Aladár Tóth (4 February 189828 October 1968) was a Hungarian musicologist and opera manager, regarded as a leading music critic in Hungary between the world wars, writing for ''
Nyugat'', among others. He was instrumental in the recognition of composers such as
Zoltán Kodály
Zoltán Kodály (, ; , ; 16 December 1882 – 6 March 1967) was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, music pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is well known internationally as the creator of the Kodály method of music education.
...
and
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 Hunga ...
. He was general manager of the
Hungarian State Opera from 1946 to 1956.
Life and career
Tóth was born in
Székesfehérvár
Székesfehérvár (; ; ; ; Serbian language, Serbian: ''Стони Београд''; ), known colloquially as Fehérvár (), is a city in central Hungary, and the country's ninth-largest city. It is the Regions of Hungary, regional capital of C ...
on 4 February 1898.
He received instruction in piano and composition in his hometown. He then studied at the University of Budapest, earning a Ph.D. in 1925 with a dissertation about the aesthetics of Mozart's dramatic music. Tóth worked as a music critic for the journal ''Új nemzedék'' from 1920 to 1923 and ''Pesti napló'' until 1939. He wrote for ''
Nyugat'' (''West''), a progressive journal,
from 1923 to 1940. He played a role in the reception of
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 Hunga ...
's music; in a yearly commentary in ''Nyugat'' about the concert season, he regularly emphasized
Bartók's importance for Hungarian culture and criticized the lack of performances by major music institutions.
During World War II, Tóth's family went to exile in Sweden
and then lived in Switzerland.
They returned to Budapest after the war,
and Tóth served as director of the
Hungarian State Opera from 1946 to 1956. He received the
Kossuth Prize in 1952.
Personal life
In 1937 Tóth married the pianist
Annie Fischer. He died in Budapest on 28 October 1968.
References
Further reading
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Toth, Aladar
1898 births
1968 deaths
Hungarian musicologists
Hungarian music critics
Opera managers
Recipients of the Kossuth Prize
Bartók scholars