Berthold Goldschmidt
A lyrical composer silenced by Nazis and modernist fashion, his music found its voice again in a late-life renaissance.
1903–1996 (age 93)·German Jewish composer·Birthday: January 18·The Greatest Generation
Biography
Berthold Goldschmidt’s life was a study in artistic whiplash. Born in Hamburg, he was a rising star in Weimar Germany, his early works championed by conductors like Erich Kleiber. The Nazi regime’s rise in 1933, which branded his music 'degenerate,' severed that trajectory. He fled to England, where he found refuge but not a platform; his tonal, expressive style was now out of step with the prevailing avant-garde orthodoxy. For decades, he worked as a répétiteur at Glyndebourne and wrote music that few heard, a man marooned by history twice over. The story pivoted in his eighties, when a 1984 BBC broadcast of his 1930s opera 'Der gewaltige Hahnrei' sparked a rediscovery. Recordings and performances finally poured forth, revealing a substantial, emotionally rich body of work that had been waiting patiently in the wings for half a century.
The Greatest Generation
1901–1927
Grew up during the Depression, fought World War II, and built the postwar economic boom. Defined by shared sacrifice, institutional trust, and a belief that hard work and loyalty would be rewarded.
Berthold was born in 1903, placing them squarely in The Greatest Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Berthold Was Born
The biggest hits of 1903
Berthold's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1903Born
Wright brothers achieve first powered flight
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1908Started school
Ford Model T goes into production
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1916Became a teenager
The Battle of the Somme claims over a million casualties
President: Woodrow Wilson
1919Could drive
Treaty of Versailles signed; Prohibition ratified
President: Woodrow Wilson
1921Could vote
First commercial radio broadcasts
President: Warren G. Harding"My Man" — Fanny Brice
1924Turned 21
First Winter Olympics held in Chamonix, France
President: Calvin Coolidge"It Had to Be You" — Isham Jones
1933Turned 30
FDR's New Deal launches; Prohibition ends
Gas: $0.18/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Stormy Weather" — Ethel WatersBest Picture: Cavalcade
1943Turned 40
Allies invade Sicily; Battle of Stalingrad ends
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,290Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I've Heard That Song Before" — Harry JamesBest Picture: Casablanca
1953Turned 50
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1963Turned 60
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1973Turned 70
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1983Turned 80
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1996Died at 93
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
Key Achievements
- His opera 'Der gewaltige Hahnrei' premiered in Mannheim in 1932 but was banned by the Nazis the following year.
- He completed and orchestrated the third act of Gustav Mahler's unfinished Tenth Symphony for its first performance in 1964.
- His late-life revival was cemented by a major recording project of his orchestral works by the London Symphony Orchestra in the 1990s.
- He served as a musical advisor and coach at the Glyndebourne Festival Opera for many years after his emigration.
Did You Know?
He was the last surviving pupil of the composer Franz Schreker.
He won a silver medal in art competitions at the 1932 Summer Olympics for his composition 'Passacaglia.'
His rediscovery began when a BBC producer found a dusty score of his opera in a library basement.
“I have never written a note I did not believe in.”
