The life path
Sándor Haáz is a teacher in the fullest sense of the word. He is a teacher as an instructor, as a transmitter of instrumental and musical knowledge, and as a conveyor of high art. He is a teacher as a community educator, for he is the driving force of the settlement’s cultural life. He organises and promotes music, folk song, folk art, folk dance, journalism, community life, organised collaboration, camping and summer camps. He is a teacher as an educator, leading by example through his work, the energy he invests, and his professional and human integrity. Since 1978, he has been the sole singing teacher of Szentegyházasfalu, the upper school of Szentegyháza (Vlăhița, Romania), a settlement in Székely Land of approximately 7,000 souls; there is hardly a person living in the settlement who has not been his pupil. However, as the above indicates, he is much more than a teacher of a general school subject.
He brought his love for education, public cultivation, and culture from his family. His grandfather arrived in Székelyudvarhely (Odorheiu Secuiesc) from Upper Hungary (Felvidék) as an art teacher in 1906, where he established an ethnographic museum. His father was also an art teacher, an ethnographer, and one of the founders of the Maros-Székely Népi Együttes (Maros-Székely Folk Ensemble). Sándor Haáz is the third generation in this teacher dynasty, and although he is a music teacher rather than an art teacher, the folk fine arts of Szentegyháza (Vlăhița) owe much to his organisational work.
He was born in Székelyudvarhely (Odorheiu Secuiesc), but the family moved to Marosvásárhely (Târgu Mureș) during his childhood. He completed the majority of his studies there, first as a music student at the Művészeti Líceum [Lyceum of Arts, a category of secondary school, particularly in European educational systems], and later obtaining his qualification as a singing and music teacher at the Tanárképző Főiskola (Teacher Training College). His instrumental studies are primarily linked to the violin.
In 1978, as a fresh graduate, the School Inspectorate placed him as a singing teacher at the Szentegyházi 1. sz. Mártonffi János Iskola (János Mártonffi Primary School No. 1 in Szentegyháza). To this day, this position remains his main occupation. At that time, he moved back to Székelyudvarhely, where his permanent residence is still located. Until 2013, he commuted daily from Székelyudvarhely to Szentegyháza, the distance between the two settlements being approximately 20 km.
At the school, he discovered the work of his two cantor-teacher predecessors and the potential therein. A children’s choir had operated in the institution for varying periods, a few pupils were learning to play the violin, and, upon the initiative of the school headmaster, a brass band was also established in 1978, which served the cultural needs of adults rather than children.
With the appearance of Sándor Haáz, both choral work and violin tuition received new momentum. Soon, two choirs were operating at the same time, and an increasing number of pupils were learning instruments. The choice of instruments was largely determined by the stock available in the village. Initially, there were only violins and recorders, as well as the instruments of the brass band; from 1981, three clarinets were added, from 1983 a double bass, and from 1990 the first cello.
The Gyermekfilharmónia (Children’s Philharmonic), which has since been awarded the Hungarian Heritage Prize, was created by the school year-end ceremony of 1982. Due to numerous other productions (drama, poetry recitation, etc.),The headmaster allocated only five minutes for the musical programme, consequently requiring the merger of the ensembles. The programme consisted of Beethoven’s Örömóda (Ode to Joy) and an excerpt from Bach’s Parasztkantáta (Peasant Cantata).
Encouraged by the success of the ensembles’ joint performance, the work continued, and in 1983, as a cohesive ensemble of 140 children, they participated in Romania’s most prestigious youth music competition, the Megéneklünk Románia (Cântarea României / Singing Romania) festival. During the Ceaușescu dictatorship, the 140 children dressed in Székely folk costumes achieved first place nationally before a Romanian jury, a feat repeated at every subsequent Megéneklünk Románia festival. (The festival was held every two years until the change of regime.)
The prize for winning was always a tour, so by 1989 the Children’'s Philharmonic Orchestra had become well known in many towns in Transylvania.
The first concert tour to the mother country took place in 1990, marking a turning point in the life of the ensemble. They found significant moral and financial supporters, and from this point onwards, trips to the mother country became regular occurrences; indeed, in time, such trips took place several times a year.
