The article deals with the significant, though still little-known in Russia works by György Kurtág, composed during the period when he had not yet achieved international fame: from the String Quartet op. 1 (1959), to “The Sayings of Péter Bornemisza” (1963–1968). The peculiarities of their musical language, architectonics, and underlying conceptual framework hint at deeper semantic layers, exploration of which constitutes an engaging hermeneutic task. A hypothesis is put forward that the hidden programme of the String Quartet can be traced back to C. G. Jung’s idea of individuation. In the musical text of the “Sayings,” one finds peculiar configurations (“madrigalisms”) that at times possess a fairly clear meaning, yet in many cases remain ambiguous and call for deciphering.
