Register for Virtual and In-Person Hungarian Folk Singing Classes

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Upcoming Classes and Events

• Pronunciation Classes

• Folk Singing Classes

• End-of-Year Recital

• Virtual Summer Camp

• Private Lessons

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Registration Form

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Payment Information

More Information & FAQs

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Current and Upcoming classes:

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All classes listed below are held in English online on Zoom, taught by Zina Bozzay.  The classes are live and interactive, and not video recorded for later use.  Please register for the virtual classes as soon as possible, as space is limited and Zoom links are sent in advance of class.

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HUNGARIAN PRONUNCIATION CLASSES

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Level I

An in-depth class on Hungarian pronunciation, open to absolute beginners as a first introduction to the language as well as those with experience who want to review.  The class covers each letter sound, and includes practice words for each letter.  Participants receive a detailed pronunciation guide for later reference.  This class is typically offered at the start of each singing class series or before a workshop, and is open to anyone to attend, whether or not you are taking a singing class.

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Level II  (Prerequisite: Level I)

This class is designed for those who have already taken Level I or have previous experience with Hungarian, including heritage speakers in the Hungarian diaspora, who are interested in learning further details to fine-tune their pronunciation.  This class covers pronunciation quirks and exceptions often not taught to beginners, such as consonant assimilation, consonant voicing and devoicing, archaic name spellings, and examples of dialect pronunciation. 

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Pronunciation Practice Class (Prerequisite: Level I)

For those who have already attended Level I, or previously learned all the Hungarian letter sounds, this class is solely focused on putting it into practice through participants pronouncing words and receiving feedback. We cover everyday words and common words in folk songs to really strengthen all the basic sounds of the language.   If you are struggling with certain vowel sounds, or sometimes mix up which consonants sound like what, join us.  It is also a good class for those with more experience to focus on pronunciation and hear the common pitfalls and corrections.

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Classes are held in English by Zina Bozzay, who has been teaching Hungarian pronunciation to non-Hungarian speakers for over a decade.

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Upcoming Dates:

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❋ Level I: Monday, April 12, 6:00-7:00pm Budapest time

(9-10am California / 12-1pm New York)
 

❋ Pronunciation Practice Class: Monday, April 12, 7:00-8:00pm Budapest time

(10-11am California / 1-2pm New York)

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❋ Individual pronunciation lessons/coaching scheduled upon request.

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Price:

Residents of Hungary:             1000 Ft. per class

International Participants:   Sliding scale $8-15 USD per class

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HUNGARIAN FOLK SINGING CLASS SERIES

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Several-week class series teaching a variety of beautiful traditional Hungarian folk songs, including village source recordings, pronunciation and translation of the lyrics, background information on the style, and more.  Held in English and open to participants of all cultural, linguistic, and musical backgrounds, welcoming experienced singers as well as those with no previous experience in the style.  Further details about each specific class are below.  If this is your first Hungarian singing class, consider taking the pronunciation class above before the class series.

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It is strongly preferred for participants to commit to the full class series, but drop-ins are also welcome.  There is a minimum of 5 registered participants to hold the class, and classes are capped at 25 people.  Because there are several class times and people are joining from various time zones around the world, each class has a name (Chestnut, Tulip, etc) for the ease of participants figuring out which time is right for them and registering for the correct class!  Some time zones are written below, but please double-check your own time difference with Budapest, and note daylight savings changes if applicable.

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1) Transylvania Semester

Over the course of January - May 2021, we will learn a wide variety of songs from Transylvania, moving progressively eastward and spending a few weeks on each of the ethnographic regions, broken up into three class series: Szilágyság and Kalotaszeg (6 weeks, Jan 12 - Feb 16), Mezőség (6 weeks, Feb 23 - March 30), and finally Maros-Küküllő vidéke, Szekélyföld, and Gyimes (7 weeks, April 13 - May 25).  You do not need to have attended previous classes to take this class and each class series is a separate group of songs - new people can join anytime.

