Molnár, Antal

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Molnár, Antal

Molnár, Antal, distinguished Hungarian musicologist and composer; b. Budapest, Jan. 7, 1890; d. there, Dec. 7, 1983. He was a pupil in composition of Herzfeld at the Budapest Academy of Music (1907–10). He was a violisi in the Waldbauer String Quartet (1910–13) and the Dohnányi-Hubay Piano Quartet (1915–17). After teaching music history and solfège at the Budapest Music School (1912–18), he was a prof, at the Budapest Academy of Music (1919–59), where he taught courses in music history, theory, solfège, and chamber music. In 1914 he received the Franz Joseph Prize, in 1957 the Kossuth Prize, and in 1970 was made an Eminent Artist by the Hungarian government.

Writings

(all publ. in Budapest):A zenetörténet szelleme (The Spirit of the History of Music; 1914); Bartók Béla—táncjátéka alkalmából (Béla Bartók—On the Occasion of His Ballet; 1917); Az európai zene története 1750-ig (History of European Music Until 1750; 1920); Bach és Händel zenéjének lelki alapjai (Spiritual Basis of Bach’s and Handel’s Music; 1920); Bartók Két elégiájának elemzése (Two Eagles: An Analysis; 1921); A zenetörténet: Szociológiája (The Sociology of Music History; 1923); Az uj zene (New Music; 1925); Az uj magyar zene (The New Hungarian Music; 1926); Bevezetés a zenekulturába (Introduction to Musical Culture; 1928); Bevezetés a mai muzsikába (Introduction to Contemporary Music; 1929); Fizika és muzsika (Physics and Music; 1930); A gyermek és a zene (The Child and Music; 1931); A zenetörténet megvilágitása (Light on Musical History; 1933); Zeneesztétika és szellemtudomány (Musical Aesthetics and “Geisteswissenschaft”; 1935); A ma zenéje (Music Today; 1936); Az óvodáskoru gyermek zenei nevelése (Musical Education in the Nursery School; 1936); Kodály Zoltán (1936); Zeneesztétika (Musical Aesthetics; 1938); Népszerii zeneesztétika (Popular Musical Aesthetics; 1940); Az uj muzsika szelleme (The Spirit of the New Music; 1948); Bartók müvészete, emlékezésekkel a müvész életére (The Art of Bartók with Reminiscences of his Life; 1948); Repertórium a barokk zene történetéhez (Repertory of the History of Baroque Music; 1959); Irások a zenéről (Writings on Music; 1961); A Léner- vonósnégyes (The Léner Quartet; 1968); A zeneszerző világa (The World of the Composer; 1969); Gyakorlati zeneesztétika (Practical Musical Aesthetics; 1971); Magamrólmásokról (On Myself—On Others; autobiography; 1974).

Works

dramatic:Savitri (1912). ORCH . :Grotesque March (1914); Cello Concerto (1916); Hungarian Dances (1917); Operetta Music (1920); Budapest, overture (1921); Past and Present for Violin and Orch. (1923); Suite (1925); Variations on a Hungarian Theme (1928); Hungarian Comedy Overture (1928); Kuruc Music for 4 Tárogatós and Chamber Orch. (1936); Overture to a Comedy (1948); Harp Concerto (1952). chamber: Various works, including piano pieces and organ music. Vocal: Sacred and secular pieces; folk song arrangements.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis Mclntire