Joseph Kosma
Encyclopedia
Joseph Kosma was a Hungarian
-French
composer
, of Jewish background.
, where his parents taught stenography and typing. He had a brother, Akos. A maternal relative was the photographer László Moholy-Nagy
, and another relative was the conductor Georg Solti
. He started to play the piano at age 5, and later took piano lessons. At the age of 11, he wrote his first opera, Christmas in the Trenches. After completing his education at the Gymnasium Franz-Josef, he attended the Academy of Music in Budapest, where he studied with Leo Weiner
. He also studied with Béla Bartók
at the Liszt Academy, receiving diplomas in composition and conducting. He won a grant to study in Berlin in 1928, where he met Lilli Apel, another musician, whom he later married. Kosma also met and studied with Hanns Eisler
in Berlin. He also became acquainted with Bertolt Brecht
and Helene Weigel.
Kosma and his wife emigrated to Paris
in 1933. Eventually, he met Jacques Prévert
, who introduced him to Jean Renoir
. During World War II
and the Occupation of France, Kosma was placed under house arrest in the Alpes-Maritimes
region, and was banned from composition. However, Prévert managed to arrange for Kosma to contribute music for films, with other composers fronting for him. Under this arrangement he wrote the music for Les Enfants du Paradis
(1945), made under the occupation, but released after the liberation. Among his other credits are the scores to La Grande Illusion
(1937), The Rules of the Game
(1939) and Le Testament du docteur Cordelier
(The Doctor's Horrible Experiment; telefilm, 1959). He was also known for writing the standard
classical-jazz piece "Les feuilles mortes" ("Autumn Leaves
"), with French lyrics by Jacques Prévert, and later English lyrics by Johnny Mercer
, which was derived from music in Marcel Carné
's film Les Portes de la Nuit (1946).
Kosma's mother and brother were killed by the Arrow Cross
Nazi auxiliaries in 1944. Kosma himself was wounded in an explosion in August 1944 in France. His father survived the war, and died in 1957. Joseph Kosma died outside Paris in 1969 and was buried in the Montmartre Cemetery
.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
-French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, of Jewish background.
Biography
Kosma was born József Kozma in BudapestBudapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, where his parents taught stenography and typing. He had a brother, Akos. A maternal relative was the photographer László Moholy-Nagy
László Moholy-Nagy
László Moholy-Nagy was a Hungarian painter and photographer as well as professor in the Bauhaus school. He was highly influenced by constructivism and a strong advocate of the integration of technology and industry into the arts.-Early life:...
, and another relative was the conductor Georg Solti
Georg Solti
Sir Georg Solti, KBE, was a Hungarian-British orchestral and operatic conductor. He was a major classical recording artist, holding the record for having received the most Grammy Awards, having personally won 31 as a conductor, including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In addition to his...
. He started to play the piano at age 5, and later took piano lessons. At the age of 11, he wrote his first opera, Christmas in the Trenches. After completing his education at the Gymnasium Franz-Josef, he attended the Academy of Music in Budapest, where he studied with Leo Weiner
Leo Weiner
Leo Weiner , was one of the leading Hungarian music educators of the first half of the twentieth century and a composer.- Education :Weiner was born in Budapest. He had his first music and piano lessons from his brother, and later studied at the Academy of Music in Budapest, studying with János ...
. He also studied with Béla Bartók
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
at the Liszt Academy, receiving diplomas in composition and conducting. He won a grant to study in Berlin in 1928, where he met Lilli Apel, another musician, whom he later married. Kosma also met and studied with Hanns Eisler
Hanns Eisler
Hanns Eisler was an Austrian composer.-Family background:Eisler was born in Leipzig where his Jewish father, Rudolf Eisler, was a professor of philosophy...
in Berlin. He also became acquainted with Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was a German poet, playwright, and theatre director.An influential theatre practitioner of the 20th century, Brecht made equally significant contributions to dramaturgy and theatrical production, the latter particularly through the seismic impact of the tours undertaken by the...
and Helene Weigel.
Kosma and his wife emigrated to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1933. Eventually, he met Jacques Prévert
Jacques Prévert
Jacques Prévert was a French poet and screenwriter. His poems became and remain very popular in the French-speaking world, particularly in schools. Some of the movies he wrote are extremely well regarded, with Les Enfants du Paradis considered one of the greatest films of all time.-Life and...
