1. Kodály Approach Principles of Music Education
Presented to you by:
Katelyn Cross, Jiny Kim, Marybeth McGreevy and Jamie Roscoe

2. Kodály: The Method and the Man
*Zoltán Kodály was born in 1882
*Throughout his lifetime, Kodály, became well known for his various roles in music as an ethnomusicologist, composer, educator and advocate of music education for children.
*Kodály received his education at the Academy of Music and the University of Budapest.

3. Kodály: The Method and the Man
*Along with his colleague, Bela Bartók, Kodály spent a significant amount of time accumulating Hungarian folk songs, on which his method is based.
*Kodály spent thirty-three years of his life lecturing about composition, harmony, counterpoint, and orchestration at the Academy of Music in Budapest.
*As a composer, Kodály is well known for: the Háry Janós Suite, Dances of Marosszek, Dances of Galanta, and Summer Evening.

4. Kodály: The Method and the Man
*His views eventually caught on, and Kodály traveled throughout Hungary, broadening musical culture though group singing.
*Kodály revived the Hungarian choral movement through his vocal compositions
*In the 1930's, he founded a youth singing movement, which led to drastic changes in elementary music education.

5. Kodály: The Method and the Man
The Hungarian government increased funding for the music program in the schools, and as a result, the program became more intensive.
Students began their musical training beginning in Kindergarten, first with rhythm training, and later as they progressed, singing and instrumental instruction.

6. Key Principles
"The Kodály approach is a vocal approach to music literacy: the ability to read, hear, and think music.“
“Music Belongs to everyone.”
a.) Instruction begins in early childhood with an introduction to folk/art:
-singing by wrote is introduced before reading and notating
-content and sequence of curriculum come from childhood
musical development and literature
-focuses on solfège signals and rhythm syllables
-approach is very systematic, which results in early musical literacy

7. Key Principles b.) Kodály Sequence of Learning: 1.) rhythm 2.) singing
3.) instrumental

8. Key Principles c.) Kodály Methods:
-use of the pentatonic folksongs to introduce singing
-use of the "Tonic Sol-fa" approach (aka. solfège) to introduce sight singing
-solfège hand signs
Music Reading:
Fa and Ti are half-steps, which are too hard for the wee folk to sing in tune
Letter names of notes are learned along with the solfège
Major, minor and modes are introduced later, after the pentatonic scales

9. Key Principles
-rhythmic system of mnemonic syllables (originated from the original French Cheve system)
-rhythm is presented from the very beginning
-notated with just stems, no note heads
eg. ta = quarter note
ti ti = eighth notes
ti ri ti ri = sixteenth notes

10. Key Principles -stresses use of a capella singing
-intense ear training to develop “inner hearing”
-the capacity to think musical sounds without hearing or voicing them
-relative and/or movable Do:
-tonic acts as "aural anchor" for dominant and subdominant because it's easier to hear “Do”

11. Key Principles
“The use of good music is vital to the life of every person.”
“good” meaning art music of the European tradition and it’s folk or traditional origins
Eg. -Pentatonic Hungarian scales
-Renaissance a capella vocal music

12. “Chatter with the Angels”
Soon in the mornin’
In that land
Chatter with the Angels
Soon in the mornin’
Join that band
First Verse
Second Verse…look familiar?

13. “Chatter with the Angels” Rhythmic Notation Method

14. Sources:
Campbell, P.S. and C. Scott-Kassner (1995). Music in Childhood. New York: NY, Schirmer Books.
Hackett, P. & Lindeman, C.A., (2007). The Musical Classroom: backgrounds, model, and skills for elementary teaching (7th Ed.), Pearson Prentice Hall.
Labuta, J.A. & Smith, D.A. (1997). Music Education: Historical contexts and perspectives. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall