A student of Kodály, he was considered representative of Hungarian tradition in the 50s, and became a leading figure of the musical avant-garde at the beginning of the 60s. Even then, he did not denounce his heritage but, acquiring and using the most up-to-date musical idiom, succesfully combined the achievments of the innovative stylistic trends in Western music and the national tradition.

In his colourful oeuvre, we can find both Ecser Wedding - a work built on the tradition of folksong arrangement, and which was to become known internationally - and the Eufonia series, which has encouraged many generations of composers as an example of a contemporary compositional method devoid of compromise.