Ferenc Sapszon was born into a family of musicians as the oldest of three sons. Although both of his younger brothers showed musical interest, he was the only one who became a full-time musician. His father, Ferenc Sapszon Sr. (1929–2011), was a Liszt and Bartók–Pásztory Prize-winning conductor, an Artist of Merit and Distinguished Artist, and a recipient of the Hungarian Heritage Award in 2010. He served as honorary president of the Association of Hungarian Choirs, Orchestras and Folk Music Ensembles (KÓTA) and was the respected and beloved choir director of the Hungarian Radio Choir from 1966 to 1990. To understand Ferenc Sapszon’s professional calling and the key decisions in his life, it is essential to know his father’s career as well.
Ferenc Sapszon Sr. was active not only in the professional choral world but also in the amateur sphere: he led the Semmelweis Choir from 1952 to 1985 and the Bartók Choir from 1964 to 1978. He later conducted the Pro Musica Choir in Budaörs (from 1984) and the Vass Lajos Choir of Hungarian teachers in Slovakia (from 1997 to 2006). Growing up in this environment, Ferenc Sapszon naturally gravitated toward music. His mother had also studied at the Liszt Academy of Music but gave up her studies after the birth of her children, dedicating her life and love to her family – a mindset that deeply influenced her son’s outlook on life.
His musical education began early: together with his brothers, he attended Katalin Forrai’s music kindergarten, followed by the Hungarian Radio Children’s Choir. Alongside learning to play instruments, he was also active in sports. Under the tutelage of László Csányi, he conducted his class choir in the end-of-year concert as early as the second grade. Similar moments recurred later in his life – wherever he went, he formed a choir. “There must have been something instinctive about it,” he later reflected. “Now I know I inherited that ‘choral vein’ from my father – it defines an entire way of life. Conducting a choir was as natural to him as water is to a fish. The same is true for me, though I didn’t realize it as a child. At the Radio School we received an enormous education in folk songs, and we learned to read music as if it were our native language.” [1]
He won several school competitions in various subjects and continued to play the piano with determination. His outstanding piano teacher was Ilona Szűcs, the mother of composer Péter Eötvös. He later attended the Radnóti Gymnasium, where his music teacher was Béla Pallós, all while continuing to play basketball at a high level.
In his second year, he transferred to the Bartók Béla Secondary School of Music, where his teacher followed him. Later he studied under Lehel Both and Marianne Ábrahám. Among his classmates were Zoltán Kocsis and Dezső Ránki. In his second year, he reached the finals of a national piano competition. The winning Budapest team included László Lantos, Zoltán Kocsis, Dezső Ránki, Kálmán Dráfi, Imre Rohmann, and Gergely Szokolay. Just three days before the final round, however, he injured one of his fingers – but still performed every piece flawlessly, playing with only nine fingers.
At the Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on Mária Street, he became a member of a community and met an educator from the catholic Regnum Marianum community, Nándor Tompa. The charismatic personality had such a profound influence on the young Sapszon that it shaped his entire future life. When the leader of the Mária Street community (Árpád Alberti, also from the Regnum community) was transferred, Sapszon took over his role. Before long, the group evolved into a regularly serving choir under its barely twenty-year-old conductor. He recalls fond memories from that time: they would visit hospitals to sing for the sick, and once, during Christmas, they visited Lajos Bárdos and his family, performing a Nativity play for them.
Since many people knew about his religious involvement, he was not admitted to the department of teacher education at the Academy of Music – a typical practice of the party-state regime. However, as it seemed that the piano would be his main instrument, he completed his studies at the Teacher Training Faculty of the Liszt Ferenc University of Music, majoring in piano. His teachers included Lajos Sztankay, György Deák Bárdos, Gábor Friss, Imre Földes, and György Miklós. The choir there was directed by Tibor Szabó, who occasionally entrusted him with leading rehearsals. He was also often invited to assist in the Academy’s choir, mainly for diploma concerts. Meanwhile, he worked with several other choirs, such as the Ganz MÁVAG Steel Voice Male Choir, led by György Tornyos. Their regular guest conductor was Zoltán Vásárhelyi, and Lajos Bárdos also visited the choir several times.
After completing his piano studies, he applied to the Academy’s legendary program for secondary school music teachers and choir conductors, where he was finally accepted. He earned his degree under the mentorship of István Párkai, Erzsébet Hegyi, Olivér Nagy, Sándor Szokolay, and András Pernye.
He learned wherever he could. He attended rehearsals by László Dobszay, among other distinguished teachers. One of his most inspiring mentors was Father Emil Naszályi, a passionate and somewhat reclusive priest living in Zirc, whom even Kodály held in high esteem. It was thanks to him that Sapszon became acquainted with the mysteries of Gregorian chant and deepened his understanding of it.
