Erna Tauro, née Pergament (16 August 1916 Viipuri4 June 1993 Stockholm), was a Finnish-Swedish pianist and composer.

Biography

Erna Tauro was born in Viipuri, daughter of Isak Pergament and Rifka (née Rosenthal), and niece of composers Moses Pergament and Simon Parmet. The family moved to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

in 1921 and later to

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

. Tauro studied piano and music theory in Berlin, and according to some sources, also studied music at the

Sibelius Academy The Sibelius Academy ( fi, Taideyliopiston Sibelius-Akatemia, sv, Sibelius-Akademin vid Konstuniversitetet) is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It al ...

in Finland. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Tauro worked as a nurse and also an accompanist. From 1955 to 1969 she was principal accompanist at the Little Theater in

and composed music for a number of plays and musicals. Her composition "Höstvisa" ("Autumn Song") with lyrics by

Tove Jansson Tove Marika Jansson (; 9 August 1914 – 27 June 2001) was a Swedish-speaking Finnish author, novelist, painter, illustrator and comic strip author. Brought up by artistic parents, Jansson studied art from 1930 to 1938 in Stockholm, Helsinki and ...

won third prize in the 1965 Finnish Broadcasting Song Contest. The same year, she won second place with the song "Den gamla brudkläderskan" ("The Old Bridal Wife") with lyrics by Huldén Evert. In 1969, Tauro received a position as musical director for ''Fiddler on the Roof'' in Stockholm, and in 1977 she settled permanently in that city. She married Risto Ilmari Tauro, and they had one daughter born in 1945. She died in Stockholm in 1993. Tauro is best known for the songs for ''

Moomin The Moomins ( sv, Mumintroll) are the central characters in a series of novels, short stories, and a comic strip by Finnish writer and illustrator Tove Jansson, originally published in Swedish by Schildts in Finland. They are a family of white ...

'', a series of children's books by Tove Jansson which were translated into plays and animation. Music for the last play, ''King Moomin Valley'', was finished by composer

Mika Pohjola Mika Pohjola ( (born December 1, 1971) is a Finnish-born jazz pianist and composer who resides in Stockholm. He is one of the most prolific Scandinavian jazz musicians in his generation. Biography Childhood in Helsinki, Finland 1971-87 Mika ...

after the death of Jansson and Tauro and premiered in August 2008.

Works

Selected works include: *''Kahdeksikko'', musical *''Oli kevät'', musical *''Guldbröllop'', musical *''Moomin behind the scenes'', songs for a play *''Höstvisa'' *''Den gamla brudkläderskan'' *''Troll i kulisserna''

References

1916 births 1993 deaths 20th-century classical composers Finnish music educators Finnish women music educators Finnish women classical composers Jewish classical composers Finnish classical composers Swedish classical composers 20th-century Finnish Jews 20th-century Swedish Jews Finnish emigrants to Sweden Swedish people of Finnish-Jewish descent Swedish women composers Swedish women music educators Musicians from Vyborg People from Viipuri Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) 20th-century women composers 20th-century Swedish women 20th-century Finnish composers {{Finland-composer-stub