
Photo: Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain · credits
Timeline
1890s
1960s
2020s
· Debut release
Debut release: Ball at the Savoy, Operetta in three acts
First documented Album in the MusicBrainz discography.
source: musicbrainz
Biography
Biography
Paul Abraham (Hungarian: Ábrahám Pál; 2 November 1892 – 6 May 1960) was a Jewish-Hungarian composer of operettas, who scored major successes in the German-speaking world. His specialty – and own innovation – was the insertion of jazz interludes into operettas.
Abraham was born in Apatin, Austria-Hungary (today Serbia), and studied at the Royal National Hungarian Academy of Music in Budapest from 1910 to 1916. He studied cello with Adolf Schiffer and composition with Viktor Herzfeld.
Career
Abraham was a son of Jakab Ábrahám (c. 1859–1909) – who was a merchant from Apatin, later head of a small private bank – and Flóra Blau (1872–1943), who came from Mohács (South-Hungary, next to Danube). Like many other composers of operettas, Abraham started with works of a serious nature. During the decade following his studies he wrote, among other things, sacred music, string quartets and a concerto for violoncello. When he was appointed conductor at the Budapest Operetta Theatre in 1927 he found his way to this more popular art form which was more suited to his talent.
He wrote his first operetta, Der Gatte des Fräuleins, in 1928. With his third, Viktoria und ihr Husar (1930), he achieved a resounding success. Through this work, and the next two operettas from 1931 and 1933 Die Blume von Hawaii (The Flower of Hawaii) and Ball im Savoy he became renowned worldwide. He also wrote numerous film scores.
The Nazi seizure of power in 1933 forced Abraham to abandon his domicile in Berlin and leave Germany. He was unwanted both as a Jew, and as the author of Die Blume von Hawaii, considered a piece of "degenerate art" by the Nazis, telling the story of a German sailor who falls in love with a Hawaiian girl.
Via Vienna and Paris he moved to Cuba where he earned a modest living as a pianist and later emigrated to New York City. After a mental breakdown he was in February 1946 committed to the Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, later to the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in Queens. In May 1956 he returned to live in Hamburg, Germany, where he received treatment at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. He died four years later, aged 67.
Selected filmography
The Singing City (1930)
The Private Secretary (1931)
Sunshine Susie (1931)
City of Song (1931)
Victoria and Her Hussar (1931)
The Blue of Heaven (1932)
Gypsies of the Night (1932)
Overnight Sensation (1932)
A Bit of Love / Monsieur, Madame and Bibi (1932)
The Rakoczi March (1933)
Purple Lilacs (1934)
The Typist Gets Married (1934)
Temptation (1934)
Antonia (1935)
Ball at the Savoy (1935)
Modern Girls (1937)
Viki (1937)
Tales of Budapest (1937)
Family Bonus (1937)
Hotel Springtime (1937)
The Wrong Man (1938)
Roxy and the Wonderteam (1938)
Serenade (1940)
The Private Secretary (1953)
Ball at the Savoy (1955)
Other languages
Discography & profile
Normalised profile
Percentiles are computed over every artist in the database, so a tier-3 artist can still sit in the 95th percentile on a single axis.
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 32 | 91.5th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 2 | 75.7th |
| Studio albums | 1 | 76th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 4 | 75.9th |
| Recording span (years) | -61 | 6.1th |
| Genres | 2 | 74th |
Percentiles are computed at render time; missing values mean the artist has no data on that axis.
