Salteř, Hans J.

Salter was born on Jan. 14, 1896 in Vienna, Austria; attended the Vienna Academy of Music; studied with Franz Schreker and Felix Weingartner; became asst. conductor of the Vienna Volksoper and The Berlin State Opera; scored films in Berlin, becoming head of the music department at Universum-film Aktiengesellschaft (UFA); came to the US in 1937; wrote music for films, including It started with Eve, Christmas holiday, and Autumn leaves; wrote television scores for Wagon train, The Virginian, Laramie, and The June Allyson show.

Biographical Note

Hans Julius Salter (b Vienna, 14 Jan 1896; d Studio City, CA, 23 July 1994) was an film composer and conductor of Austrian birth. He studied at the University of Vienna with Guido Adler, Egon Wellesz and Hans Gál, and at the Vienna Music Academy with Franz Schreker, conducting with Weingartner, and composition with Berg. Later, Salter worked as an assistant conductor in at the Volks Opera in Vienna and other small opera companies. He then worked as a conductor at the State Opera in Berlin and later switched to conducting in movie houses in 1929. From 1930 to 1933 he composed musicals and dramatic motion picture scores for UFA Studios in Neubabelsberg. Before leaving Europe, Salter worked for the European Branch of Universal Pictures from 1933-1936. He emigrated to the United States in 1937 to work for Universal Pictures and became a U.S. citizen in 1942. (Letter written by Salter to ASCAP)

Originally hired as an orchestrator for Universal Studios in 1938, Salter was soon promoted to the rank of composer. With composer Frank Skinner he wrote music for serials, westerns, dramas, Deanna Durbin musicals and Abbott and Costello comedies. Salter received six Academy Award nominations for his musical comedy and drama scores including: It Started With Eve (1942), The Amazing Mrs. Holiday (1943), The Merry Monahans (1944), Christmas Holiday (1944), Can't Help Singing (1945), and This Love of Ours (1945). Salter is remembered today for his contribution to horror films such as The Wolf Man (1941), Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943) and House of Frankenstein (1944). When he retired in 1967, he had completed scores for over 200 films. He was honored with lifetime achievement awards from the Society of Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films in 1982 and the Society for the Preservation of Film Music. He received an additional tribute at the Viennale, Vienna Film Festival in 1993. (New Grove Dictionary of Music)