Collection of music videos

Zoltán Kodály (1882-1967) was a Hungarian composer deeply committed to his country's folklore (he collected over 100,000 folk songs) and to music pedagogy. He began his studies in Galánta and later in Budapest . In 1907, he met Debussy , whose music profoundly impacted him. He collaborated extensively with Béla Bartók , and together they laid the foundations for what we now know as ethnomusicology . As a composer, he frequently used both folk melodies and scales, giving prominence to his choral works. As a pedagogue, he made history, and his Kodály Method , in which the voice is the primary instrument, remains relevant today.

Háry János is a popular opera (sometimes called a Singspiel ) that premiered in 1926. It is based on Hungarian folk tales about a peasant soldier named Háry János , famous for telling exaggerated and fantastical stories about his supposed heroic deeds. Háry is not a "realistic" hero: he represents popular imagination, humor, and oral tradition; his stories blend historical fact with pure fantasy. Kodály uses melodies inspired by Hungarian folk music, which he himself had studied and collected along with Béla Bartók.

The Intermezzo ( Interlude ) is an orchestral piece that appears between scenes of the opera and is usually played independently in concerts.

The cymbal is a musical instrument. It is believed that the Romani people brought it to Eastern Europe around the 13th century . It is widely used in the music of countries such as Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Ukraine, Moldova , and others, as well as in Iranian Persian music , where it is known as the santur . It is a stringed instrument played with a pair of mallets in both hands, striking the strings to produce sound. It is a type of psaltery but larger, although portable versions also exist. The instrument became popular in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and was used by all ethnic groups in the country, including Jewish klezmori musicians, as well as Slavic and Magyar (Hungarian) musicians, Roma (Gypsies), and lautari (lăutari) musicians. The use of this instrument spread at the end of the 19th century , and it replaced the kobza in Romanian and Moldovan folk ensembles. In Wallachia, Romania, it is used almost as a percussion instrument. In Transylvania and Banat, the playing style is more tonal, with heavy arpeggios.

Háry János's Intermezzo is light and dance-like, highly rhythmic with Hungarian influences , particularly in the verbunkos style (traditional music associated with military conscription). Its lively and colorful melodies are easily recognizable; melodies adorned with brilliant orchestration that paints scenes and moods rather than telling a specific story. This intermezzo, featuring the cimbalom , is one of Kodály 's most popular pieces; it is frequently performed in symphonic concerts and educational settings, as it perfectly exemplifies Kodály 's aim: to unite classical music with folk roots.

Today, Junko Sakimura offers it to us on the cimbalom with the Japan Friendship Philharmonic conducted by Maestro Atsushi Takahashi .

Pablo Sarasate (1844-1908) was a composer and violin virtuoso born in Pamplona, ​​Spain . A precocious child, his parents, aware of his musical talent, enrolled him in violin studies, which he continued in Madrid and Paris . In 1859, he began his public career, giving concerts throughout Europe and America , remaining active until his death. His universal prestige was evident in the dedications that eminent composers such as Max Bruch , Camille Saint-Saëns , Édouard Lalo, Henryk Wieniawski , Antonín Dvořák , and others added to some of his scores. He died at his home, Villa Navarra, in Biarritz in 1908, at the age of 64.

Catalogue of Sarasate's works . His works are classified by their Opus number (from the Latin opus, 'work'), a term used in music to catalog the works of most composers. Since the 17th century , this form of cataloging has been used whenever a work is published, preceding the work's serial number with the word Opus , or its abbreviation Op .

The Navarrese Jota . As the writer José María Iribarren published in the Diario de Navarra (1966): “The Navarrese jota began to take root in the Navarrese soul during the cholera epidemic of 1885. The city of Tafalla found its medicine in the jota ; alongside the sulfur bonfires, there were the rondallas to soothe spirits. In this way, the jota became intrinsic to Navarre , and especially to the Ribera region .” To all this, Manuel García Matos adds: “The Navarrese jota is closely related to the Aragonese jota; however, it exhibits a greater linear undulation of phrases, with more abundant and longer melismas, and is not subject to the metric regularity of the latter. It has more melodic refinement than the Aragonese jota , and the introduction and instrumental variations are also different.”

