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Franz Lehár ( 30 April 1870 - 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer, mainly known for his operettas.

Lehár was born in Komárno (now in Slovakia) as the eldest son of a bandmaster in the Austro-Hungarian army. He studied violin and composition but was told by Antonin Dvorak that he had better give up playing and focus on writing music. After 1899 he lived in Vienna. He was also wrote a number of waltzes, the most popular being Geld und Silber as well as waltzes drawn from some of his famous operettas. The era in which his music thrived came to be known as the Silver Age.

He died in Bad Ischl .

Operettas

• The Merry Widow (Die lustige Witwe) ( 1905)
• The Count of Luxembourg (Der Graf von Luxemburg) ( 1909Events January 5 Colombia recognizes the independence of Panama. January 16 Ernest Shackleton's expedition finds the magnetic South Pole. January 28 United States troops leave Cuba after being there since the Spanish-American War. February 12 The National)
• Frederica ( 1928Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s Years: 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 See also 1928 in aviation 1928 in film 1928 in literature 1928 in mu)
• Land of SmilesLand of Smiles (Das Land des Lachelns in the original German) is a 1929 operetta by Franz Lehar. The show is set in China. The heroine is a European girl who marries a Chinese visitor and returns with him to his homeland despite the warnings of her friend (Das Land des Lächelns) ( 1929Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s Years: 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 See also 1929 in aviation 1929 in film 1929 in literature 1929 in mu)

Individual songs from some of these have become standards, notably "Vilja" from The Merry Widow and "You are my Heart's Delight" ("Dein ist mein ganzes Herz") from The Land of Smiles.