Frank Ezra Levy, was born in Paris, France in 1930. Son of the legendary Swiss pianist and composer, Ernst Levy, he began his musical education after emigrating to the U.S. in 1939, where he first studied cello privately and then theory and composition with Hugo Kauder. Levy attended the Juilliard School, studying cello with Leonard Rose and graduating in 1951 with a B.Sc. degree. He studied musicology at the University of Chicago where he received his M.A. in 1954. While in Chicago he also continued his cello studies, this time with Janos Starker. He spent his lifetime composing while earning his living as a professional cellist. He had 219 published works including 13 symphonies, 17 string quartets and many other orchestral, vocal and chamber works. Frank Ezra Levy died in 2017, aged 89.