The Last Romantic in His Own Words combines carefully curated personal and professional letters with reminiscences, pedagogical essays, and statements on public affairs that Hungarian musician Ernst von Dohnányi (1877-1960) wrote throughout his lengthy career. Also included are a selection of interviews he gave in various capacities: as a celebrated and versatile performer, as the composer of beloved masterworks, as an internationally respected pedagogue, and as a leader in Hungary's leading musical institutions. These texts--many of which have never appeared in English--shed new light on Dohnányi's singular aesthetics, as well as on his career as a charismatic and at times controversial public figure who was one of the most influential musicians of the twentieth century, particularly in Hungary.

The result of twenty-five years of archival research in England, Hungary, and the United States, the documents outline the major chapters in Dohnányi's long and fascinating life, from his joyful childhood in Hungary, through a globetrotting career that witnessed the advent of the radio as well as air travel, and ultimately to his final years in political exile. Along the way, readers will gain valuable insights into not only Dohnányi's musical influences and personal philosophies as a performer, music educator, and composer, but more broadly musical life and the dissemination of musical knowledge and public taste in the first half of the twentieth century. The documents facilitate a much-needed reevaluation of a public figure and private individual caught up in the web of twentieth-century politics, resulting in a picture that is more complete than ever of one of the most elusive musicians of the twentieth century.