„With Pipes, Drums and Reed Fiddles – Our Folk Instruments”
Folk instruments are essential components of traditional peasant music. Most ancient instruments were relatively easy to make and were primarily associated with shepherds – such as the flute (furulya), reed whistle (nádsíp), swineherd's horn (kanásztülök), shepherd's horn (kürt), and the bagpipe (duda). The poorer classes – day laborers, peasants, and servants – also had their own sound-producing devices, which were mainly used for rhythm, such as clashing spoons and pots. Instruments like the zither (citera) and the button accordion (gombosharmonika) also belonged to this world.
„The Hungarian people express their joy through song and music, and they bury their sorrows in it. In the village of Csákány, many worked as servants or day laborers, but throughout their hard lives, song and music lived within them. I often encountered whistling, humming men riding ox carts or singing laborers in the fields. On holidays, they played the zither in front of servant houses, singing on the wings of poverty. Perhaps that is how they healed the wounds life had given them.” - Folk Instruments, Csákány, 1975, collector: Vilmos Pongrácz
According to chronological sources, written records attest to the use of drums, horns, and whistles in Hungarian musical culture as early as the 12th century, and from the 14th century, the koboz and fiddle are also mentioned. Over the past 150 years, the violin has appeared in folk ensembles – mainly Romani bands – as a central instrument. Earlier, however, it existed as a "solitary" profession: wandering fiddlers would travel from inn to inn alone, and at weddings, a single fiddler would provide all the music.
The Bagpipe
The gajd or duda appears in written sources in the 15th century. Its inflatable airbag is made from animal hide, typically from sheep, goat, dog, foal, or calf. The ornate, wooden-carved head of the bagpipe often resembles a human face, goat, or ram. The piper usually played alongside a fiddler or clarinetist, often performing at weddings and carnival festivities. The gajdos was always a man, typically a shepherd. The uniqueness of the bagpipe is captured in a 1950 ethnographic collection by János Manga:
„(...) Some 120 years ago, a bagpipe was stolen. The next evening, the thief had guests. It was a winter night; five of them sat around the table. While they were having dinner, the stolen bagpipe came out of the pantry on its own and beat the thief bloody. Then it returned to its hook in the pantry. When this happened, one of the guests warned the thief to return the bagpipe to where he had stolen it from, or it would happen again every night. The thief returned the bagpipe the next day, and nothing further occurred.”
„(...) At the lodging in Hangony, at Juhász puszta during the three-day carnival, when the piper grew tired of playing after two nights, he hung the bagpipe on a beam. From midnight to 4 a.m., until the rooster crowed, the bagpipe played by itself. At the rooster's crow, it said 'Good morning' and told the piper, 'Now it's your turn to play.” - János Manga's collection from Cered: The Bagpipe
The Flute
Written sources from the 15th century mention the flute, although archaeological finds indicate it was already used before the Hungarian conquest. Like the bagpipe, it was traditionally played exclusively by men - primarily shepherds - for personal entertainment. Flutes were usually made from elder or maple wood and were decorated with fine carvings or engravings. Flute music was not typically part of instrumental ensembles or dance events, but it was integral to the tradition of regölés, during which young men visited homes with sound-producing instruments - flutes, jug-pipes, chain-sticks, and bells - to offer greetings and well-wishes in exchange for gifts. In Southern Transdanubia, a specific type of six-holed flute was used, as well as a longer variant, the furugla, which could be nearly a meter long.
„My brother Vendel made a neat flute for the Museum from elder wood. Let him explain how he made it. — 'Elder is excellent for making flutes. Around here we also call it furula or furugla. It can be of any length; my great-grandfather, I believe, played a long furugla.”
„Those who learned to play the flute as children, who have it in their blood, become good flutists. Those who can only play simple tunes are said to 'just dabble.' They blame harder melodies on the flute itself. With cross-fingering or half-covering the holes, one can vary the sound greatly. This is best known by older, skilled shepherd flutists.” - Folk Instruments, Csákány, 1975, collector: Vilmos Pongrácz
The Cimbalom and the Zither
From the 16th century onwards, increasing documentation mentions instruments such as the cimbalom and zither. The former has two main types: the four-legged large cimbalom, which is still common today, and the small, legless variant, now very rare. Both the small cimbalom and the zither were often handmade using simple tools, resulting in a great variety of surviving instruments. The large cimbalom was perfected by Vencel József Schunda in 1870, gradually replacing its predecessor. Hungarian cimbalom makers exported significant quantities abroad by the late 19th century. The cimbalom is played using two wooden mallets, usually made of acacia or walnut, with felt-wrapped heads. From the 18th century onward, it became a defining element of Romani bands.
The zither was widespread in Hungarian-speaking regions, especially in the Great Plain and Transylvania. There are three types: the trough zither, the small-headed zither (common on the Great Plain), and the arched zither (mainly in Transdanubia). In some areas, it is also called tambura, though that name also refers to a lute-like plucked instrument. It was mainly a peasant instrument, cheap and easily made with household tools, and could be played by men, women, and children alike. During festive gatherings, people often entertained each other with zither music, especially at weddings, thus avoiding the cost of hiring musicians.
The Button Accordion
„There was always someone in the seasonal workgroup who could play the accordion or the zither. The accordion's sound was the most distinct. These were small, one-row instruments, often with only two bass buttons. One of my schoolmates' older brothers was a seasonal laborer. He had a one-row accordion, and on Sundays, I would go over and borrow it. I taught myself my first song without any help. (...) That summer, I told my father: if I work well and he’s pleased with me, he should buy me one. And by Christmas he did - though it was an old, beat-up two-row button accordion. We took it to an older handyman he knew, who patched it up well enough for me to learn many songs on it.” - Gáspár Nyitrai, Mezőkövesd, 1984
The Hurdy-Gurdy
„The direct ancestor of the hurdy-gurdy appeared in Western Europe during the 9th–10th centuries, first known as the organistrum. Its defining feature - a wheel played against stretched strings - still characterizes the hurdy-gurdy. The early organistrum was a large, revered church instrument requiring two players. In the 12th century, more modern instruments, especially the organ, gradually displaced the organistrum from churches. It fell into the hands of wandering musicians and rural performers. With its new role, its size and structure changed and it gained a new name.” - Gyula Hankóczi: The Hurdy-Gurdy, Thesis, 1980
„(...) The hurdy-gurdy can be made ready to play with little maintenance. It requires minimal physical effort to operate. (...) Its sound can be adjusted by activating or deactivating drones. It is the only instrument where the cranking motion directly shapes the melody’s rhythm, giving it a uniquely charming character. (With instruments like the glass harmonica, for example, the rotation only serves as a mechanical sound generator and does not influence the musical expression.)” - Tibor Ehlers: Forms and Possibilities of the Hurdy-Gurdy, 1969
TEJ
translated by László Gönczi
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