Ignace Strasfogel

Ignace Strasfogel (born 17 July 1909 in Warsaw; died 6 February 1994 in New York) was a Polish pianist, composer and conductor.

Born in Warsaw, Strasfogel studied at the Hochschule fur Musik in Berlin where he was a pupil of modernist composer Franz Schreker. He began his career as a pianist and vocal coach; notably serving as an accompanist for prestigious artists such as Joseph Szigeti, Gregor Piatigorsky, and Lauritz Melchior among other soloists. In 1926, at the age of 17, his two piano sonatas won the Mendelssohn Prize. In 1934, Strasfogel was forced to emigrate from Nazi Germany to the United States. In America, he worked as a pianist and won fame as conductor of the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera. In 1983, Strasfogel ended a 35-year break from composing, producing works for piano, orchestra, chamber music and songs. His son Jan Strasfogel is an opera librettist.

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