This interview highlights Betty Hillmon’s upbringing, career, and interactions with African American folk singer Bessie Jones. Through her reflections about “Miss Bessie” and the musical style she embodied, Betty reveals a nuanced understanding of this vernacular singing tradition. An accomplished cellist, Betty was a member of the 1971 cohort to study in Hungary through Alexander Ringer’s Kodály Fellowship Program funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, and she looks back on her life in a manner that is insightful, hilarious, and relevant. 

Find a guide to people referenced and citations for this episode at www.oake.org/oake-podcast/.

Created and hosted by Megan Ankuda
© OAKE 2021

This is the first in a series of interviews leading up to the 50th Anniversary of the OAKE detailing the experiences of those who studied Kodály music education in the earliest years.

Elizabeth (Betsy) McLaughlin Moll was the first US student to study Kodály music education in Hungary, living there from 1967-1969. We’ll discuss pedagogy, the Hungarian singing style, early childhood music education, Betsy’s work with Katalin Forrai, and other influential twentieth century Hungarian pedagogues including Erzsébet Szőnyí and Anikó Hamvas.

Created and hosted by Megan Ankuda
© OAKE 2020

Citation:
Ankuda, Megan, host. "Interview Series: Elizabeth (Betsy) McLaughlin Moll." Organization of American Kodály Educators Podcast, season 1, episode 1, Organization of American Kodály Educators, 2020. [https://www.oake.org/oake-podcast/]