Herman-Walther Frey

Herman-Walther Frey was born on 26 March 1888 in Berlin (Germany). His father was the art historian Karl Frey. After completing his school education, he studied law and subsequently pursued an academic interest in the humanities alongside his administrative career.
After completing his studies, Herman-Walther Frey entered public service and from 1920 worked in the Reich financial administration, where he advanced from Regierungsrat to Oberregierungsrat. In 1935 he transferred to the Reich Ministry of Science, Education and National Culture and became a senior official in the department responsible for academic affairs. Between 1935 and 1945 he supervised a range of disciplines including musicology, theatre studies, art history, Oriental studies, prehistory, and Protestant and Catholic theology. During this period he joined the NSDAP (1930), later the SA (1933), and was also associated with the German Christian movement. In 1937 he received the rank of Ministerialrat.
Alongside his administrative work, Frey pursued scholarly activities in the fields of musicology and art history. He edited historical sources, published research on Renaissance art and music, and worked extensively on archival and documentary material. His publications included editions and studies connected with Giorgio Vasari and Michelangelo as well as musicological editions of historical repertoire. Among his music-related works were an edition of Ruggiero Giovannelli’s "Missa vestiva i colli" and the publication of sixteenth-century diaries of the Sistine Chapel.
After the end of the Second World War, Herman-Walther Frey was interned by American authorities. In denazification proceedings completed in 1949, he was classified as a Mitläufer (follower). He subsequently lived in retirement in Freiburg im Breisgau and continued his private scholarly interests. 
Herman-Walther Frey died on 28 April 1968 in Freiburg im Breisgau (Germany).

In my possession are two autograph manuscripts of piano works by Herman-Walther Frey. The first one is titled "I. N. D. / M. / Intermezzo", the other one "Satz II. / M." Both manuscripts are undated and came from the estate of pianist Elly Ney.