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Creator
Kahn, Erich Itor, 1905-1956
Call number
JPB 90-26
Physical description
40 linear feet (80 boxes)
Language
English is the predominant language represented in the collection, but considerable material in French, German, and Russian can be found throughout the collection
Preferred Citation

Erich Itor Kahn Papers, JPB 90-26. Music Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.

Repository
Music Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.Restrictions apply

This bulk of the collection consist of manuscript copies, printed scores, parts, writings and correspondence belonging to the composer Erich Itor Kahn and his late wife Frida Kahn, who was a music teacher and a translator. Erich Itor Kahn was known for his use of difficult techniques of counterpoint and harmony

Biographical/historical information

Erich Itor Kahn was born on July 23, 1905 in Rimbach, Germany of Russian-Jewish descent. He started to play the piano at the age of six and wrote his first composition, a suite for two violins and piano, at the age of nine. Erich Kahn began his musical studies with his father, continued at the conservatory in Frankfürt-on-Main, where he later became one of the directors of the State radio station (1928-1933). In addition to this he played extensively as soloist and ensemble player. In 1933 Erich Kahn took residence in Paris, where he was active in chamber music and was one of the founders of the Schubert Society. He appeared in concerts jointly with many of the famous names in the music field: Doda Conrad, Raia Garbusova, Roland Hayes, Jennie Tourel and others. In 1937 he met Pablo Casals and toured with him through France, England, Italy and North Africa until 1939. In 1941 Erich Kahn moved to the United States where he pursued his concert career as a soloist and since 1944 also with the Albeneri Trio (Alexander Schneider, Benar Heifetz, and Erich Itor Kahn). In 1948 he was awarded the Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Medal Library of Congress for "Eminent Service to Chamber Music". Erich Kahn was a German expressionist, one of Schoenberg's students. His work has become lost. The main reason for that lies in the fact that he belongs to what came to be known as the "Forgotten Generation" of German Jewish Expressionism-influenced artists born at the beginnings of the 20th century, whose careers were nipped in the bud by the ascension of Nazism. Erich Kahn composed numerous works for instrumental solo and ensembles, vocal and orchestra music. Most of these works had several performances during his lifetime. Erich Itor Kahn died on March 5, 1956 in New York. Frida Kahn was born on May 30, 1905 in Russia. She died on March 2, 2002 in New York. She was a music teacher and translator

Scope and arrangement

The Erich Itor Kahn papers consist of manuscript copies, printed scores, correspondence, writings, posters, and clippings. Materials also include works by other composers. The scores range from original pencil sketches to final published works and spans Kahn's career. Programs and clippings can help orient the researcher by putting performances in context. Correspondence may provide a bit of insight into Kahn's personal as well as professional life. There is very little of a personal nature in the collection outside of some of the correspondence. Frida Kahn, Erich Itor Kahn's widow, retained control over the collection for many years after his death, adding new materials, relating to the Kahn's heritage

The Erich Itor Kahn papers are arranged in thirteen series:

  • Series I: Correspondence
    1914-1995

    This series includes correspondence to and from both Erich I. Kahn and Frida Kahn. After Erich's death in 1956, Frida tried to keep his memory and music alive and wrote many letters on his behalf

  • Series II: Scores
    1882-1987

    This Series is divided into two sub-series. The Subseries 1 include includes lists of Kahn's compositions and others music, librettos, and scores. The Subseries 2 includes include scores by classic composers such as Beethoven, Brahms, and Debussy and by Kahn's contemporaries

  • Series III: Erich Kahn Personal Papers
    1905-1956

    Erich I. Kahn Professional papers

  • Series IV: Frida Kahn Personal Papers
    1904-2001

    This series includes documents relating to Frida Kahn personal life and the life of her parents and sisters and consists of documents, last wills and testaments, contracts, copyrights, notes. Also this series includes letter of condolences in 1956 on the death of Erich Itor Kahn.