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Songs from Maros-Küküllő vidéke, Szekélyföld, and Gyimes (Transylvania Semester Part III)

7-week Class Series: Tuesdays April 13 - May 25

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- Chestnut Group: Tuesdays 10:00-11:30am Budapest time

Europe daytime, Australia and New Zealand evening:

9am England / 4pm Hong Kong / 6pm Sydney / 8pm Christchurch

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- Rosemary Group: Tuesdays 7:00-8:30pm Budapest time

North America daytime, Europe evening:

10am California / 1pm New York / 6pm England / 8pm Israel

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Price:

                                                           Full class series (six 1.5hr classes):           Drop-in (single class):

Residents of Hungary:               12,000 Ft.                                                                  2000 Ft. per class

International Participants:     Sliding scale $70 - 175 USD                                   Sliding scale $12-25 USD per class

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Please note that the higher price is because this is a 7-week session!  Per-class price is the same as a 6-week session.

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2) Songs for Folk Dancing

6-week series: Tuesdays April 13 - May 18

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- Peacock Group: Tuesdays 2:30-4:00pm Budapest time

North America morning, Europe daytime, Asia evening: 8:30am New York / 1:30pm England / 8:30pm Hong Kong

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An entry-level Hungarian folk singing class teaching songs from Kalotaszeg and Mezőség in Transylvania - primarily well-known dance songs - including a lot of repetition and strong focus on pronunciation.  The class also includes “csujogatás” (rhythmic shouting calls) used during dancing.

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Please note: This class will cover new material following the previous Feb-March “Songs for Folk Dancing” (Peacock Group) class, but will include some of the same songs that were taught in the Jan-March Rosemary and Chestnut Group classes.  Students are welcome to join multiple groups, knowing it will give them extra opportunities to work on those songs.

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Price:

All Participants:   Sliding scale $7-15 USD per class.  It is strongly preferred for participants to commit to the full six-class series (and pay for all classes at the beginning), but drop-ins are also allowed.

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NÉPDALKÖR RECITAL

Tuesday, June 1, 7:00pm Budapest time

(10am California / 1pm New York / 6pm England)

We are going to savor and enjoy all that we have learned and share it with each other.  Participation is open to all current and former Népdalkör participants, and is not required.  Students must sign up by May 20 with the song (or songs) they would like to sing, which can be chosen from anything we have learned this year (or even earlier).  A few family members and friends of performers may also attend as audience.  This is not open to the general public.  Our aim is to create a warm and cozy celebratory year-end event in which we can enjoy the fruits of our study.

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This is a free event.  Current class members will receive the recital details and sign-up sheet automatically.  If you are not currently taking classes and would like to participate, please email Zina (zinabozzay@gmail.com).

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VIRTUAL HUNGARIAN FOLK SINGING SUMMER CAMP

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June 14-18, 2021

Monday-Friday 5:30-9pm Budapest time every day, including breaks and different schedules for different campers within that time range (8:30-12noon California / 11:30-3pm New York).  Please double-check your time zone!

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Join us for a joyful week of immersion in Hungarian village folk singing!  Following last year’s successful virtual camp, we once again welcome current class members and newcomers alike to this year’s Camp.  Camp is held in English and led by Zina Bozzay, and is open to participants of all cultural, linguistic, and musical backgrounds.  The week will include a variety of songs from various regions, taught directly from village source recordings.  Participants receive pronunciation guidance, song lyrics, English translations, recordings, and background information on the songs and the style.  The camp schedule includes different topics each day as well as private lesson slots for more experienced campers, and the exact schedule will be determined based on those who register.  Sign up now to join us for a fun, enriching experience with a great group of people and beautiful songs you can enjoy all summer long and for years to come.

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Please register as soon as possible.  Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis if we reach capacity.

Final registration deadline is June 3!

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Price (full weeklong intensive, including all classes, private lessons, and materials):

Residents of Hungary:               Sliding scale 18.000-30.000 Ft. 

International Participants:     Sliding scale $125-250 USD

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PRIVATE LESSONS, PRIVATE GROUP CLASSES, WORKSHOPS & OTHER EVENTS

In addition to the public group classes listed above, we have students studying both in-person in Budapest and online from around the world in one-on-one private lessons, semi-private or small group private study (2-5 people), and in larger groups (choruses, school music classes, workshops, festivals, summer camps, etc).  In-person teaching can happen in other cities as well, but is more limited right now due to coronavirus travel restrictions.  Beyond learning folk songs, frequently requested topics include an introduction to the style, locating specific recordings or song words, pronunciation coaching, feedback and corrections on a song before a performance or recording, and stylistic vocal technique.  Please either contact us with your inquiry or add a note in the registration form below.

