Moritz Moszkowski was a German composer and pianist of Polish-Jewish descent. Born in Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland), in 1854, Moszkowski was from a wealthy family and began his musical training at home from a young age. His family moved to Dresden in 1865, where Moszkowski enrolled at the conservatoire there to study piano. He later travelled to Berlin to continue his studies, becoming a teacher there in 1871.

Moszkowski began touring widely in 1873, and became well-known throughout Europe. After suffering from a neurological problem in his arm, he ceased touring but turned his attention to composing, experiencing continued success. He became well-known as a teacher, but by the beginning of the nineteenth century retired from this, as he believed that too many of his pupils wanted to 'write like artistic madmen'. The end of his life was characterised by poor health and poverty, though his music lives on and is still loved today.