Navarra, op. 33 is a Navarrese jota written by Sarasate for two violins and orchestra, which is performed today by Irina Filimon and Cristina Alecu accompanied by the Castilla y León Symphony Orchestra, all conducted by the much-missed Granada maestro Miguel Ángel Gómez Martínez.

Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904) was born in Nelahozeves , then Bohemia and now the Czech Republic , and is considered one of the great masters of the second half of the 19th century and a leading representative of Czech nationalism . Between 1892 and 1895, Dvořák was director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York ; moreover, from his arrival in the USA , he showed great interest in Native American music. In April 1895, he left the United States and returned permanently to his homeland, where he resumed his teaching position at the Conservatory . Throughout his life, he wrote music for piano, for violin and piano, trios, quartets, quintets, a sextet, two sets of Slavonic dances, serenades, suites, overtures, three rhapsodies, five symphonic poems, nine symphonies, several concertos, 100 songs and vocal duets, and several operas. His New World Symphony is a well-known work and its themes have been widely used by popular music.

Catalogue of Dvořák 's works . His works are classified by their Opus number (from the Latin opus 'work'; op. abbreviation) which is a term used in music to catalogue the works of most composers since the 17th century .

The Piano Quintet Op. 81 No. 2 in A major was composed between August 18 and October 8, 1887, and premiered in Prague on January 6, 1888. The quintet is recognized as one of the masterpieces of the form, alongside those of Schumann , Brahms , and Shostakovich . Structured in four movements, it blends Dvořák 's characteristic expressive lyricism with elements of Czech folk music; these elements include styles and forms of song and dance, but not actual folk melodies.

The second movement of Antonín Dvořák's Piano Quintet No. 2 in A major, Op. 81 , is one of the most celebrated pieces in all of Romantic chamber music. It bears the marking " Andante con moto " and is written in dumka form, a musical form typical of the Slavic tradition (especially Ukrainian and Czech) characterized by the alternation of melancholic and meditative sections with livelier, rhythmic, and sometimes dance-like ones. Dvořák frequently used it as a symbol of national identity.

The movement begins with an introspective and nostalgic theme, introduced by the piano with an almost improvisational air. The strings respond with a warm and expressive melody, creating an atmosphere of serene, melancholic melancholy. Throughout the movement, this restrained sadness is interrupted by more lively episodes, in which the rhythm becomes more pronounced and the music takes on an almost folk or dance-like character. These transitions are not abrupt but organic, like shifts in mood. Moreover, the movement does not follow a strict classical form (such as ABA or sonata form ) but a free structure based on contrasts, typical of the dumka . Thematic materials reappear transformed, giving the movement unity without formal rigidity. As for its instrumentation, the piano plays a central role, both lyrically and rhythmically, while the strings (especially the cello and viola) contribute emotional depth and a dark timbre in the slow sections. The dialogue between the instruments is intimate, almost confessional, reinforcing its chamber music character.

Today it is offered to us by the quintet made up of Assaff Weisman , piano; Carmit Zori and Itamar Zorman , violins; Dov Scheindlin , viola and Michal Korman, cello.

