Music/Folklore paper by Olson, Judith
Acquired History: How Hungarians in America Connect with their Past through Folk Music and Dance
Type of Abstract (select):Abstract (max. 250 words):
This study explores two contradictory forces affecting Hungarians in the New World and their interaction with Hungarian folklore and tradition—the first is the natural impulse to maintain ideas brought with them from Hungary; the second, the blending of ideas and practices which occurs within an expatriate group with heterogeneous backgrounds as they build a community-based on maintaining ties with an Hungarian heritage.
Immigration of Hungarians to the US and Canada throughout the last century has occurred in waves, each wave coinciding with different reasons for leaving Hungary and affecting certain economic and social groups. In addition, American Hungarians vary in their distance from true folklore. For some, folklore is an extension of their experience; for others it is a new background, which they embrace as a tie to a homeland, sometimes many generations behind them.
A major event where Hungarians of diverse backgrounds come together, bound by a shared motherland but varying experiences, is Hungarian Day, which takes place the first Saturday in June every year in New Brunswick, New Jersey. This paper will combine interviews and videos from events at Hungarian Day to show how differing ideas as to what people like, the appropriate use of folklore, and even what is Hungarian, are revealed in stage presentations.
I suggest that for many, the ideas represented in their individual presentations form a snapshot of ideas on folklore in Hungary when the group came here. We will also explore the degree to which the event reflects a sort of pan-Hungarian cultural space in which people from varied backgrounds are able to interact.
Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
computer projection
Acquired History: How Hungarians in America Connect with their Past through Folk Music and Dance
Type of Abstract (select):Abstract (max. 250 words):
This study explores two contradictory forces affecting Hungarians in the New World and their interaction with Hungarian folklore and tradition—the first is the natural impulse to maintain ideas brought with them from Hungary. The second, the blending of ideas and practices which occurs within an ex-patriot group with heterogeneous backgrounds as they build a community based on maintaining ties with an Hungarian heritage.
Immigration of Hungarians to the US and Canada throughout the last century has occurred in waves, each wave coinciding with different reasons for leaving Hungary and affecting certain economic and social groups. In addition, American Hungarians vary in their distance from true folklore. For some, folklore is an extension of their experience; for others it is a new background, which they embrace as a tie to a homeland, sometimes many generations behind them.
A major event where Hungarians of diverse backgrounds come together, bound by a shared motherland but varying experiences, is Hungarian Day, which takes place the first Saturday in June every year in New Brunswick, New Jersey. This paper will combine interviews and videos from events at Hungarian Day to show how differing ideas as to what people like, the appropriate use of folklore, and even what is Hungarian, are revealed in stage presentations.
I suggest that for many, the ideas represented in their individual presentations form a snapshot of ideas on folklore in Hungary when the group came here. We will also explore the degree to which the event reflects a sort of pan-Hungarian cultural space in which people from varied backgrounds are able to interact.
Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
computer projection with audio