From 1978 for ten years, he worked as a music teacher at the Tadeusz Kościuszko Primary School of Music in Budapest’s 1st District. It was there that he came to understand the true essence of music pedagogy and realized how profoundly music can nurture and uplift the soul of a child. Although the school had a music-focused curriculum, he had to rebuild everything almost from scratch – starting with the choir. Sapszon founded the Jubilate Childen’s Choir, which, after years of dedicated and meticulous work, achieved one success after another both in Hungary and abroad. (This work came to an end after ten years because by then the plan for a choir school – a long-held idea of his – had fully matured and crystallized.) At the “Kosci,” as the school was affectionately called, Sapszon began what could be described as a pedagogical experiment. He became a homeroom teacher to spend even more time with his students. He taught them to appreciate silence, to love nature, and eventually to make these experiences a vital part of their lives. For him, constant presence, joyfulness, and a close, personal relationship with the children were of utmost importance – as taught by his role model, Don Bosco, the founder of the Salesian Order.
He soon became one of the most beloved and respected teachers at the school, while maintaining his authority and the students’ deep respect.
In 1978, with a scholarship from the Soros Foundation, Sapszon developed the long-cherished plan for his Choir School. He gained the support of renowned figures such as Sándor Szokolay, László Vámos, Péter Huszti, and Erzsébet Szőnyi. After much misunderstanding and persistent effort, he was finally granted a small building in Budapest’s 15th District, Újpalota – essentially a tiny wooden house with a few classrooms. Although he originally planned to start with eight grades, the school opened with only three. For those who could not yet be admitted, he held choir rehearsals and solfège classes on Saturdays. It is important to note that the Choir School opened its doors in 1988 – before the political transition.
In 2001, the school choir traveled to the Vatican to take part in the Hungarian Millennium celebrations, where they sang for Pope John Paul II, who blessed both the choir and the school.
Meanwhile, Sapszon was also drawn to teaching choral conducting. From 1996 to 2000, he taught at the newly launched Department of Music at the Teacher Training College of Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), and from 2003 to 2011, he was a faculty member at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music.
In 1996, at the request of former students of the Choir School, he founded the Cantate Mixed Choir, which he still leads today. The ensemble has toured the world, won nearly every major choral prize, and made numerous recordings.
Ferenc Sapszon is happy to accept various professional invitations – he lectures at conferences, spreads the good news about the value of communal singing, and talks about the essence of the choir school. He has given demonstrations, lectures, and courses in Japan, Romania, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, the United States, and, of course, in Hungary as well.
He has served as a jury member at numerous events, including the Kodály Zoltán Choir Festival in Komló, the Festival Tonen 2000 in the Netherlands, the Debrecen International Choir Competition, the Riva del Garda International Choir Competition, the Budapest International Choir Competition, and the Kodály Zoltán Hungarian Choir Competition.
With his choirs, he has won many awards – including special prizes for choir conducting. With the Jubilate Choir, he earned prestigious prizes not only in Hungary but also in Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, France, the Netherlands, Austria, and Italy. With the Cantate Mixed Choir, he won awards in Germany, Austria, and Italy. In 2006, the school’s choral art received the Hungarian Heritage Award.
Today he is the leader of a true singing community – a “choir family” – and serves as the artistic director of the Kodály Zoltán Choir School. Much of the work is now carried out by his former students, yet the “soul” of the school remains “Feri bácsi”, who always finds time for students in need – those struggling with life’s challenges or simply wishing to sit down and talk.
What Ferenc Sapszon has created is a modern embodiment of Zoltán Kodály’s vision. The well-known Kodály quote – “Let music belong to everyone!” – becomes a living reality here. The students of the school almost imperceptibly enter the realm of music – not only through learning notes or musical works, but by developing true musical literacy and recognizing the importance of singing. The young people who graduate from the Choir School do not necessarily become professional musicians, yet music remains a vital and defining part of their lives.
His writings have been published in music journals. His creative work focuses mainly on arrangements of sacred melodies – an integral part of his career as a conductor (e.g. Suscipe Domine – Songs for mixed and equal voices, Four Marian Songs, To Jesus with Mary). These choral arrangements are singable and accessible, serving to popularize well-known sacred folk hymns.
His exercise book for choir members – Az intonáció iskolája I. – Pentatónia (The School of Intonation I: Pentatony) (a handbook for choir conductors) – and his excellent Canon Collection have also been published by the Choir School.
When asked in an earlier interview about the place of God in his life and work, Sapszon replied:
“At the centre. We, as educators, are nothing more than observant and constantly grateful co-workers. God gives us life as a gift, gives us the goal – fulfillment – and the talents through which we may reach it. Our task is to observe what God intends for each person and to help them achieve that purpose. We are instruments so that the child may become what God has called them to be.
The purpose of life is given by God. We do not need to invent our own educational purpose. Our task is to prepare the soil beneath, to make the heart pliable and receptive, to awaken the child to the greatness of their calling – to make them realize that God loves them, that they are valuable. Education, pedagogy, therefore, is the humble, helping service of human growth.”
[2016]
Sources:
[1] Fehér Anikó: Muzsika a katedrán. LFZE, 2011
[2] Fehér Anikó: Muzsika a katedrán. LFZE, 2011