"As far as my own discipline, folk song research, is concerned, I must say that our late friend Ilmari Krohn was our best inspirer and example." Zoltán Kodály used these words to remember his colleague and friend on February 17, 1967, seventeen days before his death.
The aim of this paper was to explore what these last confessional words of Kodály concealed. What encouragement and example could the Finnish scholar set for Kodály and Bartók, who themselves became the inspirers and examples for ethnomusicologists second to none not only at home but all over the world? In what ways was Krohn their "best inspirer and example?" Kodály himself did not utter any more words about this, but the rich implications of this single sentence can be taken for granted. To achieve the goal, I first checked all Kodály and Bartók writings for mentions of, or references to, Krohn. Next I perused all Krohn's writings that might have been known by Kodály and Bartók, and compared them with the Hungarian sch
olars' writings to see what similar ideas could be discerned in them even if no name is mentioned. Thirdly, I compared Krohn's writings with Kodály's and Bartók's scientific efforts in practice to discover any influence of Krohn. In this way it was possible to retrace the historical process of Krohn's ideas moulding or contributing to the Hungarian scholars' scientific attitude and program. Most convincing were the loci where not only Krohn's ideas but also the reasoning arguments, sometimes even his own words, were borrowed by Kodály and Bartók. The dissertation demonstrates Krohn's influence on Kodály's and Bartók's ethnomusicological theory and practice, and through them, on the entire Hungarian ethnomusicological school, in the following areas. 1) In scientific folksong publications, the material must be presented in a lexicographical musical system based on the peculiarities of the tunes. 2) It is best to have the material archived in this way. 3) For easier comparison, the tunes must be reduced to a common final, the most suitable being gl. 4) The method of classification called "modified Krohn-system" uses the following criteria defined by Krohn: main classification by endings to tune-lines, the specific order of importance of the endings and the compass. 5) Marking the notes with Roman numerals below the tonic and Arabic numerals above it. 6) Any classification must begin with the differentiation of various categories. 7) In Bartók's case, tunes of several lines are also reinterpreted as four-lined strophes. 8) In Kodály's case, the unconditional primacy of melody to rhythm. 9) The idea and program of comparative folksong research. The outcome is the comprehensive work of both scholars in this area. 10) The idea and program of publishing the whole stock of a nation's folksongs. The outcome is the continuous publication of the Collection of Hungarian Folksongs (Corpus Hungariae Popularis Musicae). The author concludes that all that has turned Hungarian ethnomusicology into what it actually is, into an inspiration and paragon for the entire world, can in essentials be traced to the "inspiration and example" of Krohn. This fully proves Kodály's words added later to the above statement: "All our discipline is the disciple of the Finns..."
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