Ilona Kossuth Prize-winning folk singer, Artist of the Nation, died at the age of seventy-two.

Ilona Budai's first success was the 1968 Ki mit tude? and in the competition Nyílik a rózza, then in 1970, in addition to the first prize, he also won the special prize of Zoltánné Kodály at the Röpülj, páva national folk song competition. It was then that he began his collaboration with Béla Halmos and Ferenc Sebő in the dance hall movement. In 1971, she graduated from the nursery school in Sopron, then between 1972 and 1977 she graduated from the Bartók Béla Music Academy.

He gave his first independent folk song concert in 1976. His first solo album was released in 1978. In this year, the Vikár Béla Folk Choir was founded by young people from Budapest. From the mid-1970s, he collected folk songs and folk tales in the Hungarian-inhabited regions of the surrounding countries. In 2001, he produced his first story cassette for children, followed by a cassette for adults. His first CD was released in 1995. From 1986 he taught the III. in the folk music department of the district music school, which is now the Óbuda Folk Music School . He taught at the folk music department of the Ferenc Liszt University of Music and led folk music camps since 1975. Magyar Rádio had a program called Let's sing together for ten years from 1987, and then from 1997 called Fúvom az énem. From 2008, he edited and hosted a folk music show on Hungarian Catholic Radio. He has been teaching since 1986.

His awards include: Zoltán Kodály Award, Hungarian Rádió Level Award, Small Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit, Hungarian Heritage Award, Middle Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit, Kossuth Award.

earlier interview, Ilona Budai said:

Singing is the business of the soul, he who sings prays doubly, as Babits said.

In the conversation, he also expressed his joy about the fact that a few years ago, the folk singing course was started at the University of Music, from which the trained performers and teachers are coming out.

Source: Hungarian Nation

Cover photo: Ilona Budai (MTI Photo: Gyula Czimbal)