Walter Kaufmann studied composition with Franz Schreker and musicology with Curt Sachs at the Musikhochschule in Berlin.
Compositional Technique
The works on this album, composed by Walter Kaufmann during his time in India, exhibit an eclectic style blending Western, Indian, and Oriental musical traditions.
Cultural Impact
Walter Kaufmann, a Jewish composer from Czechoslovakia, composed the signature tune for All India Radio (AIR) in 1936, a melody familiar to hundreds of millions on the Indian subcontinent.
Performer Biography
The ARC Ensemble, the performers on this album, is known for researching and recovering music suppressed by repressive regimes of the twentieth century.
Composer Biography
Walter Kaufmann had a friendship with Albert Einstein, who was a competent amateur violinist, and Kaufmann accompanied Einstein at the piano when he was a student.
Historical Context
Walter Kaufmann fled the looming Nazi threat in Europe in 1934, choosing Bombay (now Mumbai) in India as his temporary home.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Walter Kaufmann was introduced to Indian music by his musicology teacher Curt Sachs and decided to travel to India to understand it better, as he initially found it 'alien and incomprehensible'.