Discography (2 release groups · 1 studio albums)
Albums · 1
Ball at the Savoy, Operetta in three acts
2021 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 57 tracks · 2:19:56
Disc 11Ball at the Savoy: Prelude. Waltz. Ball at the Savoy2:402Ball at the Savoy: Introduction Music, No. 1. "My dear Venezia bella Venezia!" – "Will you be true?" (Chorus, Madeleine, Aristide)5:153Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 1: "Where are they?" (Lily, Paulette, Hermence, René, Ernst)0:464Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 1: Song No. 2. "Sevilla". "A toast to madame, a toast to Marquis!" (Chorus, Madeleine, Aristide)2:415Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 2: "What a pleasure it is to see you all again" (Aristide, Madeleine, René, Hermence, Paulette, Lily, Ernst, Archibald)2:056Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 2: "There's only one lady for me" – Song No. 3. Duet. "Without your love, where would I be?" (Aristide, Madeleine)3:297Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 3: "What a lovely garden" (Lily, Paulette)0:088Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 4: "Who needs gin when I'm here!" (Mustafa, Lily, Paulette, Hermence, Bébé)0:289Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 4: "My father, on the other hand" – Song No. 4. "At Home along the Bosporus". Halla, halla, hai!" (Mustafa, Lily, Paulette, Hermence, Bébé)2:1210Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 5: "Aristide! How was the honeymoon?" (Mustafa, Aristide)1:5711Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 6: "Hey, do you know who just pulled up outside?" (Ernst)0:0612Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 6: "Hi everybody! I'm here!" – Song No. 5. "Kangaroo". "Nobody wants to do the foxtrot today" (Daisy, René, Ernst, Lily, Paulette, Hermence, Bébé, Archibald)3:5513Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 7: "Daisy! When did you get here?" (Aristide, Daisy, Mustafa, Madeleine)0:5714Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 8: "Did you really cross the ocean just to see me?" (Madeleine, Daisy)1:4215Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 8: "What's it like to be newlyweds?" – Song No. 6. Duet "The Wedding Night". "The very first thing I recall" (Daisy, Madeleine)3:3016Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 9: "Mustafa, there's no time to waste" (Aristide, Mustafa, Archibald)2:0917Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 10: "Aristide, I'm so excited to have you all to myself tonight (Madeleine, Aristide, Mustafa, Daisy, Archibald)4:3218Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 11: "I can't believe he's leaving me on our first night at home" (Madeleine, Daisy)1:1219Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 11: "An eye for an eye, a kiss for a kiss!" – "A Woman is Faithful, but Why?". "A man doesn't have to be faithful" (Madeleine)3:2620Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 12: "Ah, Miss Daisy, en grande toilette!" (Mustafa, Daisy)1:5321Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 12: Song No. 8. Duet. "Mr. Brown and Lady Claire". "Every night at the bar" (Daisy, Mustafa)3:2022Ball at the Savoy, Act I Scene 13: Finale. "I'll have a ball at the Savoy!" (Aristide, Archibald, Ernst, Mustafa, Radio Announcer, Bébé, Monsieur Albert, Madeleine, Lily, Paulette, Hermence)6:3023Ball at the Savoy, Act II: No. 9a. Entrance Music, Introduction to Act II1:0824Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 1: "Gentlemen, you won't believe who's here!" – Entrance of Tangolita. "Tangolita!" (Maurice, René, Radio Announcer, Bartender, Archibald, Tangolita)2:1025Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 1: No. 9c. "Bella Tangolita". "The fellas call me 'Bella Tangolita'" (Tangolita, Archibald, René, Bartender, Maurice, Radio Announcer)2:2726Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 2: To see all six of you here together… (Mustafa, Pomerol, Trude, Ilonka, Mizzi, Bessie, Lucia, Giulette)1:1727Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 2: "We Turks are all 'polygamied' out" – Song No. 10. “Turkish Kissing". "Constantinople isn't a place" (Mustafa, Lily, Paulette, Hermence, Bébé)3:0128Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 3: "Come out of retirement, Marquis?" (Pomerol, Aristide, Mustafa, Maurice, Radio Announcer, Bartender, Madeleine)2:3529Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 3: "How could a man betray a woman of such beauty and charm?" – Song No. 11. "Toujours L'amour": "I was in love" (Aristide, Madeleine)5:51Disc 21Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 4: "How did it go?" (Mustafa, Aristide, Maurice, Célestin)2:032Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 5: "Where have you been, Mr. Mustafa?" (Daisy, Mustafa)1:553Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 5: No. 12. Duet. "Out on the town". "I've studied it every which way" (Mustafa, Daisy, Ilonka, Trude, Giulette, Bessie, Mizzi)3:124Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 6: "Oh, you've got it all wrong, Aristide" (Tangolita, Aristide, Pomerol)1:445Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 