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October 1, 1899 Lajos Bárdos was born in Budapest the third of five children. He learned to play violin and was an active participant in the scout movement.
1917 Soldier.
1919 Studied one year at the Mechanical University.
1920 Admitted to the Music Academy. In the first year he studied under Albert Siklós, later under Zoltán Kodály.
Summer of 1921 Composed his first work for mixed choir (“Szello zúg távol”) at a Boy Scout camp in Bakonybél. In an interview he said: “it happened here for the first time that young men from the town sang folk songs.”
January 1925 Travelled to Turkey, became acquainted with oriental music and collected Turkish folk songs.
Fall 1925 - Summer 1929 Taught singing and conducted a choir at the Attila street Secondary School.
Fall 1925 - Summer 1942 Conducted the Cecília Choir of the Városmajor Church.
1926 Married Irén Waliczky. Part-time teacher at the Music Academy.
1928 -1966 Professor at the Music Academy.
1930 Together with Gyula Kertész he started the Magyar Kórus Kiadóvállalat (Hungarian Choir Publishing Firm).
1932 Performed the mystery dramas “Eight Beatitudes” and “Saint of Roses” written together with Valéria Dienes. With the Palestrina Choir they performed Stravinsky’s Psalm Symphony with great success.
1933 Collected folk songs in the Hódmezovásárhely area. April: performed in Vienna with the Palestrina Choir. August: musical leader of the World Jamboree in Gödöllo.
1934 The first “Singing Youth” concert at the Music Academy. He conducted the final combined choirs.
1935 First performance of his Missa Prima.
1936 A festive concert at the Music Academy celebrating his tenth anniversary as a professor of the Academy.
1938 Wrote the school book Énekes Ábécé together with György Kerényi, Gyula Kertész and Benjamin Rajeczky. He was the president of the St. Cecília Society, an organisation for sacred music.
1939 Toured with the Cecília Choir in Western Europe. First performance of the oratorio “St. Margit from the House of Árpád” on Margaret Island.
1940 Toured with the Cecília Choir in Belgrad and Zimony.
1941 Combined the Cecília Choir and the Palestrina Choir to create the Budapest Choir.
1942 Singing Youth concert in Máramarossziget and Kolozsvár. Performed Stravinsky’s Psalm Symphony with the Budapest Choir as well. As an innovation he added explanations to the music. August: He was appointed to be the conductor of the Matthias Church, a position he held until 1962.
1946 Performed the “Alexius Suite” with the Choir of the Matthias Church on Hungarian Radio. (Based on the text by Sándor Sík.)
1947 Became the art director of the Bartók Federation and president of the National Federation of Hungarian Song Clubs.
1948 First performance of the canon “Boldogasszony” in Makó with four choirs. Received the Order of the Knights of Saint Gregory the Great from Pope Pius XII.
October 15, 1950 The Hungarian Choir Publishing Firm was nationalized.
1951 The Music Science Faculty was started at the Music Academy, where he was the professor of music theory and prosody.
1953 Erkel Prize, Distinguished Worker of Higher Education.
1954 Meritorious Artist.
1955 Kossuth Prize.
1961 Conducted the united choir of 17 choirs at the Helikon Festival in Keszthely. His theoretical work Modal Harmonies appeared.
1962 Stopped conducting the Choir of the Matthias Church due to severe heart problems.
1966 Retired from the Music Academy.
1969 Concerts on his 70th birthday countrywide: Pécs, Szeged, Vác, Dunaújváros, Miskolc, Gyor, Nyíregyháza. He was awarded the Order of Labour.
1970 Distinguished Artist.
1976 His theoretical book Ferenc Liszt, the Composer of the Future appeared.
1977 Bartók Melodies and the Folk Music appears.
1979 On his 80th birthday concerts all over the country. Received the Flag Order of the Hungarian People’s Republic and became Knight Commander of the Order of Saint Gregory the Great.
1980 Audience Award of the Hungarian Radio for the choral work “The Supplication of Jeremiah”
1984 85th birthday concerts countrywide. Bartók-Pásztory Prize, Via Giulia Prize from the Hungarian Institute of Rome, Flag Order of the Hungarian People’s Republic Decorated with Laurels.
1985 “For the Children” Prize. He became Doctor of Academy of music theory.
November 18, 1986 Died.