  • Series V: Writings
    1923-1997

    This Series is divided into two sub-series, "Frida Kahn Writings and Translations" and "Writings and Translations by the other people". The Subseries I includes Frida Kahn's translations of works by Anton Chekhov and Alexander Pushkin and articles dedicated to Erich I. Kahn as well as her original writings. The Subseries II includes articles dedicated to Erich I. Kahn and a several fiction manuscripts

  • Series VI: Catalog of E.I.Kahn's music manuscripts

    This series consists of 1 box of cards of E. I. Kahn's manuscripts compiled by Arnold Brodio. The actual manuscripts are not included in this collection

  • Series VII: Publicity
    1895-2001

    This series includes programs of performances of Kahn's works, as well as those of his contemporaries

  • Series VIII: Clippings
    1916-1997

    This series includes published articles that are either about Erich I. Kahn or his contemporaries. Frida Kahn collected many articles and clippings about chamber music after his death. There are also articles that revealing Frida Kahn's interests such as politics, dieting, and cuisine

  • Series IX: Photographs
    1906-2000

    The photographs, negatives, glass plates and microfilm primarily document Kahn's family, friends, and vacations. Many photographs are not labeled

  • Series X: Ephemera
    1947-1969

    The Ephemera series consists of maps, menus, Khalah cover, napkins, hotel and cruise information and a few other items

  • Series XI: Financial documents
    1932-1995

    This series includes papers related to general household finances like stocks, tax returns, and other miscellaneous documents

  • Series XII: Medical Documents
    1996-1993

    The series includes Frida Kahn's medical documents

    Restricted

  • Series XIII: Oversized Materials
    1919-1991

    This series begins includes one box of oversized scores of Erich I. Kahn and other composers. Other items are posters in chronological order and a map

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

The Erich Itor Kahn Papers were donated to the Music Division between 1990-2002 by Frida Kahn, in part, and the rest came from her estate

Processing information

Processed by Liavon Yurevich; Machine-readable finding aid created by Liavon Yurevich.

Separated material

The following audio and video material was separated from the Paper Collection. For complete contents check with either CATNYP or the Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound. Material may not be available for immediate consultation

There is some duplication of titles (and performers and performances) across audio formats

1/8" cassettes

195 1/8" cassettes. Approximate date range 1980s to 1990s Cassettes include interviews with Kahn, recordings (both live in situ and from the radio) of Kahn performances (of his own work and others as Kahn was the pianist for the Alberneri Trio), and recordings of symposiums, discussions, and radio broadcasts devoted to Kahn's music. Some cassettes are from performances or discussions in Europe while others are from performances or discussions in the United States. These cassettes most likely are from the collection of Erich's wife, Frieda (who died in 2002), and were made or acquired after Erich's death in 1956

Reel-to-reel audio tape

114 reels (various sizes, 5", 7", 10") Approximate date range 1950s to 1980s These tapes also include very similar content as the cassettes: non-music documentary material, and performances, but mostly from earlier dates. The items are in average to below average condition, with a considerable amount of acetate tapes

Audio Discs

Approximate date range 1950s to 1960s There are 75 discs (10" and 12") mainly acetates, but also some shellac and vinyl LPS. The discs contain mostly Kahn's own compositions in various recording stages, and by various performers, before a final version. The work he did with the Albeneri Trio is also represented in a sampling of discs. Again, with the Trio pieces, there are working stages of recordings and final published versions. Like the audio reels, the discs vary from average to below average in their stability and physical integrity

Video

13 total tapes, ½" VHS NTSC and PAL

(10) "The Life of Erich Itor Kahn" by Karin Alles Hessischen Rundfunk Frankfurt, 1993

(1) Documentary from Hessischer Rundfunk Frankfurt Channel 3, circa 1993, on German Architects (Gropius, Van de Rohe, etc). Nothing noted on Kahn. NTSC

(1) "The Eleventh Concert of the Groupe des Enfants, Musicians de la Folletiere" February 22, 1993 VHS NTSC "dub" [from label], 66 min

(1) Symposium from 1990 conference held in Frankfurt entitled "Jewish Musicians in Frankfurt 1933-1940, copyright F. Prawer VHS PAL

Using the collection

Location

Music Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor

Conditions Governing Use

For permission to publish, contact the Chief, Music Division.

Access restrictions

The Medical series, containing Frida Kahn's medical documents, is restricted from researchers.