Max Wolf (composer)

Max Wolf (February 1840 in Weisskirchen , Moravia , † March 23, 1886 in Vienna ) was an Austrian composer of Moravian origin.

Wolf came from a wealthy merchant family and, at the request of his father, was also supposed to learn this trade. But he decided early on for a musical education; from 1856 he was a student of Adolf Bernhard Marx in Berlin and Felix Otto Dessoff in Vienna.

reception

In his early compositions, Wolf is still very much in the shadow of Jacques Offenbach . But he soon found his own unmistakable style, with which he became the declared darling of the public. His operetta The Blue Danube was performed 34 times in a row in Berlin in 1868 in front of a sold-out house.

Trivia

According to an anecdote , General Moltke is said to have enthusiastically asked Wolf for a military march after attending a Wolf concert, "so that a bit of fire can get into the boys".

Works (selection)

• The blue Danube. Operetta in one act . 1868.
• In the name of the king. Operetta .
• The portrait lady .
• The pilgrims. Opera in three acts . 1872.
• Cesarine .
• Rafaela .

literature

• Constantin von Wurzbach : Wolf, Max . In: Biographisches Lexikon des Kaiserthums Oesterreich . 58th part. Imperial-Royal Court and State Printing Office, Vienna 1889, p. 7 ( digital copy ).
• Scribner's Cyclopedia of Music and Musicians