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ABOUT ZINA BOZZAY

Zina Bozzay is an active performer, collector, arranger, and teacher of Hungarian folk songs in the US and Hungary. She has taught these songs to Hungarian speakers and non-speakers for over a decade, and is known for her accessible teaching style, academic rigor, and contagious enthusiasm. When her in-person classes went virtual in spring 2020 due to coronavirus, people joined from around the world, leading to these expanded online offerings in fall 2020 and spring 2021. For more information on Zina, click here.

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LOOKING FURTHER AHEAD

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As seen above, weekly class series and assorted workshops will continue to be offered through the end of May, followed by a recital and weeklong virtual camp in June.  We plan to hold an in-person weekend mini-camp in Budapest in late summer or early September.  Weekly classes will resume in September through December.

Whether or not we are able to hold in-person group classes due to the ever-evolving coronavirus situation, we plan to continue offering online classes as well.

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Sign up on our email list to hear when the next classes are announced and registration is open.  Emails are infrequent.

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Useful links:

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Join our email list to hear about other upcoming classes, workshops, and other events.

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More information about the Hungarian Folk Singing Circle on our main page.

Hungarian Folk Singing Circle on Facebook ("like" our page to hear about future events).

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More Information and FAQs:​

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Preparing for Virtual Classes:

Using a computer or other large screen device is preferable to using a phone screen for the Zoom call, to be able to see full-size video. Please arrange your device so that you can sit or stand ergonomically in front of it, and so that you are looking straight at the screen (not looking down or to the side). This is for good singing posture and ability to do the standing and movement exercises that are part of the classes.

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Have paper, pencils, and a glass of water ready when class begins, as well as snacks if needed.  If you have previously taken classes with Zina, have previously learned songs and other materials also on hand.

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If possible, print the pdf of the song lyrics, and if you are not able to print, you may find it helpful to write the words out on a piece of paper so that you can add details about the melody, translation, etc to that paper during the class.  You do not need to be able to play back the audio recordings during class time, as Zina will play them from her device - those are for individual practice outside of class.

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Using Zoom:

Please sign on to the online class punctually a few minutes before start time, so we can begin class together.  You do not need to download anything to use Zoom (no app needed), but if you have never used Zoom before please go to the link ahead of the class start time to get yourself oriented and test your set-up.  You just need a working microphone, speaker or headphones, and camera (the camera is optional, but much better for all participants and the functioning of the class) - by default it will use those built in to your device.

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But I'm self-conscious about my singing! / How will we sing together?

Besides warm-ups, much of the class will be in a listen-repeat format, or singing together with participants muted.  In this format, beginners and others who may feel self-conscious can sing with wild abandon, because they cannot be heard -- AND everyone experiences the singing as a duo with the instructor.  There will also be opportunities for participants to sing for the group and receive feedback, particularly after learning a song well or toward the end of a class series to show what they have learned.

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Pricing:

For our virtual classes, we offer globally just pricing, ensuring accessibility to participants living in widely different economies, as well as fair compensation for the labor and expenses involved in holding these international classes.  We ask that you pay for the class according to typical singing class prices in your local economy.  "Sliding scale" means that you can choose what you are able to pay within the given price range.  We understand that people individually have very different financial circumstances, and the current pandemic has additionally impacted incomes and expenses for many.  Instead of offering various discounts (low income, students, seniors, etc), this allows you to make that choice based on your own circumstances and how you value the class.  We hope that this pricing model facilitates equality in difficult times, and we thank you for your support of this work.  Additional financial donations are also always gratefully accepted. 

If you would like to attend the classes but the cost is prohibitive for you, please contact us.  We have arranged work-exchange, exchange of professional services, and barter of goods, among other solutions (see our donations page to get ideas of the kinds of things that could be exchanged).  We don't want money to stop anyone from joining.
 

No refunds are possible if a class is paid for and not attended.

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Recording: 

We ask that you not record or videotape the classes, bearing in mind that all class materials (audio files and song words) are emailed to all participants.  We expect all participants to honor and respect the host and fellow participants by adhering to this policy.  We reserve the right to record or photograph the classes for documentation and possible promotional purposes.

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Questions / Contact:

Contact Zina here or at zinabozzay@gmail.com.

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Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you in class!

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