Sándor Kovács Photo: Péter Herman

Sándor Kovács

Doctoral School, Musicology Department

History of Western Music, Musicology PhD Seminar

 
Born: 1949, Budapest, Hungary
 
Position at Liszt Academy: PhD, professor emeritus, honorary president of the University Doctoral Board
 
Main subjects: musicology (general music history, history of Hungarian music, 20th century music seminar)
 
Education:
1972 - Diploma of Piano Teacher - Franz Liszt Academy of Music
Teacher Training College Pécs
1977 – Diploma of Musicology and Piano - Franz Liszt Academy of Music Budapest
 
Teaching experiences:
1976 - 1979 – Franz Liszt Academy's Teacher Training College Pécs – taught music history, folk music, music theory
1977 - joined Liszt Academy of Music Budapest, Head of Musicology Department between  2005 - 2011.
Since 1991 – teacher of Miskolc University – Bartók Institute of Music, his main subjects include: general music history, history of Hungarian music, music theory
2001-2005 – Managing Director of Miskolc University – Bartók Institute of Music
Since 1st July 2011 Head of Composition, Conducting, Musicology and Music Theory Dept.
 
Major areas of research:
Between 1979 – 2001 Sándor Kovács worked for the Hungarian Academy of Sciences – Institute for Musicology, where the edition of folk songs collected by Béla Bartók  was in the main focus of his scholar activity. Besides Bartók, he as a musicologist, also has been involved with the oeuvre or certain aspects of various other composers, including but not limited to Dohnanyi, Stravinsky, Webern, Berg, Schönberg, Beethoven, Liszt.
 
Major publications:
Books:
A XX. század zenéje (The music of the 20th century) - Budapest, 1981, Tankönyvkiadó.
Hungarian Folk Songs. Complete Collection by Béla Bartók; (Editors: Sándor Kovács, Ferenc Sebő) Budapest, 1993, Akadémiai Kiadó. 1206 p.
Bartók Béla – Budapest, Mágus Kiadó,  1995
Bartók nyomában (In the Steps of Béla Bartók – epilogue to the movie „Roots" (by István Gaál) – Budapest, Holnap Kiadó 2001.
 
Other major publications:
Re-examining the Bartók/Serly viola concerto – Studia Musicologica XXIII, 1981
Evolution of the 'Bartók System' – PhD thesis
 „Wir können sie in drei verschiedenen Phasen einteilen". Studia Musicologica XXXVI, 1993
Orfeusz Hangzó Zenetörténet (Orpheus: Music History in Sound) Vol.1., 6., compiling, Vol. 1-8.editing, Budapest,  Nemzeti Kulturális Alap, 1998
Chapters on Bartók, Dohnányi in the book „The Hungarian Genius" (Magyar Géniusz, edited by Árpád Rácz) Budapest, 2001 
 
Other fields of activity:
  • Editor-in-chief of the Hungarian Radio (Channel 3 Bartók) – weekly classical music review program (Új Zenei Újság)
  • Critic in leading Hungarian classical music periodicals, editor and presenter of various classical  music programs of the Hungarian Television, Hungarian Radio
  • Musical advisor of the film „Roots" (by István Gaál) about Bartók
Awards:
1985 - Szabolcsi Prize
1993 - Erkel Prize
2001 - Hauser Arnold Prize
2003 - Lajtha László Prize
 
Contact:
kovacs.sandor595[at]upcmail.hu