Schedule
HostsWays to Give
HomePlaylistSchedule
HostsEventsOn DemandOur StoryOur TeamWays to Give Become a Sponsor
How to ListenVisit Help CenterContact Us

Find Us on Social Media:

Logo image

Find Us on Social Media:

Download Our Mobile App:

google play icon

About

HomePlaylistSchedule
HostsOn DemandOur StoryOur Team

Community

EventsWays to Give Become a SponsorPressDiversity StatementCareersAnnual EEO ReportDigital Accessibility

Help

How to ListenVisit Help CenterContact Us

©2025 Classical California

Sweepstakes RulesFCC ComplianceLocal Public FilesCPB ComplianceAnnual EEO ReportPrivacy PolicyCode of Integrity

articles / Women in Classical

Deep Dive: The Life and Legacy of Mana-Zucca

Women in ClassicalOpen Ears


All photos by Mana-Zucca Collection/Florida International University

About Open Ears: So many people who made invaluable contributions to classical music have been nearly lost to history or are underappreciated in their time. That’s why KUSC is starting Open Ears, a series of stories about composers, musicians, and conductors who deserve more recognition. You can learn more and explore other articles here.

If you know the song, I Love Life, you know the work of Mana-Zucca. Born Gizella Zuccamanof (later Zuccaman) on Christmas Day, 1891 (or 1885 or 1895, depending on the source), to Polish immigrants, Mana-Zucca changed her name to simplify her stage life. She was a piano prodigy, composer, actress, and one of the most recognizable faces from numerous ad campaigns. According to Florida International University, which is the holder of her archives, Mana-Zucca was one of the most photographed women of her time. She became known as the “Chaminade of America.”

When she was eight, Mana-Zucca made her debut with the New York Symphony Orchestra (the former rival to the New York Philharmonic), playing Beethoven’s first piano concerto. In 1914, she made her stage debut with a soprano role in Franz Lehár’s The Count of Luxembourg. She studied piano under Ferruccio Busoni, Leopold Godowsky, and Alexander Lambert, and composition under Hermann Spielter.

When she was a teenager, she and her sister Beatrice sailed across the Atlantic and eventually settled in Berlin, where her performances were very popular. She teamed up with Spanish violinist Juan Manon, eventually signing a contract to play sixty concerts with him over a three-year period in Germany and Russia.

After her stint in Europe, Mana-Zucca returned to the United States, eloping with Irwin M. Cassel. The couple split time between her home in New York City and his in Miami, Florida. He wrote the lyrics to her song I Love Life in 1923 and, after the birth of their first and only child in 1926, they put down permanent roots in Miami.

In total, Mana-Zucca composed two operas, a ballet, several orchestral works, chamber music, and a collection of 366 piano pieces called My Musical Calendar. Pianist Nanette Kaplan Solomon drew from that collection for her 2015 album, Badinage: The Piano Music of Mana-Zucca. We showcased this album as our Album of the Week, marveling at the compositional talent of a woman, successful in her day, but whose music has become lesser-known now 37 years after her death.

Women in ClassicalOpen Ears
Written by:
Brian Lauritzen
Brian Lauritzen
Published on 03.29.2025
Loading...

MORE LIKE THIS

The Real (House)wives of Classical Music: The Women Behind Bach, Schumann and Mahler

The Real (House)wives of Classical Music: The Women Behind Bach, Schumann and Mahler

The wives of J.S. Bach, Robert Schumann, and Gustav Mahler were talented musicians, long unacknowledged.

03/30/2025
Open Ears: Get to Know the Incredible Story of Marian Anderson

Open Ears: Get to Know the Incredible Story of Marian Anderson

Explore the inspiring journey of Marian Anderson, a trailblazing African American singer who overcame racial barriers to perform at the White House and Metropolitan Opera.

03/28/2025
Open Ears: Get to Know “the Dean of Black Women Composers”.

Open Ears: Get to Know “the Dean of Black Women Composers”.

Explore the life of Undine Smith Moore, a significant 20th-century composer and teacher of spirituals, known as "the Dean of Black Women Composers".

03/24/2025
Open Ears: The Resurrection of Florence B. Price

Open Ears: The Resurrection of Florence B. Price

Explore the life and legacy of Florence B. Price, the first African American woman to have a symphony performed by a major orchestra.

03/04/2025
Nora Holt: Free-Spirited Composer of the Harlem Renaissance

Nora Holt: Free-Spirited Composer of the Harlem Renaissance

Explore the life of Nora Douglas Holt, a pioneering African-American composer, singer, and critic from the Harlem Renaissance, whose contributions to music remain largely unappreciated.

02/01/2024
Behind the New Work Exploring the Life and Legacy of Matthew Shepard

Behind the New Work Exploring the Life and Legacy of Matthew Shepard

Composer Craig Hella Johnson brings his choral ensemble to LA for performances of "Considering Matthew Shepard", a tribute to the late gay student, at the Ford Amphitheatre.

10/01/2018