, who introduced him to Jean Renoir
Jean Renoir
Jean Renoir was a French film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and author. As a film director and actor, he made more than forty films from the silent era to the end of the 1960s...
. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and the Occupation of France, Kosma was placed under house arrest in the Alpes-Maritimes
Alpes-Maritimes
Alpes-Maritimes is a department in the extreme southeast corner of France.- History : was created by Octavian as a Roman military district in 14 BC, and became a full Roman province in the middle of the 1st century with its capital first at Cemenelum and subsequently at Embrun...
region, and was banned from composition. However, Prévert managed to arrange for Kosma to contribute music for films, with other composers fronting for him. Under this arrangement he wrote the music for Les Enfants du Paradis
Children of Paradise
Les Enfants du Paradis, released as Children of Paradise in North America, is a 1945 French film by French director Marcel Carné, made during the German occupation of France during World War II...
(1945), made under the occupation, but released after the liberation. Among his other credits are the scores to La Grande Illusion
Grand Illusion (film)
Grand Illusion is a 1937 French war film directed by Jean Renoir, who co-wrote the screenplay with Charles Spaak. The story concerns class relationships among a small group of French officers who are prisoners of war during World War I and are plotting an escape.The title of the film comes from a...
(1937), The Rules of the Game
The Rules of the Game
The Rules of the Game is a 1939 French film directed by Jean Renoir about upper-class French society just before the start of World War II...
(1939) and Le Testament du docteur Cordelier
The Doctor's Horrible Experiment
The Doctor's Horrible Experiment is a 1959 French television film directed by Jean Renoir. The film is a retelling of the novella Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson set in 1950s France. Jean-Louis Barrault plays Dr. Cordelier/Opale, the substitute for Dr...
(The Doctor's Horrible Experiment; telefilm, 1959). He was also known for writing the standard
Traditional pop music
Traditional pop or classic pop or standards music denotes, in general, Western popular music that either wholly predates the advent of rock and roll in the mid-1950s, or to any popular music which exists concurrently to rock and roll but originated in a time before the appearance of rock and roll,...
classical-jazz piece "Les feuilles mortes" ("Autumn Leaves
Autumn Leaves (song)
"Autumn Leaves" is a much-recorded popular song. Originally it was a 1945 French song "Les Feuilles mortes" with music by Joseph Kosma and lyrics by poet Jacques Prévert. Yves Montand introduced "Les feuilles mortes" in 1946 in the film Les Portes de la Nuit...
"), with French lyrics by Jacques Prévert, and later English lyrics by Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer
John Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
, which was derived from music in Marcel Carné
Marcel Carné
-Biography:Born in Paris, France, the son of a cabinet maker whose wife died when their son was five, Carné began his career as a film critic, becoming editor of the weekly publication, Hebdo-Films, and working for Cinémagazine and Cinémonde between 1929 and 1933. In the same period he worked in...
's film Les Portes de la Nuit (1946).
Kosma's mother and brother were killed by the Arrow Cross
Arrow Cross Party
The Arrow Cross Party was a national socialist party led by Ferenc Szálasi, which led in Hungary a government known as the Government of National Unity from October 15, 1944 to 28 March 1945...
Nazi auxiliaries in 1944. Kosma himself was wounded in an explosion in August 1944 in France. His father survived the war, and died in 1957. Joseph Kosma died outside Paris in 1969 and was buried in the Montmartre Cemetery
Montmartre Cemetery
Montmartre Cemetery is a cemetery in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, France.-History:Cemeteries had been banned from Paris since the shutting down of the Cimetière des Innocents in 1786, as they presented health hazards...
.
See also
- Champions JuniorsChampions JuniorsChampions Juniors, is a French comedy film from 1951, directed by Pierre Blondy, written by Roger Cauvin, starring Louis de Funès. It is a short film.- External links :* at the Films de France...
(1951) - Huis closHuis clos (1954 film)Huis clos , is a French comedy film from 1954, directed by Jacqueline Audry, written by Jean-Paul Sartre, starring Jean-Marie Amato and Louis de Funès.- Cast :* Arletty : Inès Serrano, lesbian* Gaby Sylvia : Estelle Rigaud, the infanticide...
(1954) - Goubbiah, mon amourGoubbiah, mon amourGoubbiah, mon amour is a French romance drama film from 1956, directed by Robert Darène, written by René Barjavel, starring Jean Marais. The scenario was based on a novel of Jean Martet...
(1956)