EMBrace music

Embrace music — That is the motto we have adopted. In other words, we want to help you to make music an integral part of your life.

Music is all around us these days; it stimulates us more intensely and prevalently than ever before. But do we relate to it passively or actively? Are we merely consumers or makers of music as well?

We at EMB know that making music brings joy. That joy is multiplied and shared by playing to others. What’s more, making music develops individual values, such as concentration, openness, sensitivity, collaboration, and concern for others.

Our aim is to allow as many people of all ages to experience the wonder and value of music.

The Microcosm of String Ensemble Music

Bartók's Mikrokosmos is perhaps the 20th century's most influential set of piano pieces and one of the milestones in pedagogical piano repertoire. 

The Microcosm of String Ensemble Music provides 148 transcriptions from this series for making music for various string ensembles and graded in four volumes according to level of difficulty.

1. Elementary (first position): for three violins and cello or children's string orchestra

2. Intermediate: for three violins and cello or string quartet or junior string orchestra

3. Advanced: for string quartet and quintet or string orchestra

4. Advanced: for string orchestra

Recordings are available at our YouTube channel.

Highlighted: Corridoors by Tibor Csuhaj-Barna

The composer was inspired to write these pieces by the Corridor Quartet (György Lakatos, Mihály Duffek, Zsófia Stefán, and Sára Rebeka Tóth), with their open attitude to music and their enchanting sound world.

The timbres of the bassoon harmony are emphasised still more by being joined by the double bass, and by a voice or flute soaring above them. One reviewer writes of the CD Corridoors:

'Easy to listen to, but modern: modern, and yet easy to listen to. And because of the sound of the bassoons, it's spiced with a kind of fantasy mood, a kind of ''Lord of the Rings'' feel.' (jazzma.hu, Károly Gáspár)

New Urtext edition of Bartók’s complete choral works

A new Urtext edition of Béla Bartók’s complete choral works was launched in March 2021.

The three-volume edition is based on volume 9 of the Béla Bartók Complete Critical Edition (Z. 15009), a joint publication of G. Henle Verlag, Munich, and Editio Musica Budapest Zeneműkiadó. The lyrics in this edition are in the original languages and in the translations authorized by the composer. Literal English translations are provided in the appendix, which also includes early and alternative versions of the works.

Our edition is distinguished by absolute authenticity regarding both the musical text and the style of notation, as well as superior engraving and print quality. The edition is complete with informative prefaces (in Hungarian, English, and German) and detailed Editorial Comments (in Hungarian and English). The Comments give an overview of the textual, folk-music, and compositional sources, and provide detailed information on the performance practice of Bartók’s choral works.

The volumes have been printed on high-quality and environmentally-friendly paper.

The three volumes are available in two formats: paperback and clothbound. The paperback editions can be bought separately, while the clothbound volumes are available only together in a slipcase.

Each work included in these volumes will also be published separately during the following months.

New orchestra material of Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra released

A new orchestra material of Béla Bartók’s orchestral highlight, Concerto for Orchestra, composed in 1943 in the United States, is now available on hire. Concerto for Orchestra is the first orchestra material produced from the Béla Bartók Complete Critical Edition (BBCCE), a joint publication of G. Henle Verlag, Munich, and Editio Musica Budapest Zeneműkiadó. (The full score in the BBCCE and Henle’s study score are also available on sale.)

In preparing this edition, the first edition, all compositional sources as well as the sound recordings made in Bartók’s lifetime have been critically evaluated. The orchestra parts were carefully prepared in terms of accuracy, easy legibility, as well as sensible cues and page turns. The parts have been tested by the Hungarian National Philharmonic, a leading orchestra with a unique experience in playing Bartók. The conductor’s score and the parts share the same big format (25×32.5 cm), and are printed on superior-quality paper.

One set includes two conductor’s scores, 9-8-7-6-5 strings, 4 copies of percussion, and one copy of each of the remaining parts. The material is available on hire at Universal Music Publishing Editio Musica Budapest Ltd.

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