part of every person’s

natural existence.

15 Lorna Zemke, The Kodály Concept..Its History Philosophy and Development” (Delaware Water Gap, PA, Shawnee Press, 1977), 10.


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As the human develops, so does the musician. Kodály outlined four

characteristics of a good musician:

1. A well trained ear

2. A well trained intelligence

3. A well trained heart

4. a well trained hand.17

Kodály believed that all four characteristics must develop together. If a person

develops only their fingers, progress is slowed and the end result is less desirable.

It is interesting to note that only two of the four characteristics are outwardly associated

with music by the lay observer; a well trained ear, and a well trained hand. Kodály was

interested in developing the entire human just as music was intended to do and his

philosophy focused on child development learning, as opposed to subject discipline

learning. The subsequent methodology that followed Kodály’s philosophy was designed

to allow the student to develop an emotive response and an aesthetic appreciation for not

just music but for all things that encompass the child’s life. This comes from a

realization that it is not the notes on the page that make the sounds musical, rather it is the

emotional transference of the notes.

The second factor, folk song and music education, became key for Kodály's

thought processes during the time he spent researching Hungarian folk music. Not only

did Kodály realize the natural learning sequence on vocal predisposition of untrained

singers, he also became aware of the prideful disposition a society could incur from the

presence of music of its mother tongue.


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Folk song is based largely on a pentatonic framework, the same framework that is

natural for children. Kodály believed that, by observing the untrained singer, he could

distinguish the natural evolution of musical development. His observation, that singers

preferred certain intervals, led to the natural use of the pentatone. This is only after the

student had the prerequisite knowledge of sol, la, and mi. Joyce Jordan-Decarbo and Jo

Ann Nelson take into account Smithrim’s stance that the use of these three solfege

syllables are without tonal center.18 The use of the first three syllables does omit the tonic,

which is the next tone in the methodology, the fact that many folk songs are based on

these three syllables reinforces the philosophy of a natural learning sequence as well as

sustaining the belief of utilizing music of the student’s mother tongue.

Kodály concluded that “little children cannot accurately hear or reproduce half

steps; therefore, it was erroneous to begin music education with the diatonic or any

heptatonic scale.”19 The logical material, then, would be folk songs, although Kodály

specified that musical material must be from the child’s mother tongue; the student must

learn not only musical skills and appreciation, but also a history of the child’s homeland.

Dobszay contends that a fallacy occurs in the pedagogue’s perception of what

Kodály meant by using folk songs of the child’s mother tongue. Dobszay states that

Kodály “was not influenced merely by the fact that it was from ‘generally known’

melodies, from the naturally used ‘mother tongue’, thoroughly familiar to the child, that

we extract different kinds of musical knowledge.” Rather Kodály’s intention was to

18 Joyce Jordan-Decarbo and Jo Ann Nelson. (2002). Music and Early Childhood Education. In R. Colwell, C. Richardson, & M. McCarthy (Eds.), The new handbook of research on music teaching and learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 232.

19 Lorna Zemke, The Kodály Concept..Its History Philosophy and Development” (Delaware Water Gap, PA, Shawnee Press, 1977), 24.

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imbed the folk song, itself, as the mother tongue.20 However, Kodály was quite deliberate

in stating the former: “In music we possess a means not only for a general development

of the human soul but also for an education towards becoming Hungarians, a means that

cannot be replaced by any other subject. The . . . lack of music in our curriculum . . . is

gravely detrimental to the education of the nation, too.”21 Kodály goes on to say:

The kindergarten is not the place for music with an alien rhythm or an

alien melodic line, just as it is no place for a foreign language either. There is

plenty of time left for demonstrating the mazurka rhythm after we have

introduced the child to the many forms of Hungarian rhythm. Do not let us steal

other peoples’ songs, we have plenty of our own.22

In the same writing, Kodály stated that music transcribed for kindergarten contains a

melody that is not fresh; it is dry-and difficult as well.

Kodály went further and insisted that foreign music is not as detrimental to the

young child as poorly transcribed, or imitated folk music of the child’s homeland.

