FRANZ LEHAR - INSCRIBED PICTURE POSTCARD SIGNED - HFSID 175536

FRANZ LEHÁR
Signed b/w picture postcard of Lehár sitting at a desk and composing a score. With a note in translated German reminding a "Lovely Miss Maria" that Radio Vienna was going to broadcast his operetta The Land of Smiles.
Picture postcard signed "Franz Lehár". With pencil notations on verso in unknown hand. 5¼x3½ overall, 4½x3 image, one surface. Agfa postcard. With two-line note in German, translated: "Dear Lovely Miss Maria On April 9th Radio Vienna transmits 'Land of Smiles' from 8:15 pm to 10:00 pm. Greetings to your dear parents Your very best…". The Land of Smiles was a three-act operetta composed by Lehár. It was first performed in Vienna, Austria in 1923 under the title Die gelbe Jacke, or The Yellow Jacket. It reportedly wasn't a success, and Lehár reworked it and presented it again in Berlin, Germany in 1929 as Das Land des Lächelns, or The Land of Smiles. Hungarian violinist and composer Lehár (1870-1948) was a major figure in the revival of Viennese light opera at the beginning of the 20th century. His work The Merry Widow (1905), popularized operetta in the U.S. He composed several marches as a military bandmaster before and during World War I. During the 1920s, Lehár incorporated new styles of popular music, including American blues, into his compositions, and began composing film scores. The composer, remained in Vienna during WWII, avoiding politics. Lightly toned, creased and bowed. Impression on image near upper edge (not visible head-on) Otherwise in fine condition.