Wilhelm Furtwängler

Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler was born 25 January 1886 and became principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic in 1922, a post he held until 1945. He also led the Gewandhaus Orchestra from 1922 to 1926 and guest-conducted the Vienna Philharmonic and other major ensembles. When the Nazis took power he did not leave Germany, unlike many peers, and remained the foremost conductor in the country despite his open opposition to antisemitism and Nazi symbolism - the regime tolerated him at Joseph Goebbels' insistence, for propaganda value. After the war he returned to the Berlin Philharmonic in 1952 and conducted there until his death on 30 November 1954. The question of whether his presence lent prestige to the Third Reich remains unresolved.