Károly Bura Gypsy First Violinist

This excellent book is the first to present the life and work of legendary first violinistKároly Bura. Tracing the life path of Károly Bura, the author of the book,Tamás Hajnáczky, succeeds in presenting the whole turbulent historical epochafter the breaking up of the Austro-Hungarian empire, a time when HungarianGypsy musicians together with their compatriots experienced Trianon traumaand took part in an affirmation of the Hungarian national idea. The book tellsthe fascinating story of Hungarian Gypsy musicians, who were not simply passiverecipients of policy measures and victims of historical circumstances but werealso active architects of their lives and who made a significant contribution toHungarian culture and Gypsy culture as well. The young, but already experiencedscholar, Tamás Hajnáczky, succeeds in superbly illustrating how the efforts ofKároly Bura, and the Gypsy musicians' organizations in which he was a movingforce, contributed to making Gypsy music an inseparable part of Hungarian nationalculture. The book presents the struggle of Károly Bura to secure for Gypsymusicians an equal and decent place in Hungarian society, and, at the same timeand within that framework, how he contributed to the preservation and developmentof the Gypsy musicians' identity.The book demonstrates novelty, originality, and distinctiveness and is a mustreading for everybody interested not only in Gypsy music, Roma history but alsofor history scholars interested in the region and this specific historical period.