EMANUEL LEPLIN

his life and career in a blur

Born in San Francisco, 1917. Violin lessons provided by Daniel Koshland Sr., a vice president of Levi Strauss. Began composing in high school.

Won George Ladd Prix de Paris as a sophomore at UC-Berkeley. Studied composing with Darius Milhaud and George Enescu in Paris and conducting with Pierre Monteux in France and Maine. Monteux called him “a born conductor.”

Was Acclaimed

Met Anita Shiner

Got married to Anita

They had two kids

Joined San Francisco Symphony as violist in 1942. Conducted SFS in his piece Prelude and Dance, in 1941 Was in the Army from 1943-45, but continued composing

Wrote frequently to Anita from Europe

Was chosen by Monteux to conduct his second work, Comedy, in 1947. Conducted Comedy eleven times on SFS’ transcontinental tour of 1947.

Designed a house in San Mateo, to which the family moved in 1951

Created a tile mosaic in the patio and a fishpond in the front yard

Designed other houses

Painted a number of oil paintings of local scenes. No one believes a good composer (let alone a great one) can also be a great painter.

Buena Vista

Japanese Tea Garden Bridge

Old De Young Museum

Got polio in 1954. Spent nine months in an iron lung.

SFS’ principal patron Agnes Albert arranged a benefit concert.

In 1954, SFS performed Comedy, which was broadcast into Leplin’s hospital room.

Returned to San Mateo in 1955, paralyzed from the shoulders down, except for the movement of the first three fingers of his right hand, with which he continued composing (like Beethoven, hearing all the music in his head).

Written with hand

Written with three fingers

In 1959, SFS performed his next two pieces, Landscapes and Skyscrapers.

Landscapes is austere, in an arc form, with an exciting climax in the middle. Skyscrapers is raucous, and includes the theme from the TV series Highway Patrol (which he loved to point out). These two paintings were displayed in the Opera House lobby. The orchestra is not up to the performance of this difficult piece, and is unable to fulfill its challenges, especially of rhythm.

These two paintings were on display in the Opera House lobby during the performances.

Symphony No. 1: Of the Twentieth Century performed by SFS under Enrique Jorda in1961

Symphony No. 2 performed by SFS under Josef Krips in 1966. (Krips sang it through in Leplin’s living room, exclaiming when finished: “It’s more complicated than Stravinsky!”)

Wrote a third symphony and a violin concerto (unperformed) and many chamber pieces. There were two men in wheelchairs at this one: Leplin and Darius Milhaud.

Continued to paint and was in a magazine, with his dog, Mocha...

Who had his own dog house with his own Van Gogh, just like Snoopy.

When she was not teaching, Anita lit his pipe, helped him paint, and prepared French cuisine while he read her the recipes.

In 1958, had a one-man show at the Legion of Honor Museum

After receiving an inheritance, built a vacation house on the Monterey Coast, for which he designed everything, including a chandelier. Possible prototypes: