BORN: March 25, 1881
SISTER: Erzsebet Bartok
FATHER: Bela Bartok Sr. (Hungarian, originated in Borsod County)
His father was a headmaster of a local school
MOTHER: Paula Voit (Mixed Hungarian, originated from Saxons, upper Hungary)
BORN AT: at a Banatian town in the kingdom of Hungary
DEATH: September 26, 1945
He died at New York due to Leukemia he was considered to be one of the most important composer of the 20th century
Bartok and Liszt was regarded as Hungary’s greatest composers
Founder of Enthnomology was known for his journey in search of native music and indigenous performance practices
1st wife: Marta Ziegler, his student, they had 1 son, Bartok’s The Bluebears’s castle was written for her
2nd wife: Ditta Pasztory, his story, they had 1 son, Bartok’s Third Piano Concerto was written for her
TYPE OF COMPOSITIONS:
He wrote stage and orchestral works, piano solos, string quartets, cantata and folk songs. He was an avid collector of folk songs.
EARLY CHILDHOOD:
When he was a kid, he can distinguish between different dance rhythms
When he was 4, he was able to play 40 pieces on the piano
He suffered eczema in the age of 5
At the age of 7, his father died
He played his first piece: The Course of the Danube
EARLY MUSICAL CAREER:
He was accepted as a pupil of Laszlo Erkel, the son of Ferenc Erkel in his piano studio, a noted Hungarian pianist and pedagogue
1899-1903: studied at the Royal Academy of Music in Budapest his teachers were János Koessler for composition and Istvan Thoman for piano
During his final years in his studies, he composed and premiered his 1st significant work for orchestra: KOSSUTH
KOSSUTH: it was dedicated LAJOS KOSSUTH, a cultural icon and hero of Hungary who has distinguished himself as a national leader in the Hungarian Revolt.
ZOLTAN KODALY: fellow Hungarian composer who becam a close friend and colleague of Bartok
NOTABLE WORKS:
The Miraculous Mandarin
Microkosmos
Cantata