Dr. phil Denes Agay

Dr. phil Denes AGAY AGAI aka "Gerald MARTIN": b. 10 June 1911, Kiskunfelegyhaza - d. 24 Jan 2007, Los Altos

Information courtesy of various sources, including the following:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denes_Agay

Denes Agay (June 10, 1911 - January 24, 2007) was a Hungarian-born American composer, arranger and author.[1]

Early life and education:

Agay was born and raised in a small village near Budapest[2] and began playing piano at the age of three. In 1934 he completed his musical studies at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest.

Career:

Agay conducted the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra in a performance of a symphony which he composed. He worked as a film composer; one film assignment was writing the background music for Hedy Lamarr's nude scene in the 1933 film Ecstasy.[3][4]

Agay was a Jew, and after the rise of Nazism, he emigrated to New York in 1939. In 1942 he became an American citizen and joined the military, entertaining patients in the hospital wards. His parents died in Auschwitz.

After the Second World War Agay worked as a teacher, composer and publisher, and as a conductor and arranger on the NBC show Guest Star. He wrote more than 90 books about musical subjects, including a multi-volume collection of piano arrangements, The Young Pianist's Library, and in 1975 produced the popular anthology, Best Loved Songs of the American People.[5]

Agay also continued to compose. His lively Sonatina no. 3 was frequently performed by young performers at piano recitals.

Agay died in Los Altos, California in 2007 at the age of 95.[3][4]

Plus ...

https://www.alfred.com/authors/denes-agay/

Denes Agay

Denes Agay, who is best known for his teaching collections, anthologies and texts for piano study, began playing piano at age 3. Born and raised in a small village near Budapest, Hungary, Agay went on to earn his doctorate in piano composition and performance at Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest in 1934. His father was doubtful that anyone could make a living in the music business, but success was apparent when Agay conducted the Budapest Philharmonic in a performance of a symphony he had composed. Agay also composed and orchestrated music for film. With the rise of Nazism, Agay left Hungary and moved to New York in 1939 to become an American citizen. In 1942 he enlisted in the army, where he entertained patients in the hospital ward and eventually earned the rank of sergeant. After the war, Agay began teaching, composing, and publishing, in addition to working as the conductor and arranger on the NBC radio show "Guest Star." One of Agay's most successful piano series is "The Young Pianist's Library" that covers a variety of styles and levels.

Emigrated to the USA - New York passenger listing:

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-G5NZ-9N7K?i=407&cc...

Denes Agai Immigration 1939 New York, New York, United States Male 27 1912 Hungary Manhattan

Profession given as "orchestra leader"

Next page - contact people.

Departure: "father" Marton AGAI, Jenevay ter? Kiskunfelegyhaza

Arrival: "Cousin" Mr. Alex LUSTIG, 308 E 74th St, New York

1940 New York census:

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9MY-15FS?i=23&per...

Name: Denes Agay Ereignistyp: Census Ereignisdatum: 1940 Ereignisort: Assembly District 7, Manhattan, New York City, New York, New York, United States Letzter Wohnort: Budapest, Hungary Geschlecht: Male Alter: 28 Familienstand: Single Rasse: White Rasse (original): White Geburtsjahr (geschätzt): 1912 Geburtsort: Hungary Verhältnis zum Haushaltsvorstand: Head Verhältnis zum Haushaltsvorstand (original): Head

Profession given as "music arranger".

An obituary courtesy of:

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-feb-21-me-agay21-story...

Denes Agay, 95; composer-author’s books have sold in millions

By FREDERICK N. RASMUSSEN

Feb. 21, 2007, 12 AM

Baltimore Sun

Denes Agay, a noted composer, arranger and author whose books on music, including the anthology “Best Loved Songs of the American People,” have sold millions of copies, has died. He was 95.

Agay died of multiple organ failure Jan. 24 at his daughter’s home in the San Francisco Bay Area city of Los Altos, where he had lived since 2004.

A prodigy who began playing the piano at 3, Agay was born and raised in a small village near Budapest, Hungary. He earned a doctorate in piano composition and performance from the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest in 1934.

“He attended law school at the University of Budapest concurrently with his music studies, as his pragmatic businessman father was not certain anyone could make a living from a career in music,” said his daughter, Susan Agay Rothschild. “When he conducted the Budapest Philharmonic in a performance of a symphony which he had composed, his father told him it would be all right not to finish his last year of law school.”

Agay worked in the Hungarian film industry, composing and orchestrating music for movies. With the rise of Nazism, he left his country and arrived in New York City in 1939.

His parents, who were Jewish, died at Auschwitz.

Agay made the round of music publishers in New York’s Brill Building and was asked whether he could write popular songs.

“They told me not to write piano sonatas and string quartets but to write pop songs. In my shady past, I did write some popular songs too, by necessity,” he told the Baltimore Sun in a 1994 interview.

Agay said one of his most unusual assignments had involved the 1933 Czech-Austrian film “Ecstasy,” which featured a provocative performance by Hedy Lamarr, its star, in the nude. The movie was initially banned in the United States by the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America. It was finally released in the early 1940s.

“I wrote a song called ‘Down the Gypsy Trail’ for the American version, because the importer of the film felt there needed to be a popular song in it. You can hear my music while Hedy is running through the woods naked,” Agay said in the interview.

After obtaining U.S. citizenship, he enlisted in the Army in 1942 and was assigned to a military hospital in Tuscaloosa, Ala. “I was in charge of entertainment and had a piano rolling through the wards entertaining my buddies, the patients,” said Agay, who attained the rank of sergeant.

After the war, he embarked on a career in teaching, composing and publishing. He was conductor and arranger for the NBC radio show “Guest Star,” which featured such movie and musical stars as Bing Crosby, the Andrews Sisters and Perry Como.

The author of 96 books, Agay is best known for his teaching collections, anthologies and texts for piano studies, most notably the “Joy of” series and “Easy Classics to Moderns” series, which he began publishing in 1955 and which have sold millions of copies.

He also wrote “An Anthology of Piano Music,” a four-volume work that covers the Baroque, classical, Romantic and 20th century periods.

Another work is “Best Loved Songs of the American People,” first published in 1975. The book includes arrangements of Colonial and revolutionary ballads, spirituals, burlesque and vaudeville tunes, jazz and blues.

“This is one of the best collections I’ve ever seen, and I’m proud to be included,” songwriter Irving Berlin wrote.

Agay and his wife of 52 years, the former Mary Roberts, endowed the Denes and Mary Agay Piano and Composition Scholarship Fund at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore. She died in 1999.

In addition to his daughter, Agay is survived by three grandsons.