The Looted Enoch Erard Piano — Serial No. 68,037

In 1853 Carl Enoch established his music publishing house in Paris, today known as Enoch & Cie and under the direction of Danièle Enoch-Maillard, the fifth generation operating this publishing house. Carl’s grandson, Daniel Enoch, was running Enoch & Cie when Germany invaded Paris in June 1940. Daniel, in his 68th year, had run the firm with his brother since 1910. In his home he, his wife Anna, and their son Jacques played the rosewood grand piano that Daniel’s father, Wilhelm, had purchased directly from noted Parisian piano maker, Erard, on January 12, 1892.  Wilhelm Enoch’s wife, Evelyn, was a singer and they often held musical salons in their home with friends, including composers. Enoch & Cie had long served many important composers.

After the 1940 Nazi occupation of France and anti-Semitic legislation was enacted, control of Enoch & Cie was seized from Daniel Enoch. Daniel and his wife were arrested in June 1943 and interned at Drancy from June through October. Their son, Jacques, had fled to the south of France, taking refuge in Savoy.  Daniel and Anna were deported from Drancy to Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp on Transport 61 on October 28, 1943, where they perished. Jacques Enoch survived the Nazi occupation of France; when he returned to Paris he found that everything had been looted from his family’s home, including their important music library and the Erard grand piano that had been in the family for four generations. Jacques submitted a claim with the French government for the Nazi-looted objects, providing an inventory. Many of these losses were published in the French List of Property Removed from France during the war 1939-1945, including the Erard piano.

The Enoch Erard rosewood grand piano was never found. It bore the manufacturer’s number 68,037. This looted piano still bears this number, if it survived World War II. If you have information regarding this lost piano, please get in touch with Madame Enoch-Maillard or the Lost Music Project for assistance.