7: "Room eight? With her?" (Madeleine)0:106Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 7: Song No. 13. "I kiss as well as any Tangolita". "It's in my blood" (Madeleine)5:337Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 8: "There's no time to lose" (Madeleine, Célestin, Pomerol)2:008Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 8: No. 13a. Transitional Music - Reminiscence. "Toujours L'amour" (Madeleine)1:089Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 9: Séparée Scene. "How charming!" (Madeleine, Célestin, Pomerol, Aristide, Tangolita)5:2310Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 9: No. 14. Finale with Song and Duet. "Ladies dressed at the height of fashion" (Chorus, Mustafa, Radio Announcer, Crowd, Daisy)4:2211Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 9: Song No. 15. "Niagara Fox". "Here's the latest new craze" (Daisy, Ilonka, Trude, Giulette, Bessie, Mizzi, Maurice, René, Pomerol, Radio Announcer, Archibald, Bébé, Bartender)2:2812Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 10: "Bravo, Pasodoblé!" (Mustafa, Daisy, Chorus)1:4613Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 10: "What 'do' I like about you?" – Song No. 16. "Why am I in love with you?". "When women look at you my dear" (Daisy, Mustafa, Chorus)4:0514Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 10: Madeleine's Confession. "La, la, la… I am a more alluring senorita" (Madeleine, Aristide, Tangolita)5:1715Ball at the Savoy, Act II Scene 10: Song No. 17. "He swore that he'd be faithful" (Madeleine)4:1716Ball at the Savoy, Act III: No. 18a. Music Interlude2:2417Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 1: No. 18b. Melodrama. "Unbelievable! The wife of the Marquis de Faublas would never do a thing like that" (Archibald, Bébé)1:2218Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 2: "Bébé, where's my wife?" (Aristide, Bébé, Archibald, Mustafa)1:4319Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 3: No. 18c. Reminiscence. "I'll have a ball at the Savoy" (Madeleine, Bébé, Aristide, Archibald)4:1620Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 3: Song No. 19. "Take a trip with me to Alma-ata". "One thing I know now" (Madeleine, Mustafa)1:5621Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 4: "What's all the fuss about?" (Daisy, Archibald, Mustafa)1:2522Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 4: Song No. 20. "Why Am I in Love with You?" (reprise) (Mustafa, Daisy)0:3323Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 5: "Is everything packed?" (Madeleine, Bébé, Daisy)0:3224Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 6: "Madame, the attorney has arrived" (Archibald, Madeleine, Célestin, Daisy)0:3325Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 7: "So, you're Maitre Levy's representative?" (Aristide, Célestin, Madeleine, Daisy, Mustafa)1:1626Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 8: "Thank you" (Célestin, Mustafa, Aristide, Daisy)3:0627Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 9: "What a fine young man" (Mustafa, Daisy, Aristide, Madeleine, Archibald)1:1128Ball at the Savoy, Act III Scene 9: Postlude. "Oh, why am I in love with you" (Daisy, Madeleine, Mustafa, Aristide, Chorus)0:54
Single · 1
| Cover | Year | Title | Notes | First release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Die Blume von HawaiiSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 2 tracks1Die Blume von Hawaii I. Teil 2Die Blume von Hawaii II. Teil | — |
Stats & PK
Percentile within all 23,672 published artists.Put Paul Abraham head-to-head →
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 32 | 91.5th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 2 | 75.7th |
| Studio albums | 1 | 76th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 4 | 75.9th |
| Recording span (years) | -61 | 6.1th |
| Genres | 2 | 74th |
Awards & honours
Line-up
| Name | From | To | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Abraham und sein Orchester(band) | — | present | eponymous,original |
Where this record comes from
portrait—Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · retrieved 11 October 2026
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paul_Abraham.jpgaliases/urls—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/ea4cad4e-137d-4fed-9b3e-7482064da2d8discography—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/ea4cad4e-137d-4fed-9b3e-7482064da2d8core—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q158650genre—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 11 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q158650seed-list—wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Abrahambiography—wikipedia-en · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Abrahambiography—wikipedia-hu · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%81brah%C3%A1m_P%C3%A1l
Why this artist is in the database
- List of composers by name
Tier rule: historic figure (32 language versions, career ended)
Image: Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Wikidata: Q158650 · MusicBrainz: ea4cad4e-137d-4fed-9b3e-7482064da2d8
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