Raimund Pechotsch

Raimund Leo Pechotsch (June 1864 – 20 January 1941) was a composer of romantic and incidental musical theatre pieces. He was a Roman Catholic who also conducted liturgical music His elder son, also named Raimund Pechotsch (1 August 1886 – ) was a violin virtuoso. His younger son Eric (later known as Eric Mareo) was an orchestra conductor controversially convicted of his wife's poisoning.

Pechotsch was born in Vienna to parents of Czechoslavakian origin, his father Adalbert Pechotsch being a composer of some note. He studied at the Vienna Conservatoire and privately under Eduard Remenyi. He was one of three brothers who were members of the Austrian Strauss Band in 1880: Raimund on first violin; Adolf and Rupert both on contra-bass and trumpet. The band had been contracted to perform at the Melbourne Exhibition of 1881. He remained in Australia, but moved to Sydney.

He was in Brisbane then left for New Zealand 1889.

Pechotsch was musical director for Australian stage producer Oscar Asche. Raimund also worked for music publisher Palings and taught violin and piano in Sydney for many years.

Pechotsch wrote incidental music for Walter Howard's 1910 play The Prince and the Beggarmaid which was very successful in London and Australia. He also wrote music (orchestrated for ensemble of twenty) to accompany "Pete" a Lewis Parker stage adaptation of Hall Caine's novel The Manxman.

Later in life he remarried Alice McCarthy, the daughter of fellow Australian composer Dr William Charles MacCarthy.

On 17 September 1885 Pechotsch married Mary Elizabeth Curtis (born 1858 – 23 December), née Dolman, widow of Peter Campbell Curtis and mother of William John Curtis, KC.(1 September 1881 – 24 May 1940)

Around 1938 he married again, to the widow O'Hara, née MacCarthy, daughter of Dr Charles MacCarthy, an Irish Home Rule activist. MacCarthy was frequently written M'Carthy.

He had two brothers in Australia: