Kurt Weill: A Life in Pictures and Documents

The first lavishly illustrated document of Kurt Weill's extraordinary life and musical career ever published, marking the centenary of his birth

A musical iconoclast, the legendary Kurt Weill has become a figure central to the cultural life of the twentieth century, an artist known for his relentless mitigation of the tension between "high" and "low" art. He left behind a treasury of classical music and unforgettable songs like "Mack the Knife" and "Alabama Song" and, working with Bertolt Brecht and others, musicals like The Threepenny Opera to address the most serious of social and political issues. Now, David Farneth, Director of the Weill-Lenya Research Center and editor of the acclaimed Lenya: The Legend;has created an utterly unique and engaging document of Weill"s life and accomplishments through photos and the composer's own words.

In a lavish style suitable to its topic, Weill covers the composer's entire life, from his German-Jewish heritage and early political experiences, to his legendary relationship with Lotte Lenya and his late-life experiments with the "concept musical." There is not an event--or a song--untouched. Farneth brings together text and photos from public and private archives in five different countries to assemble the most extraordinary of biographical documents. Weill is an essential addition to any music lover's collection.

David Farneth is the editor of Lenya: The Legend, also published by The Overlook Press. He is Director of the Weill-Lenya Research Center in New York, Archivist of the Kurt Weill Edition, and editor of the Kurt Weill Newsletter. He is also an editor of the Music Library Association Index and Bibliography Series and has written articles for The New Grove Dictionary of American Music, Pipers Enzyklopadie des Musiktheaters, and reviews for Tempo and Notes. He lives in New York City.