Teresa Catalán Sánchez ( Iruña/Pamplona , ​​April 12, 1951) is a composer from Navarre and Professor Emerita of the Royal Conservatory of Music of Madrid , with a doctorate in Philosophy of Art and winner of the National Music Prize in 2017 in the Composition category. Catalán studied music at the Pablo Sarasate Conservatory in Pamplona, ​​where she trained with teachers such as Fernando Remacha, Luis Morondo, Juan Eraso, Luis Taberna, and Pilar Bayona , graduating in Piano and Composition . She was a student in Agustín González Acilu 's Contemporary Composition Techniques courses between 1983 and 1986. She attended advanced courses at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena, Italy, with the composer Franco Donatoni and received masterclasses from Luigi Nono, Samuel Adler, Yihzak Sadai, George Benjamin, Luca Lombardi, Leo Brouwer , and Guy Reibel, among others. In 1985, she co-founded the Pamplona Composers' Group , Iruñeako Taldea Musikagilleak . Five years later, in 1990, she won the chair of Composition, Instrumentation, and Musical Forms at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid through competitive examination. Catalán holds a doctorate in Philosophy of Art from the University of Valencia (2005) and is the author of several books, articles, and papers. In 2021 he received the Prince of Viana Culture Prize , an award given by the Government of Navarre .

She has published some of her compositions in Spain and Germany , which are part of the curriculum at various conservatories. She is a member of the State Council for the Performing Arts and Music, the Artistic Council of Music, and the Council of the Teatro Real . She has also been an elected member of Jakiunde, the Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters of the Basque Country, Navarre, and Aquitaine, since 2015. As a composer, her work falls within the realm of post-tonal music, and most of her compositions are instrumental, including piano and chamber works, though she has also composed orchestral and choral pieces. She has received commissions from numerous performers and various national and international institutions, and her work has been programmed at festivals in several countries across Europe and the Americas.

Azul is a symphonic composition by Teresa Catalán , written for symphony orchestra and premiered by the Spanish National Orchestra under the direction of Jaime Martín at the National Music Auditorium in Madrid as part of the 21/22 Symphonic Cycle concerts . The work was commissioned by the Spanish National Orchestra and Choir and explores a profound reflection on time: Catalán presents time as something fleeting, fickle, and elusive, linked to both the traditions and fashions of each era. This negotiation between the artist's inner voice, tradition, and aesthetic innovation is one of the central themes of Azul . Although there is no detailed programmatic statement for the work, the title Azul perhaps alludes to sensory and emotional associations with the color—as occurs in other pieces by Catalán where color functions as an evocative image—though here it is more abstract and linked to internal aspects of the musical discourse.

Today it is presented to us by the National Orchestra of Spain conducted by Maestro Jaime Martín.

Kawleeya (also spelled Kawliya, Kaouliya, or Kawleeya) is a highly expressive and energetic folk and urban dance from Iraq , commonly seen at celebrations, weddings, and popular performances. Historically associated with the Kawliyya communities (often linked to the Dom people, culturally related to the Romani of the Middle East ), the dance is now practiced and enjoyed by people throughout Iraq , not just this group. Over time, it has become a symbol of joy, feminine strength, and popular character, spreading to theaters, television, and festivals. Kawleeya music is fast, rhythmic, and very powerful, inviting intense and repetitive, almost hypnotic movements, with a strong emphasis on long, loose hair (rapid head turns, shaking, and tossing), which becomes almost an instrument in the dance. All of this is set within powerful movements of the hips, shoulders, and torso, expressed with a defiant, proud, and explosive attitude, deeply connected to the ground and the rhythm. Today, the Kawleeya represents Iraqi cultural identity, as well as the expression of feminine celebration, freedom, and strength.

Today, the Mileias Ballet presents it to us.

The Lesakako Zubigaineko dantza ( Dance on the Bridge of Lesaka ) is one of the most popular dances in the Basque Country . Coinciding with the San Fermín festival on July 7th, the sword dancers of Lesaka perform the Zubigain ("On the Bridge") on the parapet of the Onin River. It is a big day for the people of Lesaka, and for those who dance the Zubigain , it is undoubtedly the most emotional moment of the festival. It seems that this dance commemorates the peace pact between the neighborhoods of this town in the 15th century . However, outside of historical context, some specialists have seen it as closely related to the rituals of the San Juan solstice. In reality, it may be a ritual that arose from different traditions. It is worth noting that on San Fermín Day in 2019, for the first time in history, three women performed as swordsmen after several years of rehearsals.