Kodály believed that poor folk music was detrimental in four ways:

1. They exclude tradition and do not supply the only possible foundation for an

awareness of Hungarian music to be developed later on.

2. By their alien elements they disturb the creation of pure musical concepts and

lead to a foreign musicality.

20 L. Dobszay, “The Kodály Method and its Musical Basis.” Studia Musicologica Academiae Scientiarium Hungaricae T. 14, Fasc. 1/4 (1972): 23-24.



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3. By their numerous rubbishy melodies they do not lead to good music but to

cheap trash.

4. They do not develop the power of musical comprehension to the highest

possible degree.23

Kodály believed that the earlier a child begins to learn, the more they will learn

and the more the will retain. Kodály initially stated that a child’s music education should

begin nine months before the birth of the child. He later said that a child’s music

education should begin nine months before the students mother is born,24 further

reinforcing the belief that music is spiritual food and a part of everyone’s natural

existence.

As the child grows, so does the natural processes of learning and retention.

Kodály noted that “recent psychology has set forth convincingly that the years between

three and seven are educationally more important than the later ones.”25 He goes on to

state that a person’s future is decided for their entire lifetime during this stage. The best

musical tool to use during the developmental process is the voice.

The final factor to Kodály’s philosophy is that the child should be trained to use

their natural instrument, the voice. Not only was the voice immediately available to any

student with the ability to speak and hear, but was the natural extension, the result of

music’s place within each human’s existence. Dobszay states that Kodály’s emphasis on


24`? Zoltán Kodály, “The University of Southern California Interviews”, Collection of Sister Lorna Zemke.


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singing is ground in his desire to train students to hear, internally, as well as externally.

Dobszay quoted Kodály as saying “The development of inner hearing is the final aim of

all musical professional study. Our every musical manifestation must be led by an inner

conception, hearing and imagination, and this is trained by singing: free singing without

any instrument is the true and profound school of musical abilities.”26

It was Kodály’s belief that a student should not be given an instrument until they

had been trained with complete control of the voice. Peter deVries states that this belief

is taken too literally. He believes that singing should not take the place of instrumental

learning, rather it should compliment the instrument. This was Kodály’s goal, that a

trained voice would compliment the learning of an instrument, but that the voice should

take precedence over the instrument:

It is evident from performance whether the person understands the music

he/she is playing. Most people play as though they had learned a foreign text of

which they do not understand a word. Those who have learned to sing first, and

only then to play an instrument, will catch the ‘melos’ of any music much more

quickly.27

Up to this point, Kodály’s philosophies were without any methodology. According to the

sequence that followed, instrumental instruction would occur at a time that had allowed

the child adequate training with his or her voice. The argument of singing having

replaced instrument technique is then a mute point.

26 L. Dobszay, “The Kodály Method and its Musical Basis,” Studia Musicologica Academiae Scientiarium Hungaricae T. 14, Fasc. 1/4 (1972): 25.


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Jenö Ádám, a former student of Kodály’s attended a seminar in Saarbrüchen

where Ádám was introduced to the moveable do system and the Curwen hand signals.

These techniques were used in conjunction with rhythmic syllables adapted from Galin,

Paris, and Cheve. The result was a formulation of Kodály’s philosophical beliefs in the

form of a learning sequence and methodology by Ádám and Kodály. The Kodály

method, as it is erroneously labeled, is actually the brainchild of Ádám, who took the

philosophy, gave it praxis, and tested it within his own classrooms first. Kodály specified,

at the time of the sequence writing, that the sequence is a guideline. The philosophies

behind the sequence are not, they are absolute, but the sequence should be adapted to

various cultures, traditions, and contexts as would allow the greatest possible advantage

for the student.

