Alain Bernheim

Alain Bernheim (23 May 1931 – 26 December 2022) was a French classical pianist who performed internationally. In 1980, he turned to research of the history of Freemasonry in France, Switzerland, and Germany. He published books and encyclopedic entries in the field.

Life Bernheim was born in Paris, on 23 May 1931, the son of André Bernheim, the owner and manager of the Théâtre de la Madeleine. At the age of twelve he was arrested by the Gestapo and sent to the internment camp Drancy. At fifteen he was chosen to represent the Lycée Janson-de-Sailly at the Concours Général of philosophy competition. He performed around 2,000 concerts until 1980, but then gave up his musical career for health reasons. He turned to Masonic research.

Bernheim wrote Les Débuts de la Franc-Maçonnerie à Genève et en Suisse (Slatkine, 1994), many entries of the Encyclopédie de la Franc-Maçonnerie (Pochotèque, 2000), Réalité Maçonnique (Alpina Research Group, Lausanne, 2007) and some 150 papers published in French, English and German masonic magazines. His book Une certaine idée de la franc-maçonnerie, was published September 2008 by Dervy, Paris, and Le rite en 33 grades - De Frederick Dalcho à Charles Riandey, in September 2011, also by Dervy.

Bernheim died in Montreux on 26 December 2022, at the age of 91.