Was at one time the famed Hungarian conductor and pianist Ernő Dohnányi's youngest student. He won the 1915 Mendelssohn Prize.
He attended The Juilliard School after his father connected with conductor and composer Walter Damrosch, who arranged a scholarship for him.
His numerous piano rolls, recorded in the 1920s and 1930s for the AMPICO Piano Roll Company, remained popular among AMPICO collectors for generations.
He was born to Jewish parents who discovered his musical talents early on, beginning him on violin lessons when he was three.
He composed a cadenza for Ludwig van Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto.