“Teach music and singing at school in such a way that it is not a torture, but a joy for the pupil; instill a thirst for finer music in him, a thirst which will last for a lifetime. Music must not be approached from its intellectual, rational side, nor should it be conveyed to the child as a system of algebraic symbols, or as the secret writing of a language with which he has no connection. The way should be paved for direct intuition. If the child is not filled at least once by the life-giving stream of music during the most susceptible period - between his sixth and sixteenth years - it will hardly be of any use to him later on. Often a single experience will open the young soul to music for a whole lifetime. This experience cannot be left to chance, it is the duty of the school to provide it.”
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Zoltán Kodály (1929), “Children’s Choirs”,
The Selected Writings of Zóltan Kodály, p. 120.
While there are issues to be had with this quote the expressed ideal is admirable nevertheless. #zoltánkodály #theselectedwritingsofzoltánkodály #thezoltánofswing
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