His mother, sister of the renowned musicologist Alfred Heuß, encouraged his artistic inclinations and he received his first piano and music lessons.
At an early age the son of a merchant showed his musical interest by composing small choral pieces.
After a long struggle for his father's permission, he studied composition (with Sigfrid Karg-Elert) and musicology (with Hermann Abert and Arnold Schering) at the State University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart from 1919 to 1921 and then in Leipzig from 1921 to 1923.
After completing his studies, he embarked on a momentous trip to Italy in 1924, visiting Sicily, Rome, Naples and Florence, during which he was greatly impressed by Italian architecture and painting.
In addition to publications, he supervised the "Peters-Nachrichten", co-founded the "Deutsches Jahrbuch für Musikwissenschaft" and after 1945 expanded the profile of the publishing house to include contributions from contemporary music.