Biography
Joseph Kosma (22 October 1905 – 7 August 1969) was a Hungarian-French composer.
Kosma was born József Kozma in Budapest, where his parents taught stenography and typing. He had a brother, Ákos. A maternal relative was the photographer László Moholy-Nagy, and another was the conductor Georg Solti. He started to play the piano at age five, and later took piano lessons. At the age of 11, he wrote his first opera, Christmas in the Trenches. After completing his education at the Secondary Grammar School Franz-Josef, he attended the Academy of Music in Budapest, where he studied with Leo Weiner. He also studied with Béla Bartók at the Liszt Academy, receiving diplomas in composition and conducting. He won a grant to study in Berlin in 1928, where he met Lilli Apel, another musician, whom he later married. Kosma also met and studied with Hanns Eisler in Berlin. He became acquainted with Bertolt Brecht and Helene Weigel.
Kosma and his wife emigrated to Paris in 1933. Eventually, he met Jacques Prévert, who introduced him to Jean Renoir. During the 1930s Kosma teamed up with Prévert to set a number of Prévert's poems to music, and have them recorded by popular singers. Several of these were hits. Kosma also composed scores to Renoir's films including La Grande Illusion (1937), La Bête Humaine (The Human Beast, 1938), and La Règle du jeu (The Rules of the Game, 1939).
During World War II and the Occupation of France, Kosma was placed under house arrest in the Alpes-Maritimes region and was banned from composition. However, Prévert managed to arrange for Kosma to contribute music for films with other composers fronting for him. Under this arrangement, he wrote the "pantomime" of the music for Les Enfants du Paradis (1945), made under the occupation but released after the liberation. Among his other credits are the scores to Voyage Surprise (1946) and Le Testament du docteur Cordelier (The Doctor's Horrible Experiment, 1959), the last of which was made for television. He was also known for writing the standard classical-jazz piece "Les feuilles mortes" ("Autumn Leaves"), with French lyrics by Prévert and later English lyrics by Johnny Mercer, which was derived from music in Marcel Carné's film Les Portes de la Nuit (1946). The song was featured in the eponymous 1956 film starring Joan Crawford.
Source: Article "Joseph Kosma" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Filmography
all 115
Movies 114
TV Shows 1
self 1
The Little Theatre of Jean Renoir (1974)
La Fenêtre (1970)
Kitosch, the Man Who Came from the North (1967)
Bitter Fruit (1967)
Chagall (1964)
In the French Style (1963)
Thank Heaven for Small Favors (1963)
À fleur de peau (1962)
The Doll (1962)
Snobs ! (1962)
The Elusive Corporal (1962)
Dawn on the Third Day (1962)
Man Wants to Live (1961)
El secreto de los hombres azules (1961)
The Pavements of Paris (1961)
Croesus (1960)
Love and the Frenchwoman (1960)
The Doctor's Horrible Experiment (1960)
The Cat Shows Her Claws (1960)
The Eighth Day (1960)
Matisse ou Le talent de bonheur (1960)
The Three Musketeers (1959)
Katia (1959)
Picnic on the Grass (1959)
Discorama (1959)
Quai des illusions (1959)
The Doctor's Dilemma (1959)
La Chatte (1958)
Un certain Monsieur Jo (1958)
Three Days to Live (1958)
Tamango (1958)
La Cocotte d'azur (1958)
The Inspector Likes a Fight (1957)
Demoniac (1957)
La Commune de Paris (1957)
The Case of Dr. Laurent (1957)
I'll Get Back to Kandara (1956)
Soupçons (1956)
Main Street (1956)
Elena and Her Men (1956)
Le Long des trottoirs (1956)
That Is the Dawn (1956)
Law of the Streets (1956)
Goubbiah and the Gipsy Girl (1956)
People of No Importance (1956)
Maigret Leads the Investigation (1956)
No Mercy for the Cellers (1955)
M'sieur la Caille (1955)
The Fugitives (1955)
House on the Waterfront (1955)
Pas de souris dans le business (1955)
Magic Village (1955)
Fantaisie d'un jour (1955)
No Exit (1954)
Alarm in Morocco (1953)
Rhine Virgin (1953)
Children of Love (1953)
Ma Jeannette et mes copains (1953)
Innocents in Paris (1953)
The Curious Adventures of Mr. Wonderbird (1953)
Crimson Curtain (1952)
Judgement of God (1952)
Dans la vie tout s'arrange (1952)
Matrimonial Agency (1952)
The Green Glove (1952)
Wolves Hunt at Night (1952)
Torticola contre Frankensberg (1952)
Perfectionist (1951)
The Cape of Hope (1951)
Sins of Madeleine (1951)
Shadow and Light (1951)
Juliette, or Key of Dreams (1951)
Without Leaving an Address (1951)
Champions Juniors (1951)
Passing through Lorraine (1950)
Disorder (1950)
Black Jack (1950)
Fugitive from Montreal (1950)
Lost Souvenirs (1950)
Paris Incident (1950)
Vendetta in Camargue (1950)
Here Is the Beauty (1950)
At the Grand Balcony (1949)
Wicked City (1949)
The Farm of Seven Sins (1949)
The Hell of Lost Pilots (1949)
Truant School (1949)
The Lovers of Verona (1949)
Blood of the Beasts (1949)
Bagarres (1948)
Man to Men (1948)
Crossroads of Passion (1948)
The Eleven O'Clock Woman (1948)
Bethsabée (1947)
Love Around the House (1947)
The Little Soldier (1947)
Noah's Ark (1947)
Mystery Tour (1947)
Gates of the Night (1946)
Pétrus (1946)
A Day in the Country (1946)
Messieurs Ludovic (1946)
Aubervilliers (1946)
Children of Paradise (1945)
Adieu Léonard (1943)
Le soleil a toujours raison (1943)
The Devil's Envoys (1942)
The Rules of the Game (1939)
La Bête Humaine (1938)
Street Singer (1938)
La Marseillaise (1938)
The Time of the Cherries (1938)
Grand Illusion (1937)
Jenny (1936)
The Crime of Monsieur Lange (1936)
Ratings
Gallery
Information
Known ForSound
GenderMale
Birthday1905-10-22
Deathday1969-08-07 (63 years old)
Birth PlaceBudapest, Hungary
CitizenshipsFrance, Hungary
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