Oral Histories

Interview of Lilly Toch

German émigré. Wife of Ernst Toch, composer and film scorer.
Subtitle:
The Orchestration of a Composer's Life
Series:
Z: Orphan Interviews pre 1999
Topic:
German Émigrés
Music
Biographical Note:
German émigré. Wife of Ernst Toch, composer and film scorer.
Interviewer:
Galm, Bernard
Interviewee:
Toch, Lilly
Supporting Documents:
Records relating to the interview are located in the office of the UCLA Library's Center for Oral History Research.
Language:
English
Copyright:
Regents of the University of California, UCLA Library.
Abstract:
Family backgrounds and early lives of Lilly and husband, Ernst Toch (1887-1964), in Vienna; Ernst's development as composer; music worlds in Vienna, Frankfurt, Mannheim, and Berlin; marriage during World War I; works created by Ernst, 1919-34; tour of United States under auspices of Pro Musica Society, 1932; anti-Semitism in Austria and Germany; emigration to Paris, London, New York, 1933-34; music world in New York; move to Pacific Palisades, California, 1936; lack of response to modernist music by American audiences; attempts to save friends and relatives after Hitler's invasion of Austria; German émigré community in Los Angeles; Ernst's heart attack, 1948; compositions, 1949-64; trips back to Europe; reception of Ernst's works; relationships with George Gershwin, Arnold Schoenberg, Gustav Mahler, Thomas Mann; Ernst's death, 1964; activities since 1964.