Kurt Weill

Kurt Julian Weill ( / w aɪ l / ; German: [vaɪl] ; March 2, 1900 – April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht . With Brecht, he wrote his best-known work, The Threepenny Opera , which includes the ballad " Mack the Knife ". Weill held the ideal of writing music that served a socially useful purpose, Gebrauchsmusik . He also wrote several works for the concert hall and a number of works on Jewish themes. He fled Nazi Germany in 1933, arriving in the United States two years later. Settling in New York, he made a substantial contribution to American musical theater through works such as Lady in the Dark and Street Scene .

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