The Kodály Institute at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga is a summer professional development institute for music teachers who want to pick up new teaching methods to bring back to their own pupils.
Named after Zóltan Kodály (pronounced KOH-dye), a Hungarian composer, musicologist and educator, the institute—under way since June 13 and concluding July 1—espouses the philosophy of Kodály’s approach to music education.
“He was highly regarded as a composer and he saw music not simply as a commodity or a thing that people do, but as a vibrant means of expressing culture and providing significant meaning to people’s lives,” said Lee Harris, UTC professor of music education and the director of the Kodály Institute.
“Although he certainly valued the performance of music and composition and the study of music, he believed that it was really important that schools have music as a significant part of the education of children because that was part of their culture.”
The Kodály Institute has been a part of UTC programming since 2000, and one of its rites of passage is the annual end-of-session concert.
This year’s recital takes place at 7 p.m. this Thursday, June 30, at Cadek Recital Hall and features the institute’s participants. Harris said the concert, which is free to the public, will feature pieces by Kodály, English composer Gustav Holst and American composer Samuel Barber.
“The people finishing their Kodály training and earning their certification will each perform as a singer or as an instrumentalist to demonstrate their musical skills,” Harris explained.