ABSTRACT
Hungary, with a population of slightly more than ten million, occupies 93,030 square kilometers in the Carpathian Basin. During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, until the Ottoman occupation, Hungary was an important power within feudal Europe. Because of the history and dramatic changes in Hungary's political, economic, religious, and social life in the millennium, Hungarian folk music is a repository of multiple cultural resources. Historical and linguistic evidence, notated monophonie art songs since the sixteenth century, and recorded oral traditions since about 1900 allow for the proposal of a possible history for the parts of the folk-music tradition that survived into the era of recording. The situation of peasant music in Hungary differs from one region to another. In the peasant society, singing is a form of personal and social expression, an inherent part of community life. Therefore the performers of vocal music are not professionals, though good voice and musical ability is recognized and, in certain functions, required.
