Emmerich Kálmán ( ; 24 October 1882 – 30 October 1953) was a Hungarian composer of

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...

s and a prominent figure in the development of Viennese operetta in the 20th century. Among his most popular works are '' Die Csárdásfürstin'' (1915) and '' Gräfin Mariza'' (1924). Influences on his compositional style include Hungarian folk music (such as the

csárdás Csárdás (, ; ), often seen as Czárdás, is a traditional Hungarian folk dance, the name derived from ' (old Hungarian term for roadside tavern and restaurant). It originated in Hungary and was popularized by bands in Hungary as well as neighb ...

), the Viennese style of precursors such as

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (; ; 25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (), was an List of Austrian composers, Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas as well ...

and

Franz Lehár Franz Lehár ( ; ; 30 April 1870 – 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is '' The Merry Widow'' (''Die lustige Witwe''). Life and career L ...

, and, in his later works, American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

. As a result of the ''

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, ), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a "German Question, Greater Germany") arose after t ...

,'' Kálmán and his family fled to Paris and then to the United States. He eventually returned to Europe in 1949 and died in Paris in 1953.

Biography

Kálmán was born Imre Koppstein in

Siófok Siófok (; ; ) is a town in Somogy County, Hungary on the southern bank of Lake Balaton. It is the Somogy County#Municipalities, second largest municipality in Somogy County and the seat of Siófok District. It covers an area of about between Lak ...

, then in

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

, on the southern shore of

Lake Balaton Lake Balaton () is a freshwater rift lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lake in Central Europe, and one of the region's foremost tourist destinations. The Zala River provides the larges ...

, to a

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

ish family. Kálmán initially intended to become a concert

pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...

, but because of early-onset

arthritis Arthritis is a general medical term used to describe a disorder that affects joints. Symptoms generally include joint pain and stiffness. Other symptoms may include redness, warmth, Joint effusion, swelling, and decreased range of motion of ...

, he focused on composition instead. He studied

music theory Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...

and

composition Composition or Compositions may refer to: Arts and literature *Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography * Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include ...

at the National Hungarian Royal Academy of Music (then the Budapest Academy of Music), where he was a fellow student of

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as Hunga ...

and

Zoltán Kodály Zoltán Kodály (, ; , ; 16 December 1882 – 6 March 1967) was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, music pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is well known internationally as the creator of the Kodály method of music education. ...

under Hans Kössler. His early symphonic poems ''Saturnalia'' and ''Endre és Johanna'' were well-received, although he failed to achieve publication. He also composed piano music and wrote many songs: a song cycle on poems by Ludwig Jacobowski and a song collection published under the title ''Dalai''. However, the popularity of his humorous cabaret songs led him towards the composition of

s. His first great success was ''Tatárjárás'' – ''Ein Herbstmanöver'' in German, meaning ''Autumn maneuver'', although the English title is '' The Gay Hussars'', which was first staged at the in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

, on 22 February 1908. Thereafter he moved to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, where he achieved worldwide fame through his operettas '' Der Zigeunerprimas'', '' Die Csárdásfürstin'', '' Gräfin Mariza'', and '' Die Zirkusprinzessin''. Kalman Imre B Siofok

Kálmán and

were the leading composers of what has been called the "Silver Age" of Viennese operetta during the first quarter of the 20th century. He became well known for his fusion of Viennese

waltz The waltz ( , meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom dance, ballroom and folk dance, in triple (3/4 time, time), performed primarily in closed position. Along with the ländler and allemande, the waltz was sometimes referred to by the ...

with Hungarian

. Even so, polyphonically and

melodically A melody (), also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combination of Pitch (music), pitch and rhythm, while more figurativel ...

, Kálmán was a devoted follower of

Giacomo Puccini Giacomo Puccini (22 December 1858 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for List of compositions by Giacomo Puccini#Operas, his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he ...

, while in his

orchestration Orchestration is the study or practice of writing music for an orchestra (or, more loosely, for any musical ensemble, such as a concert band) or of adapting music composed for another medium for an orchestra. Also called "instrumentation", orch ...

methods he employed principles characteristic of

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

's music. In 1929, his first child (with Vera Mendelsohn), Charles Kalman (1929–2015) was born and would later on be also a composer. Despite his Jewish origins he was one of

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

's favorite composers. After the

, he rejected Hitler's offer to become an '

honorary Aryan Honorary Aryan () was a semi-official category and expression used in Nazi Germany and its territories to justify certain individuals who, according to the Nuremberg Laws, were not recognized as belonging to the Aryan race, but who were nonethe ...

