Jessel, Leon

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Jessel, Leon

Jessel, Leon, German composer; b. Stettin, Jan. 22, 1871; d. Berlin, Jan. 4, 1942. At age 20, he began working as a theater conductor, appearing in Gelsenkirchen, Mülheim, Celle, Freiburg-im-Breisgau, Stettin, Chemnitz, and Lübeck. As a composer, he first attracted notice with his piano and instrumental pieces. His Die Parade der Zinnsoldaten (1905) became internationally celebrated. In 1911 he settled in Berlin, where he first won success as an operetta composer with his Die beiden Husaren (Feb. 6, 1913). He scored a signal triumph with his Das Schwarzwaldmädel (Aug. 25, 1917). Of his subsequent scores, the most successful were Die närrische Liebe Nov. 28, 1919), Die Postmeisterin (Feb. 3, 1921), Das Detektivmädel (Oct. 28, 1921), Des Königs Nachbarin (April 15, 1923), and the Viennese premiered Meine Tochter Otto (May 5, 1927). As a Jew, Jessel’s works were banned after the Nazis came to power in 1933. His last operetta, Die goldene Mühle, received its premiere in Olten, Switzerland (Oct. 29, 1936). Jessel died as a result of manhandling by the Gestapo.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire

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