Interview with
Pál Havasréti
of
Téka  Ensemble

Pál Havasréti is one of the founding members of the Hungarian folk music ensemble Téka. As well as collecting, researching and arranging songs for the group he plays the following instruments: contrabass, ütogardon (hit gardon), cello, hurdy gurdy, zither, percussion, and drum. In addition to this he is part of the management group that runs the successful Dance-house Guild (Táncház Egyesület) in Budapest.

Téka Ensemble was formed in 1976 and from the very beginning have belonged to the leading ensembles of the 'new wave of folk music' in Hungary. Indeed, as early as 1977 they were awarded the title 'Young Masters of Folk Art'.

The group plays authentic Hungarian peasant music, their repertoire emphasising the traditional style of playing and the original feel of the folk music. They play string instruments: violin, viola, double bass, cello and other unique folk instruments such as: bagpipe-borduda, hurdy-gurdy-tekero, cimbalom, and ütogardon. With these instruments they reproduce a colourful picture of village music from all the Hungarian-speaking territories.

Having released over 20 albums, they have toured the world over and surely are masters of their art.

August 2002

Ian Morrison (IM) What is your early background in music?

Pál Havasréti (PH) When attending primary school I had intense singing lessons and learned to play the piano. At that time the Kodaly method of teaching was very popular in Hungary and we were taught many many Hungarian songs and ballads.

(IM) What was your first exposure to Hungarian folk music?

(PH) My grandparents lived in a village and every summer I spent my vacation in there. In my grandma's village, Tolmács in Nógrád county, there lived bagpipe player and I heard him play. At that time you could hear acoustic string orchestras play at weddings, not electric one man band with a synthesizer.

(IM) When Téka first came together 1976 what was the demand for Hungarian folk music?

(PH) During 1974-76 in Budapest the tanchaz was very popular, and with my class-mate László Porteleki (first fiddler with Téka) I often visited them for fun and dancing. 1976 was my last year in swimming and water polo, and having just finished my grammar school, my summer was free. It was then that László Porteleki invited me to a music and dance camp to play music. At that time I played only the zither, but at the camp I had my first contrabass lessons, the teachers being musicians from the Sebõ and Muzsikás ensembles. At the end of our time at the camp we (László Porteleki, György Lányi, Pál Havasréti) decided to start a music band. Sipos Mihály (violinist with Muzsikás) gived to us the name Téka, he is our godfather.

Today the members of Téka are:
Beatrix Tárnoki - voice, lute
Balázs Vizeli - fiddle
György Lányi - viola, bagpipe-, lute
Pál Havasréti - contrabass, cello, hurdy gurdy, voice, zither, percussion, ütogardon and drum

(IM) Where you influenced by the work of Ferenc Sebõ?

(PH) Ferenc Sebõ and Sándor Csoóri were my tekerõ (hurdy-gurdy) teachers and are exemplary performers.

(IM) How easy was it in the first years of Téka to get your recordings released?
(PH) At that time it was unimaginable, our first album release in Hungary was in 1989 after 13 years! We had some awards, '77 Young Masters of Folk Arts, '82 Attendant for Hungarians, '86 Standard-level reward, and from '81 Téka was the first authentic folk band in the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble.

But it was impossible for us to produce an LP in Hungary, nationalistic values were dangerous and unpredictable for the government...  they were very careful with poets, musicians, who were visiting the dance-houses (Tanchaz) at that time. We where just tolerated as children.

So we had to find another way, an underground (illegal) solution. Between '80 and '86 we recorded four LPs and a music cassette series (seven different dance cycles) for a dance teachers who did not have an authentic music band.


(2)Téka Ensemble circa1988

(IM) Do you recall your first visit to a village to collect music?

(PH) Yes, it was during the 1976 winter in Szék village (Transylvania), and we learned more on that trip than half year practicing in a room listening to a tape-recorder. Real music in a real function - it's the fastest way to understand music. We didn't sleep over 3 days, just recharging with music and with honesty. The musicians taught us like we were their sons. During that time in Transylvania we weren't allow to sleep anywhere at night, once we walked down a dark street in -2O Celsius-degrees playing music the whole day. It was hard, tiring and funny too, once wandering we saw far away a small light, and were happy to find somebody. But we walked in a back door where was a outfall for the pálinka-boiling house, a big and deep lake from secondary product, we were almost drowned. But we found the right way and tasted an excellent szilvapálinka, and workers were singing for us into our tape recorder, so it was a lucky night. (On this same night a soldier was frozen to death when he attempted to walk home).

(IM) How do you go about learning the songs and style of the village musicians?

(PH) Before a traveling we look around for songs, texts, traditions, so we have an idea of what we would like to find. We have had much help, and tips from the folk music collectors and researchers such as: Zoltán Kallós, György Martin, Imre Olsvai and others.

Usually we have some important gifts for them (food, tools, utensils, instruments) and we become friends, or like a members of the family. Sometimes they love how we play music and it is fundamental of the friendship between us.

We have visited many times during weddings, name days celebrations etc, and just learned the music by ear because many village musicians cannot read music notations. They just play virtuoso, excellent, but can't tell you how. It has taken a long time to understand what they can do.

(IM) Are the village musicians cautious towards city visitors?

(PH) No, the Hungarian hospitality is famous and comes as standard in any situation.

(IM) What is you favorite place to visit when collecting folk music?

(PH) Mainly the places where we can find the oldest style of music and singing: Szék, Magyarszovát, Válaszút, Magyarbece, Nagysajó, Gyimes and also where there lives some masters of traditional music like in Alföld hurdy-gurdy players, Felvidék bagpipe players, Magyarpalatka-Mezõség, Méra-Kalotaszeg, Küküllõ mente, Moldvai-Csangó villages.

(IM) What was it like working with Ferenc Szántó and how did this project come about?

(PH) When we were with the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble there worked Zsigmond Székely who came from Lõrincréve village. It is from there that Zsigmond Karsai, one of the best dancers, was born. They taught us how to play this music well. But it wasn't enough for me and I asked Zoltán Kallós where I could find a good player from the Küküllõ area. He remembered one shepherd flute player who could be of help to me, Ferenc Szántó. So I traveled to Magyarbece to find Szántó and make a film on how he plays his music. Later on I visited him hundreds of times, and went with him to see the most famous players in the Nagyenyed area. We invited him to come and play at our táncház, and at this time we where in a studio recording the CD 'Erdélyország sok szép vize' (TVM 106). He was interested in how we were recording and just for fun we make some recordings together. It was excellent, so afterwards we decided on recording 'Mestereink' (FA040), and organize a tour of Europe with Ferenc Szántó who is as well as a flute player, a virtuous fiddler, a fantastic singer and dancer.

(IM) How do you go about collecting a songs such as 'Verbuvalnak Szek Varosan' which is 24 minutes long?

(PH) The idea was to produce a CD to commemorate the 150^th anniversary of the revolution, the Hungarian war of independence in 1848-1849. Soldiers songs are very rich in music of Szék, and are mostly szapora lassú dances (slow dances). The texts are inspiration not only for sorrow but also for self-respect!

I have a many young hussar friends who asked me to make a recording of this. So I invited to the studio the popular authentic village singer from Szék, Márk Zsuzsanna who has been a good friend of ours for many years.

End of part one

Part two of this interview this way>> 

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