Kodály’s belief that music should belong to everyone is abundantly clear in the

high level of detail he has given to his philosophical ideals. What has become known as

the “Kodály Method” is known and practiced worldwide, but to be completely successful

with the pedagogical sequence, one must be familiar with the philosophies behind the

method. One must also understand that the influences behind the philosophies are social,

historical, and personal to Zoltán Kodály, who wrote in his article, Music Education in

Hungary, “It is our firm conviction that mankind will live the happier when it has learnt

to live with music more worthily. Whoever works to promote this end, in one way or

another, has not lived in vain.”28

During the twentieth century, Zoltán Kodály developed what would eventually

become known as the “Kodály Concept.” The concept, though, is not a method, as many


Kelly Meyer 14

theorists and educators would believe, rather it is a pedagogical, historical, and

developmental philosophy. It is based on Kodály’s influences, socially, historically, and

personally. It is a combination of Kodály’s belief in past initiatives, passion for his home

country of Hungary, and his never-ending love for music that created the philosophical

groundwork. These pedagogical philosophies are what Jano Ádám eventually turned into

a pedagogical approach.

Bibliography

Kelly Meyer 15

Philip Alperson, “What Should One Expect From a Philosophy of Music Education?” Journal of Aesthetic Education Vol. 25 No. 3 (1991): 215-242.

Rowsell, Cyrilla, “The Kodály Approach,” British Kodály Academy, http://www.britishkodalyacademy.org/kodaly_approach_kodály-experience_cyrilla-rowsell.htm (accessed Oct. 10, 2009).

Choksy, Lois. The Kodály Context: Creating and Environment for Musical Learning. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1981.

_____. The Kodály Method. 2 ed. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1988.

deVries, Peter. “Reevaluating Common Kodály Practices.” Music Educator’s Journal Vol. 88 No. 3 (2001): 24-27.

Dobszay, L.. “The Kodály Method and its Musical Basis.” Studia Musicologica Academiae Scientiarium Hungaricae T. 14, Fasc. 1/4 (1972): 15-33.

Eosze, Laszlo. Zoltán Kodály His Life and Work. Translated by Istvan Farkas and Gyula Gulyas. London: Collet’s Holdings, 1962.

Jordan-Decarbo, J., & Nelson, J. A. (2002). Music and early childhood education. In R. Colwell, C. Richardson, & M. McCarthy (Eds.), The new handbook of research on music teaching and learning (pp. 584-603). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Jorgensen, Estelle. “Philosophy and the Music Teacher: Challenging the Way We Think.” Music Educator’s Journal Vol. 76 No. 5 (1990): 17-23.

Kodály, Zoltán. Music Should Belong to Everyone: 120 Quotations From His Writings and Speeches (Budapest: International Kodaly Society, 2002).

Kodály, Zoltán. The Selected Writings of Zoltán Kodály. Edited by Ferenc Bonis, Zenemukiado Vallalat. London: Boosey & Hawkes, 1964.

_____. The University of Southern California Interviews. Collection of Lorna Zemke, Silver Lake College. Manitowoc, WI. 1966.

Noce, William. “Kodály in College.” Music Educator’s Journal Vol. 76 No. 4 (1989): 4.

Reimer, Bennett. A Philosophy of Music Education: Advancing the Vision. 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2003.

Veblen, Kari, & Bengt Olsson. (2002). Community Music: Toward an International Overview. In R. Colwell, C. Richardson, & M. McCarthy (Eds.), The new handbook of research on music teaching and learning (pp. 730-753). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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Young, Percy. “Kodály as Educationist.” Tempo No. 63 (1963): 37-40.

Zemke, Lorna. The Kodály Concept: Its History, Philosophy, and Development. Delaware Water Gap, PA.: Shawnee Press, 1977.

Zoltán Kodály; The Educator. (2004). Frenec Liszt Academy of Music: Zoltán Kodály Pedagogical Institute of Music, Kecskemet, Hungary. Retrieved February 24, 2008 from http://www.kodaly-inst.hu/kodaly/balszoveg1.htm

Jordan-Decarbo, Joyce and Jo Ann Nelson. (2002). Music and Early Childhood Education. In R. Colwell, C. Richardson, & M. McCarthy (Eds.), The new handbook of research on music teaching and learning (pp. 210-242). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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