Successful conclusion of the Kodály Certification 2026

Successful conclusion of the Kodály Certification 2026

Last Friday, June 26, a total of thirteen music teachers from various towns, including the municipality of Culebra, successfully completed the requirements of the Kodály approach to music education training program offered by the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music. Eight teachers completed Level I, and five returned from last year to complete Level II.

During two weeks of hard work, the teachers were immersed in courses that covered topics ranging from folk and children's musical literature to choral conducting.

This year the Conservatory had guest professors Lydia Mills (Director of the Kodály Institute of the Ibáñez-Atkinson Foundation in Chile), Dr. Ángel M. Vázquez Ramos (Professor of Choir and Choral Conducting at California State University in Bakersfield) and Pedro L. Huertas Lazú, a graduate of our Department of Music Education and current K-5 music teacher in the public system in Texas.

The Conservatory is the only institution in the country to offer this professional development option for music educators, based on the philosophy of the Hungarian educator, composer, and musicologist Zoltán Kodály (1882–1967). Music pedagogy from the Kodály perspective is based on singing and folk music, advocates for highly trained teachers, and encourages research into the child's cultural background as a starting point for the appropriate sequencing of musical concepts. The Kodály approach was recognized in 2016 by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) as one of the best practices for safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

The institution extends special thanks to Mr. Carlos Torres, Director of the Música 100 x 35 Program, who made it possible for the certification courses to begin without delay by opening the doors of the San Juan center during the emergency caused by the Superaqueduct failure to hold the first days of classes there while the drinking water service was being restored in Santurce.

The next Kodály Certification cycle will take place from June 14 to 25, 2027, during which the third and final level of this program will be offered in Puerto Rico for the first time. You can find more information about our Kodály Certification here. here.