László Lajtha, born on June 30, 1892 in Budapest, Hungary, was a composer who began his musical studies at the Academy of Music in Budapest in 1908. He studied under Viktor Herzfeld and Zoltán Kodály before expanding his education to Leipzig and Geneva. Lajtha's early career included significant ethnomusicological work, collecting Hungarian folk music traditions alongside Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály. From 1919 to 1949, he taught at the Academy of Music in Budapest, also serving as its director from 1947 to 1949. His compositions included nine symphonies, chamber music, choral works, and pieces for piano. Lajtha's work was recognized with the Kossuth Prize in 1951 for his contributions to Hungarian folk music. He died on February 16, 1963, in Budapest. Notable albums released posthumously include Symphony no. 7 / Suite no. 3 / Hortobágy (1994), Capriccio (1994), and Transylvanian Nights: Complete String Trios (2023).
