Passionate spirit : the life of Alma Mahler / Cate Haste.

"Alma Mahler died in New York City in 1964, at the age of 85. The New York Times ran an obituary that described her as a woman whose "intellect...complimented her beauty." The obituary was something of a scandal: spicy, racy, naming the names of Alma's lovers, dredging up her secret affairs, and-in tone-passing judgment on this woman who had the audacity to be attracted to, and attractive to, men of genius. Since then, history has passed judgement on Alma, accusing her of being unworthy of her most famous husband Gustav Mahler. Now, for the first time, historian Cate Haste uses Alma's own diaries to set the record straight. Born in Vienna in 1879, Alma was an artist among artists-a talented musician who dreamed of being a composer and the first woman to write a famous opera. Passionate, romantic, and brilliant, Alma was stifled by society everywhere she turned. Eventually, she put her own dreams aside, and grabbed at power and influence through the only avenue available to her-supporting the art of more famous men. Alma Mahler's first love was painter Gustav Klimt. Her first husband was composer Gustav Mahler, followed by architect Walter Gropius, and then writer Franz Werfel. In and out of Alma's life, salon, and bed passed the great men of Europe in the late 19th and early 20th century-she was courted by opera singer Erik Schmedes, artist Oskar Kokoshka, and scientist Paul Kammerer; she drove Mahler to such despair that he consulted with Sigmund Freud, and she ran in the same circles as H.G. Wells, Sinclair Lewis, Francis Poulenc, Thomas Mann, Max Reinhardt, and Erich Remarque. Alma dedicated herself to nurturing the genius of the glittering men around her at the expense of her own artistic dreams"-- Provided by publisher.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 301-335) and index.

Vienna childhood 1879-1898 -- Awakening 1898-1899 -- Love and music 1889-1901 -- Divine longing 1901-1902 -- A nobler calling 1902-1907 -- Grief and renewal 1907-1910 -- "To live for you, to die for you" 1910-1911 -- Tempest 1911-1914 -- War and marriage 1914-1917 -- Intertwined souls 1917-1920 -- Conflict 1921-1931 -- Gathering storms 1931-1936 -- Flight 1936-1941 -- Exile 1941-1946 -- La grande veuve 1946-1964.