Speaking the Same Language: How the Kodály Method Promotes Disciplinary Literacy

Educators are consistently asked to show their students’ literacy levels; however, the traditional definition of literacy is typically limited to a strict interpretation of reading and writing using text rather than notation. Disciplinary literacy expands the definition of literacy, allowing music educators to teach disciplinary-specific symbology. This article describes how the Kodály concept helps students process sound into symbol, which provides students with specific literacy strategies to convert sound into developmentally appropriate visual representations.

The Kodály Concept in the United States: Early American Adaptations to Recent Evolutions

Zoltán Kodály, a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, and music educator, is widely known for his philosophical and pedagogical contributions to music education. The purpose of this article was to trace the development of the Kodály movement in the United States from its implementation in the 1960s to present day. Questions that guided the research were (1) Who was Zoltán Kodály and what was his philosophy of music education? (2) Who were some of the American music educators who initially implemented the Kodály concept in the United States and what role did they play in the spread of the concept? and (3) How has the Kodály concept evolved in the United States? Following an overview of Kodály and his philosophy, the contributions of Mary Helen Richards, Denise Bacon, Lois Choksy, and Sr. Lorna Zemke during the early years of the Kodály movement are discussed. The evolution of the Kodály concept is discussed in relation to the work of Lois Choksy, Ann Eisen and Lamar Robertson, John Feierabend, Susan Brumfield, and Mícheál Houlahan and Philip Tacka. A conclusion includes suggestions for the advancement of the Kodály concept, including the need for research on the methods of the approach.

A reply to the article by Bernarr Rainbow, ‘The Kodály Concept and its Pedigree’

It is surprising that Mr Rainbow, a Curwen disciple, should offer to write on Kodály's Concept. He did not write his article on this subject, of course, but only dealt with some of the techniques used by Kodály educators to make Kodály's ideas work in practice. Although this fact in itself reveals that the writer cannot differentiate between Kodály's programme and technical means, the title of his article is still misleading, since no one wishing to study the Concept will learn about it from Mr Rainbow's account.

The Kodály Concept and its Pedigree

As rumours of a new method of teaching music introduced in Hungary by Zoltán Kodály began to spread early in the 1960s a few uncertain attempts were made to introduce it in English schools. Progress was impeded by language problems: the provision of English song texts to fit Hungarian rhythms and a scarcity of background information in English both proved handicaps. The appearance in translation of F. Sándor's compendium, Music Education in Hungary, in 1966 eventually extended our knowledge of the new method; and the details of the origin of the Kodály Concept it contained were naturally accepted as authentic.This article examines those claims – since found to be based on questionable evidence – and urges publication of a more reliable account.

The Kodály Concept of Music Education

The recent issue in this country of a 36-page textbook entitled The Kodály Concept of Music Education by Helga Szabó, accompanied by a set of three LP records, prompts me to examine the place such a scheme might have in the schools of this country. Kodály's ‘Choral Method’ has of course been available in this country for some years, and is now in the process of being reissued with new and improved texts for English speaking children by Geoffry Russell Smith. Mme Szabó's clear and vivid exposition will help to increase appreciation of its value. The book and records trace the use of the method from pre-school music activities to music college level, and the emphasis throughout is squarely placed on the development of aural ability through the use of the voice and solfa. The first musical example, on Side A, is of a two-year-old Hungarian singing a nursery rhyme; the last, on Side F, is of Kodály's Hymn of Zrinyi, sung by the choir of the Central Ensemble of the Ironworkers' Union. Each record is adequately banded, so that it is easy to locate any example, and in addition to the detailed commentary in the text book, each example is announced helpfully before it is performed. The quality of recording is lively, although somewhat marred by echo and pre-echo, and the stereophonic balance is realistic, especially in the circular games on Side A.