' and was forced to move first to Paris, then to the United States, settling in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in 1940.

Last years and death

Following his emigration, performances of his works were prohibited in Nazi Germany. He emigrated back to Vienna from New York in 1949 before moving in 1951 to Paris, where he died.

Popular culture

In 1958 a West German biopic '' The Csardas King'' was made of his life, starring Gerhard Riedmann in the lead role. The supporters of both the national football and handball teams of

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

use a version of the song ' from his operetta '' Das Veilchen vom Montmartre'' as an anthem, with Icelandic lyrics ('). The overnight sleeper train from Stuttgart to Budapest is named ''The Kalman Imre''.

Operettas

* ''Tatárjárás'' (The Mongol Invasion) – Budapest, 1908 ** ''Ein Herbstmanöver'' – Vienna, 1909 (German version of ''Tatárjárás'') ** '' The Gay Hussars'' – Knickerbocker Theatre, Broadway, New York, 1909 (American version of ''Tatárjárás'') ** ''Autumn Manoeuvres'' – London, 1912 (English version of ''Tatárjárás'') * '' Az obsitos'' (The Veteran) – Budapest, 1910 ** ''Der gute Kamerad'' – Vienna, 1911 (German revision of ''Az Obsitos'') ** ''Gold gab ich für Eisen'' – Vienna, 1914 (revision of ''Der gute Kamerad'') ** ''Her Soldier Boy'' – Astor Theatre, Lyric Theastre, Shubert Theatre, New York, 1916/17 ** ''Soldier Boy'' – London, 1918 * '' Der Zigeunerprimas'' (The Gypsy Band Leader) – Vienna, 1912 ** ''Sari'' – Liberty Theatre,

New Amsterdam Theatre The New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 214 West 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street, at the southern end of Times Square, in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Manhattan in New York City, New Yor ...

, New York, 1914 * ''The Blue House'' – London, 1912 * ''Der kleine König'' (The Little King) – Vienna, 1912 * '' Zsuzsi kisasszony'' – Budapest, 1915 ** ''Miss Springtime'' – New Amsterdam Theatre, New York, 1916/17 ** ''Die Faschingsfee'' – Vienna, 1917 (German revision of ''Zsuzsi kisasszony'') * '' Die Csárdásfürstin'' – Vienna, 1915 ** ''The Riviera Girl'' – New Amsterdam Theatre, New York, 1917 ** ''The Gipsy Princess'' – London, 1921 * ''Das Hollandweibchen'' – Vienna, 1920 ** ''A Little Dutch Girl'' – London, 1920 ** ''La Holandesita'' – Spain, 1921 (Spanish version by Casimiro Giralt) ** ''The Dutch Girl'' – U.S., 1925 * '' Die Bajadere'' – Vienna, 1921 ** ''The Yankee Princess'' – Knickerbocker Theatre, New York, 1922 * '' Gräfin Mariza'' – Vienna, 1924 ** ''Countess Maritza'' – Shubert Theatre, New York, 1926/27, with Yvonne d'Arle in the title role. ** ''Maritza'' – London, 1938 * '' Die Zirkusprinzessin'' – Vienna, 1926 ** ''The Circus Princess'' –

Winter Garden Theatre The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York, U.S. Originally designed by architect William Albert Swasey, it opened in 1911. The Winter Garden's current des ...

, New York, 1927 * '' Golden Dawn'' – Hammerstein's Theatre, New York, 1927/28 * '' Die Herzogin von Chicago'' – Vienna, 1928 ** ''The Duchess of Chicago'' – U.S., 1929 * '' Das Veilchen vom Montmartre'' – Vienna, 1930 ** ''Paris in Spring'' – U.S., 1930 ** ''A Kiss in Spring'' – London, 1932 * ''Der Teufelsreiter'' (Az ördöglovas – The Devil Rider) – Vienna, 1932 * '' Kaiserin Josephine'' – Zurich, 1936 * ''Miss Underground'' – written 1942, unproduced * '' Marinka'' – Winter Garden Theatre,

Ethel Barrymore Theatre The Ethel Barrymore Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 243 West 47th Street (Manhattan), 47th Street in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1928, it ...

, New York, 1945 * '' Arizona Lady'' – Bern, 1954

References

Notes

External links