Kurt Weill

Kurt Weill (1900–1950) was a German composer. Born in Dessau, he began studying at the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin in 1918 and later worked as a conductor at the municipal theater in Lüdenscheid. His best-known works include the Mahagonny-Songspiel, the opera Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, and The Threepenny Opera, created with Bertolt Brecht, with contributions by Elisabeth Hauptmann. In 1926, Weill married the actress and singer Lotte Lenya. As a Jewish composer, he emigrated in 1933 via Paris and London to the United States. He died in New York in 1950.