Neveléstörténet, 2017 (14. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
2017 / 3-4. szám - Tanulmányok - Pethő Villő: Life-reformelements in Kodaly’s and his successors’music pedagogy
PETHŐ VILLŐ Life-reform elements in Kodály’s and his successors’ music pedagogy the customs known so far, and those who turned away from the busy and ever bigger cities searched for nature and new alternatives of a natural way of life. Therefore hiking became more and more popular and the issue of nature, environment and animal protection became more and more important. Garden suburbs and life-reform communas offered a more natural life and more natural living conditions, the results of nature therapy were rediscovered, vegetarian and anti-alcoholist communities were created. Increased interest could be observed in the values of national culture. Movements aiming at the emancipation of the community and of the individual, Including youth movements emerged. The reform pedagogy movement had an ambition to reform the world of education and school. The most decisive reform pedagogical conceptions emerged between 1900 and 1945: the kindergartens and the schools structured and functioning on the basis of Maria Montessori’s, Célestin Freinet’s, Rudolf Steiner’s, Helen Parkhurst’s and Peter Petersen’s conceptions. The changes that took place all over Europe reached the Hungary of the turn of the century as well. The industrial and social development of the region presented a specific duality: a developing urban world and an agricultural world lagging behind in which the peasant community, present in great numbers, was left out from the process of transition to bourgeoisie. The difference between the countryside and the capital was further extended by the fact that during the Bárczy era (between 1906 and 1918) Budapest was characterised by a strong economic development and an effervescent cultural and artistic life. Among the decisive intellectual workshops of the era figured the periodical entitled Nyugat (West) launched in 1908, the Sunday Circle constituted in 1915, as well as the artists’ camp of Gödöllő. The group composed of Hungarian fine artists established a genuine life-reform communa in Gödöllő, creating „the Hungarian Monte Verita”. (Németh, 2004. 85. p.) The unfolding of Hungarian reform pedagogy was largely influenced by the Child Study Movement marked by the name of László Nagy, and by numerous foreign reform pedagogical conceptions. The role of life-reform movements in Kodály’s walk of life Reading Kodály’s letters not only depicts the image of a polyhistor having a multi-faceted and classical culture, but also the image of an enthusiastic life-reformer. On the occasion of folk song collecting trips started in 1905 the music scientist wandering at magical places and sceneries writes fascinatedly about nature, landscapes and village people}(Legány, 1982. 16. p.) Moreover, he writes with 1 1 12 July 1905. Nagyszombat „I have naturally slept over there up on the hill, in the hay. I have had few more beautiful evenings in my life. The only thing that was more beautiful than the evening - the numerous flying firebugs are something wonderful - was the morning, when I woke up after 3 o’clock, the sky was all red above the forest glade.”