Julia Kerr, a composer whose promising career was interrupted by the rise of Nazism, is receiving renewed recognition following the rediscovery of her opera Chronoplan, which she began in the late 1920s. The opera, set at Albert Einstein’s lakeside house in Caputh, southwest of Berlin, imagines Einstein unveiling a time machine to guests—a circle that included notable cultural figures of the era such as Richard Strauss, George Bernard Shaw, and Arthur Schnitzler.

Kerr, who fled Nazi Germany with her family in early 1933 after Adolf Hitler’s ascent to power, took the incomplete score with her as the planned premiere was canceled. Although her work faded into obscurity after the family’s escape and exile, recent efforts have brought her compositions back into the public eye. Descendants gathered at Einstein’s former summer residence—now the site of a cultural commemoration—to celebrate Kerr’s life and music. Performances of her previously overlooked works were given by singer-actor Ruth Rosenfeld and pianist Norbert Biermann, who has worked extensively on reconstructing Kerr’s compositions.

Julia and her husband, Alfred Kerr—a prominent theatre critic in Weimar Berlin—were part of the intellectual and artistic circle that often convened at Einstein’s house, which was built with funds from his Nobel Prize. The gatherings included boating on the adjacent lake and lively discussions until the Nazi regime forced many Jewish intellectuals, including the Kerr family and Einstein, into exile.

The resurgence of interest in Julia Kerr’s music is attributed in part to Christian Leitmeir, a historical musicologist at the University of Oxford. Inspired by Judith Kerr’s autobiographical novel When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, which references her mother’s piano playing, Leitmeir conducted archival research and uncovered Julia Kerr’s handwritten scores, previously miscatalogued under her husband’s name at the Berlin Academy of Arts. Meanwhile, Sonja Westerbeck, a dramatic adviser at the State Theatre in Mainz, rediscovered Chronoplan, which received its stage premiere earlier this year.

Westerbeck, present at the Caputh gathering, emphasized Kerr’s historical marginalization, stating that the composer had long been a “sub-clause” in family narratives and deserved reassessment. The Kerr family was also invited to Berlin by the curators of a forthcoming Exile Museum, scheduled to open in early 2028, which will highlight the stories of exiles including Julia, Alfred, and their daughter Judith Kerr, renowned author of The Tiger Who Came to Tea.

Julia Kerr’s great-grandson, George Kerr, expressed amazement at uncovering her artistic legacy decades after her death in 1965. He reflected on her lost potential, noting that she had to abandon composition to support her family during exile, working as a secretary and translator in England where Alfred did not speak English. After Alfred’s death in 1948, Julia returned to Berlin, supporting herself as an interpreter at the Nuremberg trials and later during John F. Kennedy’s 1963 visit to the city.

Chronoplan, which was recorded by Bavarian Broadcasting in 1952 as the first opera to receive a radio premiere, showcases Kerr’s eclectic musical style—a blend of diverse genres absorbed from her cultural milieu. Leitermeir described the recording sessions as among the most fulfilling experiences of her life, matching the visions she had held for over two decades.

Tim Kerr, Julia’s grandson and a retired high court judge, recalled her presence as a strong and creative influence, though he was largely unaware during his youth of the scope of her musical achievements. He noted that her legacy had been overshadowed by her husband’s critical prominence and her daughter Judith’s literary fame. The recent efforts to revive Julia Kerr’s music seek to restore her rightful place among early 20th-century composers whose talents were suppressed by historical upheaval.