Register for Virtual and In-Person Hungarian Folk Singing Classes

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Upcoming Class Dates

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Registration Form

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Payment Information

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More Info and FAQs

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Current and Upcoming classes:

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All January - February 2021 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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An in-depth class on Hungarian pronunciation, open to absolute beginners being introduced to it through advanced speakers who are fine-tuning.  We cover each letter sound, along with practice words, and then look at various finer details and pronunciation quirks often not taught to beginners.  Participants received a detailed pronunciation guide for later reference.  This is typically offered at the start of each several-week singing class series or before a workshop, and is open to anyone to attend, whether or not you are taking a singing class. Each of these upcoming dates covers the same material.  Held in English by Zina Bozzay, who has been teaching Hungarian pronunciation to non-Hungarian speakers for over a decade.

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- Sunday, January 10, 2021, 6-7pm Budapest time (the Sunday before the January class series below)

North America daytime, Europe evening: 9am California / 12pm New York / 5pm England / 8pm Istanbul

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- We may add a pronunciation class on Jan 11 or 12 if there is demand for it!

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- Individual pronunciation lessons/coaching scheduled upon request.

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Price:

Residents of Hungary:             1000 Ft.

International Participants:   Sliding scale $8-15 USD

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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.  If you are interested in learning more background information about the style, you can sign up for the January Sunday lecture series below in combination with the weekly singing class.

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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) Songs of Szilágyság and Kalotaszeg (Transylvania Semester Part I)

6-week Class Series: Tuesdays Jan 12 - Feb 16

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- Chestnut Group: Tuesdays 8:00-9:30am Budapest time

Europe daytime, Australia and New Zealand evening:

9pm Hawaii (Sunday) / 7am England / 3pm 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 / 9pm Istanbul

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Over the course of January - May 2021, we will learn a wide variety of songs from Transylvania, moving progressively moving 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 (and possibly Bukovina) (8 weeks, April 13 - May 30).

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Price:

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

Residents of Hungary:               10,000 Ft.                                                                  2000 Ft. per class

International Participants:     Sliding scale $60 - 150 USD                                  Sliding scale $12-25 USD per class

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2) January Cozy Sunday Sing

4-week Class Series: Sundays Jan 10 - Jan 31

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- Poppy Group: 7-8pm Budapest time

North America daytime, Europe evening: 10am California / 1pm New York / 6pm England / 9pm Istanbul​

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A one-hour Hungarian folk singing class on Sundays in January, with a new song each week.  This is held immediately before the Sunday lectures listed below, and you can register for it separately or together with those lectures.

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Price:

                                                           Full class series (four 1hr classes):             Drop-in (single class):

Residents of Hungary:               4500 Ft.                                                                       1500 Ft. per class

International Participants:     Sliding scale $35 - 60 USD                                      Sliding scale $10-20 USD per class

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3) Songs for Folk Dancing

6-week series: Tuesdays Feb 2 - Mar 9

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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 / 9:30pm 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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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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LECTURES AND WORKSHOPS

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January Sunday Lecture Series - 8:00-9:30pm Budapest time

11am California / 2pm New York / 7pm England / 8am (Mon) New Zealand

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All sessions are held in English, and are open to people of all backgrounds, with no previous experience required.  This series is designed to work well in conjunction with the singing class series above, but can also be attended independently of the singing classes. Some of these presentations are more interactive than others, depending on the topic.  This series of four lectures is somewhat cumulative, but each class can also be attended individually.

- Sunday, January 10: What is Hungarian folk singing?  A basic orientation and history of the style

- Sunday, January 17: Singing Technique in Hungarian Folk Singing

- Sunday, January 24: Hungarian Folk Music Instruments

- Sunday, January 31: About Song Collecting and How to Find Archival Recordings

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What is Hungarian folk singing?  A basic orientation and history of the style

Join us for a fun, accessible introduction to Hungarian folk singing.  This lecture/presentation will include defining the style, the cultural regions of the Hungarian language area, a brief history of village song collection and the folk music and dance revival movement, a variety of recordings, and an overview of the various types of songs.  You'll leave with a good well-rounded orientation to Hungarian folk singing.

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Singing Technique for Hungarian Folk Singing

This workshop is designed for people of all backgrounds who are interested in feeling more confident in their singing voices.  Listening to examples of village folk singing and learning about the tradition in its original context, you will learn about the basic approach and technique to singing within Hungarian folk music, about caring for your instrument, and about remedies for common problems that may be getting in the way of your voice sounding its best.  We will do helpful exercises to develop your voice and practice strategies to use when working on songs.  Your voice will feel warm and beautiful by the end of this class!  Participants will be muted for most of the class while trying the exercises in their own space, so there is no need to feel shy. Those who have previously attended classes or know some Hungarian folk songs can also bring a song to share for feedback and applying the techniques.

Hungarian Folk Music Instruments

Learn about all of the instruments used in traditional Hungarian village folk music -- if you think it's just a string band, there's a LOT more to it!  Gorgeous hand-carved wooden flutes, hurdy-gurdy, bagpipe, zither, and more.  This class will include photographs, listening to recordings, basic history, background information, differences between regions, current instrument makers, and other resources, and leave you feeling knowledgeable on the instruments of this style.

About Song Collecting and How to Find Archival Recordings

First, learn how village folk song collecting works and how to do collecting work yourself - wherever you live, even during Covid, on various topics.  Second, learn how to search for existing Hungarian folk song collections which can be accessed in online archives.  These source recordings are also known as village recordings, field recordings, or archival recordings.  You will learn where to find and how to navigate the archives of Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály as well as the collections of the Hungarian Heritage House and the Institute for Musicology at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.  The class will also include existing publications, tricks of the trade and common pitfalls, and other resources.

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Price:

                                                          Full series (four lectures):                                       Drop-in (single lecture):

Residents of Hungary:             7000 Ft.                                                                                  2000 Ft. per class

International Participants:   Sliding scale $40 - 100 USD                                               Sliding scale $12-25 USD per class

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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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Weekly class series will continue to be offered through end of May.  In the summer we plan to host a weeklong intensive summer camp, whether in person, online, or both.  Weekly classes will resume in September through December.  Whether or not we are able to hold in-person group classes, we plan to continue offering online classes even as coronavirus restrictions change.

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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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