Arpad Darazs (7 July 1922 – 16 December 1986) was a
Hungarian-
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
music educator
Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do original ...
who was widely known as one of the few in the Western hemisphere as an authority on the
Kodály method of choral instruction.
Before he gained wide acclaim for his work at the
University of South Carolina, he garnered acclaim with the success of the St. Kilian Boychoir of
Farmingdale, New York. The boys' choir not only sang on the
Sonny Fox show, but also on a Christmas album with
Andre Kostelanetz, as well as with the
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...
at the 20th Anniversary Celebration of the
United Nations.
Darazs was born in
Jászberény,
Hungary, and graduated from the Franz Liszt Conservatory in
Budapest, where he received diplomas in conducting (1944), music education (1946), and teaching applied music in college (1946). He earned a Ph.D. from
Columbia University in 1972.
[Bognár, p. 45.]
The topic of his dissertation was, "A study of the Zoltan Kodaly approach to music reading and its application to the high school selective choral organization." He was the conductor of the Hungarian State Ballet Chorus and Orchestra, as well as choirmaster for the Hungarian Radio Network. While at the University of South Carolina (1966–1986) he founded the USC Concert Choir. He also conducted the Columbia (SC) Boychoir, as well as the Columbia Barbershop Chorus, and the First Presbyterian Church Choir. Later he was also conductor of the
Columbia Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1981 he founded the Palmetto Mastersingers, which is an all-male chorus that went on to win critical acclaim at competitions in Hungary and
Wales (1984).
In 1976, the Concert Choir became the first choir from the United States to win the first prize in the International
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as H ...
Choral Competition in Hungary. They repeated this in 1980.
In 1985, he was awarded the Elizabeth O'Neill Verner Governor’s Award for the Arts for his contributions and achievements in and to the arts in South Carolina.
Death
He died on 16 December 1986 from
leukemia at the age of 64. He left behind his wife, Piri Darazs; two sons, Bert and Desi Darazs; and a daughter, Judith Darazs Brooks. He is buried in
Lexington, South Carolina
Lexington is the largest town in and the county seat of Lexington County, South Carolina, United States. It is a suburb of the state capital, Columbia. The population was 23,568 at the 2020 Census, and it is the second-largest municipality in th ...
, USA.
Robert Neese, a student of Arpad Darazs at The University of South Carolina, has conducted The Arpad Darazs Singers, a choir based in
Columbia, South Carolina which was formed in honor of the Darazs.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Darazs, Arpad
Hungarian male musicians
Hungarian male conductors (music)
American male conductors (music)
American music educators
Hungarian emigrants to the United States
University of South Carolina faculty
1922 births
1986 deaths
20th-century American conductors (music)
Place of birth missing
20th-century American male musicians