However, the political changes of 1989 presented new challenges for the Children’s Philharmonic as well; a new organisational structure had to be established. The school and the local government could not undertake the costs of financing the ensemble. Whereas previously the party committee had covered the costs of prize tours and performances, all central support suddenly ceased. In connection with this, the Gyermekfilharmónia Alapítvány (Children’s Philharmonic Foundation) was established in 1991 under the leadership of Sándor Haáz, followed by the Múzeum Szálló (Museum Hotel) in 1991. The former serves as the official organisational framework, while the latter serves self-financing purposes. The local government granted the Children’s Philharmonic the use of the upper floor and attic of the pioneer’s house [pioneer movement - youth organisation operated by the communist party] free of charge for maintenance purposes. With the help of South Tyrolean supporters acquired during the 1990 concert tour, the attic was converted, and the revenue from the Múzeum Szálló operating there assists the functioning of the Children’s Philharmonic. The music room is located upstairs, which is still the only place in the village where music lessons are held. Except for joint rehearsals, the ensemble’s rehearsals also take place here.
From 1992 to 2007, under the editorship of Sándor Haáz, the Szentegyházi Hírlap was published regularly, serving simultaneously as the cultural journal of the settlement.
Also starting from this year, they have organised their own festival, the Filharmónia Napok (Philharmonic Days), which attracts 300–400 invited guests and numerous visitors annually. Furthermore, the Homoródmenti Népdalvetélkedő (Folk Song Competition of the Homoród Region), the Prímásképző és Tánctábor (Primás Training and Dance Camp) [‘prímás’ is the leading violinist of Gypsy bands, who is the musical director of the ensemble], and the folk art Bútorfestő Tábor (Furniture Painting Camp) are also organised on an annual basis.
Since 1998, Sándor Haáz has annually published the Törpe daloskönyv (Tiny Songbook) series, which assists those wishing to sing by providing sheet music, containing mainly folk songs and canons. In 2007, by purchasing an old village farmhouse, the Foundation created a youth camping site, where an adventure park has since been operating.
In the meantime, a paediatric dental clinic was also established, likewise organised by the Foundation, which operated successfully for five years.
Until 2003, Sándor Haáz taught every instrument; currently, a female teacher (a former pupil of his) and a violin teacher commuting from Csíkszereda (Miercurea Ciuc) assist his work in training violinists, but he continues to teach the lower strings and wind instruments himself.
Until roughly the turn of the millennium, the 100-strong choir sang in three parts, and art music transcriptions constituted a significant portion of their repertoire. At that time, the ensemble’s new profile was formed, which is fundamentally based on folk songs and employs a unison choir. This solution was, for several reasons, born of necessity, yet it provides the ensemble’s unique soundscape and an exceptionally high-standard opportunity for cultivating folk music.
In 2011, the Children’s Philharmonic received an invitation for a European concert tour, performing in the European Parliament, among other venues.
On their 30th anniversary, according to the records, a total of 1,197 children had participated in the work of the Children’s Philharmonic over the 30 years. Sándor Haáz has performed, and continues to perform, the work of generations and entire teaching staffs in one person. He is a singing teacher, choir conductor, orchestra leader, teacher of violin, viola, cello, double bass, recorder, flute, clarinet, trumpet, horn, and tuba, leader of the brass band, leader of folk song competitions and folk dance camps, organiser of cultural festivals and folk art camps, arranger of every piece performed by the ensemble, editor-in-chief of all its publications, and coordinator of the life of the Foundation, the Tanulók Háza (Students’ House), the Múzeum Szálló (Museum Hotel), and the Filharmónia Ház (Philharmonic House).
The Children’s Philharmonic is the defining organisation of the cultural life of the settlement and the region, and the primary medium for the cultivation and transmission of folk tradition. The love of singing and communal music-making is present in almost every family; indeed, the classrooms of schools in Csíkszereda (Miercurea Ciuc) or Székelyudvarhely (Odorheiu Secuiesc) are loud with communal singing if they count several former Szentegyháza (Vlăhița) choir members among their ranks. There is barely a person from Szentegyháza (Vlăhița) who is not, in one way or another, a pupil of Sándor Haáz.
The Operation of the Children’s Philharmonic
The Children’s Philharmonic of Szentegyháza (Vlăhița) is not merely a youth music ensemble with the aim of music education and musical cultivation in the classical sense, but simultaneously fulfils a role in preserving folk tradition and sustaining the nation and community. Furthermore, its operation has very specific frameworks, as the 140-strong ensemble operates in a settlement of approx. 7,000 people (united from a village and a small mining town), and its work is not assisted by state maintenance, school-system training, or central budgetary sources. This requires organisational and structural solutions that one would hardly encounter in the mother country.
Since its foundation, the ensemble’s headcount has been 140: a choir of 100 and an orchestra of 40. This fixed number makes it possible for there to be “advertisable” places in the ensemble, and for participation in the ensemble’s activities to require work of appropriate discipline.
First, every member must prove themselves in the choir. Only after an appropriate period of choir membership may one stand on stage, and everyone, including orchestra members, must know the folk songs. As there is no music school, singing in the choir clears the children’s hearing and develops their musical memory (since the choir sings from memory in every instance).
Instrumental learning may commence after an appropriate level and quantity of choral work, provided there is teacher capacity and an instrument available. The parent (who in the majority of cases is a former pupil of Sándor Haáz themselves) requests Sándor Haáz to teach the child, essentially ensuring personal assumption of responsibility. After 2–3 years, one may audition in October of each year, and with a successful audition, one may be placed on the waiting list, as the size of the orchestra is fixed.
The orchestra possesses a specific instrumental composition: the string section comprises three violin parts, one or two cellos, and one or two double basses. The wind section consists of three flutes, three clarinets, furthermore three E-flat horns, two trumpets, and two tenor horns or trombones. This is complemented by a percussion section consisting of small percussion instruments. We find two reasons behind the high proportion of upper parts. Firstly, these are the instruments available; secondly, parents and children alike prefer these, as violinists may continue making music as ‘primás’ (lead violinists), and brass players as members of the brass band in adulthood.
Among other factors, the saturation of the orchestra’s upper parts made it possible and necessary for the choir to sing fundamentally in unison. In this way, everyone in the choir sings the folk songs, learning progresses much faster, teaching by ear is possible, significant teacher workforce capacity is freed up, and the ensemble has a special sound characteristic to it.
At the same time, the choir and the orchestra are important mediums for learning communal work. Regular attendance at rehearsals is an expectation from the start; older choir members themselves participate in directing the choral work, maintaining order during travels, and assisting the younger ones. Communal work, however, is not limited to travels. Almost the entire settlement joins in the operation of the Múzeum Szálló (Museum Hotel). Some take on tasks in preparing accommodation, some in cleaning, some in catering or serving guests, managing finances, or performing administrative duties. On summer dance house evenings, teachers or orchestra members provide the music, while choir members take turns in waiting tables and singing.
The ensemble represents not only its own music but also Székely Land and its folk culture; thus, for girls, hair dyeing or piercings, and for boys, earrings result in expulsion from the ensemble.
Besides the philharmonic life, members of the ensemble organise the settlement’s other cultural programmes and even its institutions (Philharmonic House, Paediatric Dental Clinic).
Due to the special instrumental composition, almost every programme number of the Children’s Philharmonic is a transcription, the vast majority of which are prepared by Sándor Haáz with an exceptional understanding of the instruments and the instrumentalists. Until 2012, the children copied the parts into their music notebooks themselves, and there were no scores for anything, as Sándor Haáz always conducts without sheet music. For the occasion of the 30th anniversary, the digitisation of the Children’s Philharmonic’s repertoire was completed, and printed part-books and scores were published (Filharmónia kottatár / Philharmonic Sheet Music Collection).
An interesting duality characterises the leadership of the ensemble. Every professional intention, concept, idea (and realisation) originates from Sándor Haáz. He is the alpha and omega of every musical question. At the same time, it cannot be said at all that the Philharmonic is his private enterprise. The ensemble, its successes, and everything connected to it are the fruit of the collective work of the entire settlement. The Children’s Philharmonic is more than an institution or a mission: it is a way of life.
Sándor Haáz’s Place in the Canon
As is evident from the above, Sándor Haáz is not a simple school singing teacher. Nor is he merely the ambitious leader of a youth orchestra and choir. The uniqueness of his work lies not in the number of pupils prepared for a musical career, not in the medals from choir competitions won, or in rivaling the recordings of Western-type youth orchestras. He is a polymath public teacher, educator, and community cultivator of a kind that barely exists in our institutionalised and specialised world today. He is a sign and a message for every music teacher, every educator, and every person cultivating culture, that the service of a sacred cause and the achievement of the goal of that service is not primarily a function of circumstances, but a question of human determination and ingenuity. His work provides an example of how one can serve the life of a given community to the maximum and bring the most out of it; at the same time, it does not call for others to serve the cause of Hungarian culture in exactly the same way, but to serve it with determination, in accordance with their own environment, strength, and creativity.
[2016]