Papp Lajos
Composer
Place of Birth
Debrecen
Date of Birth
1935
18 August 1935 Debrecen - 17 January 2019
Lajos Papp was born in Debrecen in 1935. He studied piano and composition at the local conservatory. During his studies at the Academy of Music, he was taught composition by Ferenc Szabó, and his conducting professor was László Somogyi. The new Viennese school and dodecaphony were not yet part of the curriculum in Hungarian music education, so he was forced to study and analyse works by Schoenberg, Berg and Webern on his own. He graduated as a composer in 1960.
Until 1968 he worked as a piano and music theory teacher in Budapest. Together with László Dobszay and Erna Czövek, he tried to renew the teaching of music literature. It was at this time that his interest in pedagogy began to turn. Rather than teaching music theory, music literature and solfege separately according to the curriculum, every semester they would analyse a work (most often opera) from different aspects, written in a different stylistic period. In the following period, he produced a collection of pedagogical literature, mainly for piano, but also for other instruments, including a collection for strings, guitar and trombone. In 1963, he was asked to compose the mandatory piece for the International Cello Competition in Budapest. The cello further inspired his first large-scale work, his cello concerto, which was premiered at the Liszt Academy in March 1965. According to critics, Papp first found his own voice as a composer upon writing his Dialogo per pianoforte ed orchestra.
From 1968 he worked as a freelance conductor. From 1971-73 he won a scholarship to study in Basel with composers Klaus Huber and Helmut Lachenmann, but this period did not have a great influence on his style. In 1973, he settled with his family in Oldenburg and took up a post as a teacher of piano and music theory at the music school. During this period, his pedagogical work became his main focus, and he completed his piano studies at this time. This volume is based on his own teaching experiences and the suggestions of his colleagues as a music teacher, preserving the Kodály and Barthesian tradition.
Lajos Papp divided his own works into two categories, pedagogical and artistic music. Papp's first compositions centred on the piano (Three Rondos for Piano, Variations for Piano, Trakl Songs for Soprano and Piano). In 1966 he came to the public with a more important work, Dialogo per pianoforte ed orchestra, in which he found his own voice. His pedagogical works have been published in Germany and France, and outside Europe his works have been performed in Canada, Japan and South Africa.
Lajos Papp was born in Debrecen in 1935. He studied piano and composition at the local conservatory. During his studies at the Academy of Music, he was taught composition by Ferenc Szabó, and his conducting professor was László Somogyi. The new Viennese school and dodecaphony were not yet part of the curriculum in Hungarian music education, so he was forced to study and analyse works by Schoenberg, Berg and Webern on his own. He graduated as a composer in 1960.
Until 1968 he worked as a piano and music theory teacher in Budapest. Together with László Dobszay and Erna Czövek, he tried to renew the teaching of music literature. It was at this time that his interest in pedagogy began to turn. Rather than teaching music theory, music literature and solfege separately according to the curriculum, every semester they would analyse a work (most often opera) from different aspects, written in a different stylistic period. In the following period, he produced a collection of pedagogical literature, mainly for piano, but also for other instruments, including a collection for strings, guitar and trombone. In 1963, he was asked to compose the mandatory piece for the International Cello Competition in Budapest. The cello further inspired his first large-scale work, his cello concerto, which was premiered at the Liszt Academy in March 1965. According to critics, Papp first found his own voice as a composer upon writing his Dialogo per pianoforte ed orchestra.
From 1968 he worked as a freelance conductor. From 1971-73 he won a scholarship to study in Basel with composers Klaus Huber and Helmut Lachenmann, but this period did not have a great influence on his style. In 1973, he settled with his family in Oldenburg and took up a post as a teacher of piano and music theory at the music school. During this period, his pedagogical work became his main focus, and he completed his piano studies at this time. This volume is based on his own teaching experiences and the suggestions of his colleagues as a music teacher, preserving the Kodály and Barthesian tradition.
Lajos Papp divided his own works into two categories, pedagogical and artistic music. Papp's first compositions centred on the piano (Three Rondos for Piano, Variations for Piano, Trakl Songs for Soprano and Piano). In 1966 he came to the public with a more important work, Dialogo per pianoforte ed orchestra, in which he found his own voice. His pedagogical works have been published in Germany and France, and outside Europe his works have been performed in Canada, Japan and South Africa.
| Year | Title | Publisher | Code | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Kocsár Miklós: Repliche; Variazioni; Magányos ének (Lonely Song)
Papp L.: Dialogo; Meditációk (Meditations) |
Hungaroton | SLPX 11635 |
Own LP |
|
| 1978 |
Mai magyar cimbalomművek
(Contemporary Hungarian Cimbalom Music) |
Hungaroton | SLPX 11899 | LP |
| Title | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 15 Little Duos for Celli | Chamber Music | 1973 |
| 22 Little Piano Pieces | Instrumental solo | 1985 |
| 27 Small Piano Pieces | Instrumental solo | 1969 |
| 3 Trios for 3 Violins | Chamber Music | 1987 |
| 35 Easy, Two-Part Choruses | Choir a cappella | 0 |
| 6 Bagatelles | Instrumental solo | 1964 |
| 9 Bagatelles | Instrumental solo | 0 |
| The Stonecutter | Instrumental solo | 2009 |
| Aquarium | Instrumental solo | 1987 |
| Arco-Pizzicato | String orchestra | 0 |
| The Golden Key | Instrumental solo | 0 |
| The Sky-High Tree | Instrumental solo | 2000 |
| Dialogo per pianoforte e orchestra | Concerto | 1965 |
| Starting the Piano | Instrumental solo | 1972 |
| Three Songs on Poems by George Trakl | !to be determined | 0 |
| Three rondos | Instrumental solo | 1957 |
| Three Dances | Chamber Music | 0 |
| Three Piano Pieces | Instrumental solo | 0 |
| Impressioni | Chamber Music | 1970 |
| Improvvisazione | Instrumental solo | 1964 |
| Knights´ Games | String orchestra | 0 |
| Hungarian Variations | Chamber Music | 1985 |
| Meditations in Memory of Milán Füst | !to be determined | 0 |
| Stroy Scenes | Instrumental solo | 1987 |
| Miniatures | Chamber Music | 0 |
| Four Pieces for Violoncello Solo | Instrumental solo | 0 |
| Four Little Pieces | Chamber Music | 0 |
| Petit suite | Instrumental solo | 0 |
| Rhapsody for Violin Solo | Instrumental solo | 1989 |
| Ricercare | Instrumental solo | 0 |
| Scherzo | Chamber Music | 0 |
| Skizze / Sketch | Instrumental solo | 1971 |
| Sonata | Chamber Music | 1962 |
| Variazioni | Instrumental solo | 1959 |
| Variazioni per clavicembalo e percussioni | Chamber Music | 0 |
| Merry Trumpeters | Chamber Music | 0 |
| Sketches | Instrumental solo | 1966 |
| Sketches | String orchestra | 0 |
| Mosaics of Animals | Instrumental solo | 1994 |
| Five Pieces for Violin and Piano | Chamber Music | 0 |