History/Political Science paper by Kádár Lynn, Katalin
Book Roundtable Proposal: A Thorn in the Rosebush: The American Bartók Estate and Archives During the Cold War, 1946-1967 (Accepted)
Type of Abstract (select):Abstract (max. 250 words):
I'd like to propose a book discussion of musicologist Carl Leafstedt's newly released "A Thorn in the Rosebush" ( Helena History Press 2021)
This book opens up new perspectives on the history of Béla Bartók's music in the 20th century. It joins a growing literature on music and the Cultural Cold War. It draws inspiration from a trove of historic correspondence discovered in Massachusetts in 2010, written by Béla Bartók's executor and trustee, Victor Bator. Bator, an accomplished Hungarian-American businessman, had been personally appointed in this role by the composer. Epic transcontinental legal battles dragged on for decades fending off challenges against the estate by Hungarian government attorneys eager to wrest Bartók's legacy from New York City and return it to Budapest. This is the story of one man's battle to keep the American Bartók Estate and Archives from falling into Communist hands during the Cold War.
The author introduced his research on this topic at an AHEA conference in 2016. We are pleased that at our 2022 conference we will be able to introduce this masterly piece of historical scholarship to AHEA members and the greater reading public.
Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Roundtable members to be announced.
Chair: Peter Laki, Bard College